Let's do an easy dive

[Dizzi Lizzi]

Ok I'm ready to post my lesson.
Catalina Casino point. The situation was 3rd dive of the day. Very new diver, 12th ow dive in a very comfortable place (read false sense of security). In between dives I overheard someone say something to the effect of he was “tired of giving all this gas back to them” and indicating he was going to use up all his air. I thought to myself, yeah, I should use up more of my gas as I usually start with 3000 and return 900-1200. (Alum 80) Like the 8$ for air is too expensive. We usually use the rule of thirds. Anyway we were tired, and decided to do an easy dive along the wall at 20-30 feet and just sightsee and work on buoyancy. What I did not take into consideration was that it was windy up top, and we were diving with the current and I was tired. In addition the tide was just about turning to go out. Down below I did notice the current and thought to myself that it was going to be a hard swim back. We were holding onto the rocks to slow our speed/be able to look at the small critters. Barely even had to kick to move. I had no concept of how fast the current was and how far we went in such little time. At pressure of 1000 we decided to head back, thinking we were no more 5-10 min away from the steps. I blew through a lot of air fighting the current and at 250 decided I needed to surface and just swim in. Up top I was shocked at how far we had gone. It was windy (against me) and choppy on top. Still working hard, and frightened to descend because of my low air/current and now a surge as the tide was going out. Used my snorkel, but it was very scary, I was swallowing some water that was slopping into my snorkel , coughing a little and I was so tired. Every once in a while I took a few pulls from my reg as it was easier to breathe that way. My buddy stayed at my side the whole swim back, and his asking if I was ok made me feel so much safer. Made it to the steps with air in the tank, but needed help getting onto the steps as I could not pull myself up, and the tide was down so I was standing on rocks and trying to jump up with each incoming wave and being dragged back in with each outgoing wave.

I have heard that usually accidents are a cascade of events, one item alone may not endanger you but several together can present an insurmountable risk.

Here are my lessons, I’m sure there are more. Feel free but be gentle with me.

Don’t let others influence your safety.
Stick to the rules that are there for good reason. We do the thirds rule because I want a safety net.
Dive against the current and ride it back in
Know which way the current is going, and keep an eye on it for changes.
There is no such thing as a safe place to dive. You have to treat each dive with respect as things can go
bad quickly.
There is no such thing as an easy dive until you are back on dry land.
I need to be more aware of how the current, tide surge and swell affect diving.
I should have turned back when I noticed the current and just sightsee the other direction.
Don’t be cheap
I need to work on stamina for situations like these.
I should have put my weights on the steps to get out easier.

It was a humbling experience as I knew all the mistakes I was making, but did not listen to that wee little voice in my head.

Ok...GO

 

[lowviz]

Nicely written and your self-analysis is spot on. Welcome to the real world of diving.

Biggest threat: Overhearing something (like using all your gas) and then thinking that it is a pearl of wisdom. The tried and true basics are tried and true for a reason.

 

[yle]

The best parts of your story:

1. You survived with no injuries, except maybe a bruised ego.
2. You learned some important lessons early in your diving career that will make you a much better and safer diver for every dive in the future.

When you progress to doing deeper dives (in the 100 ft range), you'll see why the idea of using as much air as possible is ridiculous and can even be dangerous. If your breathing is well controlled, you'll find it's not unusual to finish a deeper dive with half a tank of air. This is because the dive will be limited by your NDL (i.e. time limit) and not by your air consumption.

When you pay for an air fill, you're paying for the opportunity to go diving, not for the air itself.

ps... I've experienced that current at the Casino Point dive park that you're describing, and it can be wicked; I had to rescue a guy once that was almost pulled out the end of the park an into the marina. Very deceptive, since the dive park is generally perceived as a nice, easy dive.

 

[Dizzi Lizzi]

I cannot wait till the day comes when I have to surface to avoid deco time vs air in tank . I'm a snoopy gal and always listening to see what "pearls of wisdom" I can get, but now I'm much more careful now and I ask "what could go wrong"? Seriously, what could go wrong.

