Most Uncomfortable Dive

[sporket]

I'm sure everyone has more than one story to tell. This is mine:

Today, I took a leisure dive with a friend and a very experienced diver. First off, I have never dove this location before. I was using his tanks and boat (experienced diver). We arrived to dive site #1. I asked what our plan was, and was told were going to dive in a grid type pattern. No lines just a compass. So the three of us took off. The viz was LOW around 3-4 feet. No problem, I switch on my light and prepared to stick like glue. As we were skimming along the bottom, I saw the largest muscle I have ever seen. I just looked down a few seconds and poof I was alone. Totally calm, I looked around and found no one. I waited around 1 min looking, saw nobody. So I surfaced and found bubbles 15 yards off in the wrong direction. I did a surface swim and pounced. I reached the bottom and nada. Surfaced again, found more bubbles and pounced again. This time money. Never taking my eye off them. Finally, dive one over!

Second dive. We headed over to an underwater forest. Needless to say my gut was screaming NO. I'm diving a Zeagle Ranger LTD, absolutely nothing wrong this this BC. Its a great piece of equipment. But as you may know. it has so many straps and buckles it just begging to be snaged on somehthing. Coupled with the vizablity, I sould have made this a no dive. But, I'm in need of buddies right? So in we go. No dive plan, other than "were just gonna swim around a bit". I sateted lets keep this one shallow due to the viz. It wasn't 5 min into the dive and you guessed it I was seperated and was hung by one of my fins. A branch went straight through the hole on my jet, immobilizing me. I easly untangle myself surface and found my buddies chatting on the surface. That was it. I decided to stay within 10 of the boat and surface and work on my skills.

Others may dissagree, but if this dosen't scream I need more traning, then nothing ever will. Preferably DIR-F (at the least). Which is why this is posted in this section. I wanted to hear what others in DIR thought. Since this is my chosen path. I realise this is elementy diving to some of you guys/gals. To me it was a major concern.

1) Buddy seperation. This is simply not acceptablein my book. Not being harsh on the other divers. But, to them it was no big deal.

2) I was the only one using a light. Its in my mindset that this wasn't for enhancing my vizablity, but rather as a better refernce to where I was.

3) I need better planning. Plain and simple.

4) My equiptment. The BCD I was using in my mind isn't acceptable. Although I didn't have it snaged on anything was nothing short of a miracle.

Anything else I missed please enlighten me. I have tuff hide and can take the critism. Thanks to you my mindset is changing in how I dive.




PS: If this is an unacceptable post in this form please move it. This probably belongs in the DIR Practitioner's forum

 

[Bismark]

Rule # 1, don't dive with unsafe divers. For me that means someone who's view on being dive buddies means "same day, same ocean". DIR is all about the team and you will have a heck of a time trying to be part of a team is you are the only one that feels that way.

3-4 ft viz, a light may or may not have helped. Yes, it will make it easier to see but.......diving in 3-4 ft viz with buddies who don't bother to check for you or insist on keeping it tight may be a bit ahead of the game for you right now.

At this stage of the game, better planning is needed most assuredly. Even something simple such as "if we get separated, look for one minute, then surface".

I am an advocate of BP/W, however, if you are diving somewhere where you are that concerned about entanglement hazards, in low viz, you are probably in a bit over your head at this point anyways. A BP/W will not help that. "Don't solve a skills problem with an equipment solution". Ask yourself, "what am I doing in an underwater forest, with bad viz, with buddies who just demonstrated a lack of situational awareness, and a piece of equipment that is an entanglement hazard. A DIR diver is a thinking diver.......so I suggest that you start thinking these things through. DIR F is not a silver bullet. Bad decisions are still bad decisions and you don't need a Fundamentals class to work on that.

In the future, communicate with your buddies what you want to do underwater, get their acknowledgment, then do it. This is a hard pattern to learn but it will serve you in good stead with pretty much any buddy.

If you can find some DIR divers within easy driving/diving distance, call them up and set up some dives. This may be the best thing you can do for yourself and will truly introduce you to the different mindset I am referring to.

Good luck.

 

[TSandM]

I don't think it belongs in the Practitioner's forum, but you're likely to take some heat here.

Nevertheless, I have to tell you that it was experiences like yours that primed me to fling myself headlong into DIR training when I discovered it. Diving Puget Sound, in low viz, and trying desperately to keep track of buddies who were never where I could see them, and often were swimming in entirely different directions, made me entirely nuts. On my 20th dive, I was buddied with someone who had a good, focused light; who was quiet and stable in the water, and predictable, and signalled before doing anything unexpected. I took one look at him and knew, beyond a doubt, that THIS was how I wanted to dive. The rest is history.

Have fun with your further training; I suspect from what you have written, that GUE training and team diving will suit you beautifully.

 

[nadwidny]

I don't think it belongs in the Practitioner's forum, ...

I doubt it even belongs in this forum.

 

[jjones9527]

Most uncomfortable dive. Scootering around for an hour with things not sitting quite right in the drysuit around the crotch strap area.

 

[Charlie99]

Others may dissagree, but if this dosen't scream I need more traning, then nothing ever will. Preferably DIR-F (at the least). Which is why this is posted in this section.

Since you are violating in multiple ways both your basic OW training and common sense, I don't see how additional training will help.

What do you expect to learn in DIR-F that would solve your problems with buddies, risk assessment, dive planning, and judgement?

If you are doing a stupid thing, that you know is stupid, then additional training doesn't solve the problem.

 

[danvolker]

Since you are violating in multiple ways both your basic OW training and common sense, I don't see how additional training will help.

What do you expect to learn in DIR-F that would solve your problems with buddies, risk assessment, dive planning, and judgement?

If you are doing a stupid thing, that you know is stupid, then additional training doesn't solve the problem.

Charlie, I think you are being a little harsh. For all we know, this guy is a fairly new diver, and as such, "experienced divers" would normally have a great deal of "sway" in getting him to do the dives they want. He is asking the right questions. And he is aware that he needs to being far more selective about his buddies.

I think DIR F training would be great for him, and an even bigger need for him, will be finding "good divers" in a peer group he can dive with ( preferably DIR divers).
Regards,
Dan

 

[Meng_Tze]

DIRF training may or may not help. It will definitely make him a better diver. But if he dives with others who still do not look out for their buddies, being the best DIRF diver will not make any difference; he would still be swimming alone....

 

[sporket]

I took the dive because it was an opportunity for me to dive with our Director of Rescue/Recovery dive team (experienced diver), for our county and the surrounding four other counties. No intention of me bashing him here. The other diver whom I've also never dove with has even less experience than I. And I have under 100 dives. Also, I'm having a very difficult time finding divers in my area let alone someone who buys into DIR philosophy as I am. What I did take from the dive was, although not the most earth shattering reason, was my need for a totally team oriented dive group. I was also disturbed by the fact that the other two divers thought of the dives as very normal. Finally, the reason I posted the dive here was to pick the brains from those already subscribed in DIR philosophy--Sorry Carlie!

 

[Tortuga68]

"Don't solve a skills problem with an equipment solution"

/applauds