Julius SCHMIDT
Contributor
Balls to one side it's far more relaxing diving with a decent sized pony. Depends on the diving. In Australia mainly Queensland over the past few years I have seen two divers with a pony and one solo diver.
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I understand what you are trying to say but I don't believe you are 100% correct. Solo diving (for those properly trained, equipped and experienced) also requires some form of air source redundancy. In this instance there is no buddy for air sharing.
Divers being self reliant, and diving with friends, makes sense to me.
When it comes to terms we can’t just make it up. There are industry standard definitions. Yours is not a pony bottle. What you really have there based upon your usage pattern is a kind of independent doubles. The way you use it it’s NOT a pony bottle.
You absolutely can dive however you wish. But be careful about co-opting terms and using them incorrectly. It can cause significant confusion especially for new divers.
Ponies are not to be incorporated into ones gas plan as has been mentioned to you on several occasions. How about you just call your pony a stage and stop pushing your particular brand of diving
Using a pony improperly to extend bottom time, especially on deeper dives, has the potential to put an untrained diver into deco..
The other thing divers need to understand when they decide to carry a pony is that it is NOT part of your available gas plan. It's for when stuff hits the fan and you have no other option. You still dive as if you were not carrying it.
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Pony refers to how it’s used not where it’s mounted. If it’s a redundant air source not factored into your gas plan it’s a pony. It’s there for emergency use only and is primarily used by solo divers. Regardless of whether it’s back mounted or slung.
If it’s factored into your gas plan in any way, meaning you plan to use it at a point in your dive, it’s a stage or deco bottle. If you’re diving CCR it’s a bailout bottle. These are almost always slung at the side.
TDI has some very good definitions, presumably applicable in the UK as well as elsewhere in the world.
Diving with redundant air source for recreational divers - SDI | TDI | ERDI | PFI
Pony cylinders (3-40 cuft) are categorized as redundant air sources...not to be included in your gas plan. They are for emergency use. They can be slung or back-mounted. How they are carried does not change their name or their use.
PADI also defines a pony as a reserve cylinder (6-49 cuft, 1-4 lt). The reserve cylinder is defined by its intended use, not its mounting.
NAUI also defines a pony as a "completely separate source of air," used "as a back-up system"
A stage bottle is part of your gas plan, and extends your dive...no matter how it is carried\, or whether you drop it or not.
See Pony bottles VS stage bottles for a succinct description.
The point: ponys and stages are distinguished by their intended usage, not their method of being carried. In my travels around the world, this seems to be agreed. Here on SB, the argument comes up sporadically, often from UK divers who maybe don't get out and about much.
This means that you should be able to run your main tank down to roughly half the pressure that you would normally need to reserve should you not have a pony.
Thus, it seems like you can "safely" run your tank down lower than "normal" and you therefore are using the pony bottle volume in your calculations and contingency plans. I view this as one of the benefits of a pony bottle - you can safely extend you bottom time due to an increase in emergency gas supply.
What is the problem with this line of thinking?