 

[yle]

I cannot wait till the day comes when I have to surface to avoid deco time vs air in tank .

Take your time, enjoy the scenery. That's what diving is all about.

As for listening to others... I impress on my students that divers, by nature, tend to be very "helpful" people and it's natural when you're relatively new to assume that everyone else knows more than you do. But as lowviz mentioned above, the simple rules you learned in your OW class are the simple rules for a reason: they're designed to help you stay safe and keep you diving. As you gain experience you'll find many of those people that offer the most advice actually know the least.

 

[lowviz]

...//... Seriously, what could go wrong.

ROFL !!!

 

[NYCNaiad]

I think you did an admiral job walking through what went wrong & what you could have done better. It's very easy to make excuses, but you didn't.

I think you'll benefit from an experience like this as it makes sure you aren't complacent or cocky. You are at a critical point in your dive career...no longer a new newbie, but not yet a seasoned diver. Focusing on what you can improve on every dive (which I still do) will definitely help you become an even better diver & a fantastic buddy.

I think the other item to add to your list is thinking about what you would do if you are ever far from land again. Of course, you should do all you can to ensure you are not in this situation again including working on your stamina. However, if something happens (e.g., a rip tide sweeps you out, the boat leaves you, etc.) it's good to think about what'd you do because exhaustion and panic can kill.

 

[Dizzi Lizzi]

@NYCNaiad that's why I've got a Nautilus (on back order). I think the plan would be drop weights and call for help. I think the thing that kept panic at bay was the fact that the current took us laterally vs out to sea. @ anytime I could have yelled for help and would have had several rescuers either in the water or telling me to clamber up the breakwater. I was no more than 20-30 feet from land, but a good distance from the entry point.

Each dive I write what i need to practice next time. And I usually follow thru, depending on the conditions.

thanks everyone for your input. I plan to dive safely for a long time...

 

[diver0008]

Pick your dive spots.

Catalina is known for currents.

As a new diver, I would suspect that you were in over your head from the moment you entered the water.

Notwithstanding that you were "tired" even before the dive.

Scary.

 

[2airishuman]

Thanks for sharing your story.

I have a couple of items of unconventional advice to share. It has been pointed out to me that I'm too new to know anything so you'll have to decide for yourself if these are pearls of wisdom or not.

I overheard someone say something to the effect of he was “tired of giving all this gas back to them” and indicating he was going to use up all his air. I thought to myself, yeah, I should use up more of my gas as I usually start with 3000 and return 900-1200. (Alum 80) Like the 8$ for air is too expensive. We usually use the rule of thirds.

I like to go on longer dives sometimes, and also go on dives where I anticipate current or weeds requiring me to put effort into swimming.. When I do so, I use a larger cylinder (120), or more than one cylinder (twinset or stages), so that I can still do a rule of thirds dive even though I'm going to be in the water for two hours or whatever.

I think that the importance of considering larger/more cylinders as the safe way to go on a longer dive should be taught.

It was windy (against me) and choppy on top. Still working hard, and frightened to descend because of my low air/current and now a surge as the tide was going out. Used my snorkel, but it was very scary, I was swallowing some water that was slopping into my snorkel , coughing a little and I was so tired. Every once in a while I took a few pulls from my reg as it was easier to breathe that way.

On dives like this it's important to have a good float. Not just one that can hold up the flag, but one that has handles and is buoyant enough to provide some extra floatation in the event of this sort of emergency. If nothing else that would give you the confidence to know that you could stay out there in the ocean as long as you needed to if you became too tired to fight the current. Another thing they don't teach in class.

I haven't found the perfect float but here are some to ponder:

http://www.leisurepro.com/p-scpasb/scubapro-freediving-surface-buoy-complete

http://www.leisurepro.com/p-isctb/torpedo-buoy-orange-with-60-183-meter-line

Hawaiian Hard Float | MAKO Spearguns