cebudiver:I meant I want to go with what works for me. I have read in some of these forums that some DIR divers wont dive with people that are not following DIR to the T. I don't beleive in this ideal. The would rather dive alone than dive with someone who is not 100% DIR.
New rule:
Rule Number 1: Don't believe everything you read on the internet.
(and btw)
Rule Number 2: Do not talk about Fight Club.
Rule Number 3: Do not talk about Fight Club.
For a bit more detail on hose lengths. I am 6' 1" or so, and I started with a 5' hose since I didn't have a can light and wasn't doing overhead environments. The hose wrapped around me ok, but I was finding that since it "rode high" on my chest, the long hose would sit on top of the backup reg bungeed under my neck, and limit accessability. This was not a big problem if I was donating my primary, since the hose would then no longer be there when I reached for my backup, but sometimes in drills I wanted to reach the secondary while I'd clipped off the primary, and then it would be in the way.
So I went for the 7' hose, which goes lower on my body (and tucks into my right side waistband. I could now reach the secondary even with the long hose undeployed, which was just more comfortable.