Instructors wearing drysuits while students wear wetsuits

[h2ogypsy]

Hi everyone. For years I have followed the mantra that Instructors should not wear drysuits if their students aren't (Instructors should feel what their students feel). I have had a change of heart and would like others' opinions:
I teach in 45 degree water at this time. We all know the effects of Hypothermia (slow reactions mentally and physically, decreased ability to recognize problems before and/or when they are happening, etc.). Also, I am a thin female and I used to wear a 5 ml working in Puerto Rico all year long! I get cold easily and quickly.
As an Instructor, gear aside, I am not feeling what my students are feeling anyway (i.e. stress of skill performance, stress of the unknown, lack of experience, etc.). Also, I am responsible for their well-being and putting myself at risk of not being able to assist them if needed because I am in stages of hypothermia is irresponsible at the least.
Also, other Instructors and Trainers I have run this by that do not agree with me are themselves wearing things that their students aren't such as, Full-face masks, accelerated wet suits (above 6 mil when their students are in 5 mil or maybe a farmer Jane/John), they have heavy-duty gloves, hoods, booties, and so on.
As an Instructor I should be able to recognize how my students are feeling by not only the conditions I allow them to dive in, but by their actions and reactions and simply just looking at them. Also, I am often in the water longer than they are. I will often send some students for a surface interval while bringing my next group in to maybe finish off a dive or do an Advanced dive, so I am going to be colder than my students anyway.
And finally, off the subject of safety, students will often buy what their instructors are wearing. Are we not supposed to push higher learning (ex., dry suit classes) and support our dive shops by guiding students in gear-buying?
Anyway, I have a lot more I could say but I really want some opinions because as soon as I get my neck seal fixed I am seriously considering diving dry. I certify a lot of Marines and they don't seem to mind diving all winter long!
Thank you kindly for your opinions/advice

 

[lonebrave]

I can only comment from a students perspective, but I see no problem in my instructor using differing gear than I am, as long as the instructor is competent in the course material and the gear selection is not contradictory to the subject matter. For example, I would not want to take a sidemount course from an instructor wearing BM, or a drysuit course while the instructor is wearing a wetsuit. I would not mind taking a course such as search & recovery or rescue with either an instructor or fellow students in a mix of differing gear (in fact, I would probably welcome it in the rescue course).

 

[h2ogypsy]

Thank you very much for your opinion. That really helps a lot especially coming from a student-perspective. Happy, safe diving to you.

 

[dbulmer]

I'm just an OW diver but I believe that if water temperatures are below 20C both instructor and students should be wearing drysuits. (7mm would be a compromise).

My rationale is very simple: diving should be fun for both students and instructor.

Being cold is not fun - the added stress induced by cold water is a safety concern and I don't think a student can learn that well when all they want to do is get in and out as quickly as possible and get the dives over with.

I also think that instructors in cold water locations should be actively encouraging their students to dive in local waters - it can be fun for the student and good for an instructor's income if they are not losing their students to instructors in warmer climates. If the experience for the student is a miserable one due to climate then surely investment in some drysuits is not a bad idea for larger shops.

I appreciate it might not be practical for some independent instructors to own drysuits because of the cost and having to cater for a multitude of fits but I don't think training in anything less than 7mil in cold water is a good idea either so either get 7mm/drysuits or reschedule the trainng.

 

[RJP]

Why not offer OW students the option to do their OW dives in a dry suit? An extra pool session and one extra dive and they can get their OW and DS cards on the same weekend.

As dbulmer says, it may not be a viable option for an independent OWSI, but for a shop that trains in cold/coldish water offering this option should be de rigueur.

 

[TMHeimer]

Here we tend to "split" classes so a class of 10 becomes 2 classes of 5. Obviously, this makes keeping track of everyone while doing the skills on the checkout dives easier. Means the instructor & DM are in the water 4 times each day for the whole class to accomplish the 2 dives. Drysuit needed for staff. I dive wet, so this severly limits my DM opportunities in Nova Scotia.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I do not own a 7 mil. So teaching in a drysuit while students are wet is the norm. That said I only teach OW in warmer months and when conditions are such that they are not endangered by the cold. I also make sure students know starting from day one in the pool that their thermal tolerance dictates class and dive length. Even if it means extra sessions or shorter dives. I can react to situations faster if not distracted by the cold. My thinking is clearer and that only benefits students. I have a good idea of what the dives will be like based on pool sessions.

---------- Post added December 16th, 2012 at 04:25 PM ----------

Another fact is that not only is having a few drysuits on hand a burden to independent instructors but to many shops as well. Especially to have suits that will fit correctly. A well fitting 7 mil may actually be warmer and certainly safer than a dry suit that does not fit.

 

[Hawkwood]

I always dive in a drysuit up here, teaching or not. Students always have the option of doing their OW in a drysuit. We encourage it.

 

[Glenn08]

I am surprised to hear an instructor say a student could do their open water checkout in a dry suit. When my son complained about being cold, the instructor's suggestion was to buy a custom-fit wetsuit, each 6 months if necessary. Instead, I got my son into a dry suit. How many instructors are open-minded to open water students in dry suits ?

 

[Hawkwood]

We live in a climate where OW in a drysuit is not unusual - in fact it is quite common. It has nothing to do with being open-minded, it has to do with training the students to dive in local conditions, if that is what they want.