If you're a stickler, you could say that the first solo dive I had was my sixth dive (last of the basic checkout set), during which I became sick during the dive. I communicated this to my instructor, and he replied that he would take my buddy while I made my ascent using my computer to carefully monitor my ascent rate.
If you're a cynic, you could say that after my first four dives (for which I was the odd man out and therefore tossed with an experienced buddy), you might consider the rest of my dives solo-plus-liability, since at no point did I allow myself to *rely* on a buddy for anything. It's not that I don't like or trust a buddy, and I would welcome their help should something go wrong and they offerred, but I would not consider it wise to plan for them to be there just when something goes pear-shaped at depth. I make a point to plan for independent diving, and then I add on whatever I would need to assist a buddy in distress, so from a cynical, mathematical analysis, one could say that such is "solo-plus-liability" diving. (I'm not that cynical, so I would never say that. I'd call it a rather fun time.)
If you're in a thread somewhere else here on ScubaBoard, you just might say that I've been solo diving each and every time I've popped into a pool to play around or check things out, in which case, that would be from dive 6.1 on... or dive seven if you log pool dives... hehe. (Chances are, I might have difficulty suppressing a warm-hearted chuckle.)
If you're just a normal person, on the other hand, you'd probably say I've been solo diving off and on since dive 16, not counting a considerable number of pool dives. All my truly solo dives have been planned as such, not solos as a backup plan, and I am very regimented in my preparations for them.
An example of my solo prep work:
Days before my first solo, I went through a complete dry run of gearing up, writing every itsy-bitsy step down. I then typed everything up, added several additional steps of re-checking critical gear, and printed up a checklist. I then went back and checked off my gear on the contents list and followed the printed checklist step-by-step without any interpretation or interpolation. For any missing steps, a new list was created, and I started over. After three runs through it with no changes and nothing left out, I printed up several final copies and laminated and bagged them. I agreed that if anything failed, I could try to correct it, and if I was successful, I would be *required* to start the checks over from the beginning. If any detail could not be satisfied, the dive was scrubbed with no possibility of parole. (I knew I'd want to say, "It's not a big deal..." and go on, especially if I wasn't at the top of my mental form, so I determined those rules were *absolute*.)
When I packed my gear, I checked everything off on the checklist *in* *order*, and when I got to the site of the solo dive, I followed the list *precisely*, even if it did seem just a bit over the top, even for an _almost_ OCD personality like mine. When I got to the water to start the dive, I knew that I would not have to deal with having forgotten anything or any checks. Obviously, I had to monitor my dive and be prepared for any potential gear failures, but there was no way I'd be starting a dive with a problem.
I now dive every dive with my solo-inspired checklist, and more than once I've had to start over after encountering a violation. The last time was an O-ring that I didn't like the looks of. I extracted the old, cleaned the cruft from around it, popped in a new one, and started over from the top -- "Car key clipped in BC pocket?"
If you're a cynic, you could say that after my first four dives (for which I was the odd man out and therefore tossed with an experienced buddy), you might consider the rest of my dives solo-plus-liability, since at no point did I allow myself to *rely* on a buddy for anything. It's not that I don't like or trust a buddy, and I would welcome their help should something go wrong and they offerred, but I would not consider it wise to plan for them to be there just when something goes pear-shaped at depth. I make a point to plan for independent diving, and then I add on whatever I would need to assist a buddy in distress, so from a cynical, mathematical analysis, one could say that such is "solo-plus-liability" diving. (I'm not that cynical, so I would never say that. I'd call it a rather fun time.)
If you're in a thread somewhere else here on ScubaBoard, you just might say that I've been solo diving each and every time I've popped into a pool to play around or check things out, in which case, that would be from dive 6.1 on... or dive seven if you log pool dives... hehe. (Chances are, I might have difficulty suppressing a warm-hearted chuckle.)
If you're just a normal person, on the other hand, you'd probably say I've been solo diving off and on since dive 16, not counting a considerable number of pool dives. All my truly solo dives have been planned as such, not solos as a backup plan, and I am very regimented in my preparations for them.
An example of my solo prep work:
Days before my first solo, I went through a complete dry run of gearing up, writing every itsy-bitsy step down. I then typed everything up, added several additional steps of re-checking critical gear, and printed up a checklist. I then went back and checked off my gear on the contents list and followed the printed checklist step-by-step without any interpretation or interpolation. For any missing steps, a new list was created, and I started over. After three runs through it with no changes and nothing left out, I printed up several final copies and laminated and bagged them. I agreed that if anything failed, I could try to correct it, and if I was successful, I would be *required* to start the checks over from the beginning. If any detail could not be satisfied, the dive was scrubbed with no possibility of parole. (I knew I'd want to say, "It's not a big deal..." and go on, especially if I wasn't at the top of my mental form, so I determined those rules were *absolute*.)
When I packed my gear, I checked everything off on the checklist *in* *order*, and when I got to the site of the solo dive, I followed the list *precisely*, even if it did seem just a bit over the top, even for an _almost_ OCD personality like mine. When I got to the water to start the dive, I knew that I would not have to deal with having forgotten anything or any checks. Obviously, I had to monitor my dive and be prepared for any potential gear failures, but there was no way I'd be starting a dive with a problem.
I now dive every dive with my solo-inspired checklist, and more than once I've had to start over after encountering a violation. The last time was an O-ring that I didn't like the looks of. I extracted the old, cleaned the cruft from around it, popped in a new one, and started over from the top -- "Car key clipped in BC pocket?"
