I wasn't there nor did I see any profile info. We ran into each at the pool during some confined training. He stopped by and was talking about his dives and how fantastic they were in Hawaii. He said they had hired a private DM that treated them "like royalty" and it was a great experience. In the discussion he mentioned that he couldn't believe how deep they went and that he looked at his computer and they were at 76 feet. Other than that, I really don't know any details. Another DM and I talked to him about the reasons for the 40 foot limit and such but that was the end of the discussion. For this post, I was interested to see what others have seen as the norm. I have two jow divers and definitely keep them to standards depths... Thanks for posting!
Junior depth limits... shouldn't we follow?
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I wasn't there nor did I see any profile info. We ran into each at the pool during some confined training. He stopped by and was talking about his dives and how fantastic they were in Hawaii. He said they had hired a private DM that treated them "like royalty" and it was a great experience. In the discussion he mentioned that he couldn't believe how deep they went and that he looked at his computer and they were at 76 feet. Other than that, I really don't know any details. Another DM and I talked to him about the reasons for the 40 foot limit and such but that was the end of the discussion. For this post, I was interested to see what others have seen as the norm. I have two jow divers and definitely keep them to standards depths... Thanks for posting!
adurso
Contributor
I, and other older types, started diving very young and dove way beyond what the agencies state as junior depths, and suffered no ill results.
With that said, my kids started at 10 and stayed shallow (above 40) until their epiphyseal plates appeared to be replaced by epiphyseal lines.
The reasoning is very straightforward; why take the chance?
The US Navy developed tables by subjecting fit young men to pressure. No one will do that with 10 year olds, so the only data that will exist will come from accidents.
I preferred not to take that chance with my children.
With that said, my kids started at 10 and stayed shallow (above 40) until their epiphyseal plates appeared to be replaced by epiphyseal lines.
The reasoning is very straightforward; why take the chance?
The US Navy developed tables by subjecting fit young men to pressure. No one will do that with 10 year olds, so the only data that will exist will come from accidents.
I preferred not to take that chance with my children.
I was certified in 1962 at age 11. I made several dives below 100' with more experienced divers before the year was out. Skills, stamina, judgment, and competence in the water are the factors to consider; not age in isolation. There are plenty of 40 year olds I won’t dive with. In fact, I have met few "dive masters" I won't dive with.
Your arguments are valid, especially from the perspective of a parent.
I agree that incurring all but the shortest decompression dives is an unnecessarily risk given the comparatively small tissue database. However, that same argument can be made for females and the vast majority of males in recreational diving based on age and physical conditioning — myself included.
Paraphrasing a Navy Master Diver: Volunteer US Navy Divers at EDU (Experimental Diving Unit) are all excellent physical specimens… except maybe for alcohol abuse. I'm not sure the human experiments that took place on Navy Divers in the early days of developing decompression tables would be acceptable today at all, let alone children.
Your arguments are valid, especially from the perspective of a parent.
I agree that incurring all but the shortest decompression dives is an unnecessarily risk given the comparatively small tissue database. However, that same argument can be made for females and the vast majority of males in recreational diving based on age and physical conditioning — myself included.
Paraphrasing a Navy Master Diver: Volunteer US Navy Divers at EDU (Experimental Diving Unit) are all excellent physical specimens… except maybe for alcohol abuse. I'm not sure the human experiments that took place on Navy Divers in the early days of developing decompression tables would be acceptable today at all, let alone children.
My experience is that there are dive OPs who will consider that there is a Junior on board and go to an appropriate dive site and there are OPs who will take your 12 yr to Devils throat. The adult diving with the Jr. is the one who should determine the max depth for the dive no matter how deep the site.
In addition the unknown physiological affects on growing young people. .... the Jr. has to be mature enough to understand the physics of diving deep and the reasons they cannot surface quickly from depth. If they do not yet fully understand this then this is another reason to keep them at the shallow depths.
In addition the unknown physiological affects on growing young people. .... the Jr. has to be mature enough to understand the physics of diving deep and the reasons they cannot surface quickly from depth. If they do not yet fully understand this then this is another reason to keep them at the shallow depths.
adurso
Contributor
If the junior does not understand the physics of diving any depth, and the reasons they cannot surface quickly from any depth, they have no business diving......
dumpsterDiver
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I was forced to wait until just after my 7th b-day to start scuba, because my aau swim meet schedule kept me too busy until after the State Meet.
My first dive below 90' was just after I turned 8, also delayed by my similar aau schedule that year.
I am now a financially struggling dive instructor living in Maui Meadows. Well, my bones are just fine...
My first dive below 90' was just after I turned 8, also delayed by my similar aau schedule that year.
I am now a financially struggling dive instructor living in Maui Meadows. Well, my bones are just fine...
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