Need help please with NAUI skindiver ditch and recovery

[Divingguy]

Last night I managed to keep my contacts in, and successfully complete 4 NAUI Divemaster skills - the 25 yd u/w swim, the 20 min tread, the Scuba ditch and recovery, and the Scuba bailout. However, the skindiver ditch and recovery kicked my butt. It was not a problem with holding my breath. The problem was that every time I went down to recover my gear, I would float up the surface before I could get everything on and purged. I tried various amounts of weight. The more weight I added, the more difficult the "tread" in between became, and the harder to get a good second breath to go back down. Any suggestions on "technique" or sequencing would be most appreciated.
Tom

 

[Ice9]

I know I certainly had to use weights. Not too much as to make the swimming part too difficult, but enough so that if I relaxed, I could get everything on.

In the end, the skindiver ditch and don is more mental than anything. I ended up trying it over and over, getting progressively more of the exercise done, until I could do the whole thing.

That being said, I truly hated that skill

 

[Divingguy]

Ice9: thanks for the response. I can see where a large part of this "skill" is mental. I do like your idea of breaking into pieces and then adding components. I have got to dial in the correct amount of weight, and then find a good sequence in which to do the recovery. I am thinking that if I recover and clear the mask first, that will consume some of the air that is making me float up, and may also help purge my body of the CO2 that triggers the breath mechanism. Question - did you use just enough weight to do a normal buoyancy check for the wetsuit itself, or did you add more beyond that and then just gut it up during the tread???

 

[Jim Lapenta]

You should be neutral if using a suit. Just enough weight to offset the suit buoyancy. We have to do ours with no weight but the pool is warm enough for that. It also helps if you practice exhaling a little as you go down. Coupled with the air you use to clear your mask this should help you stay down. I also recommend springs straps on the fins. This makes that alot easier. It also helps to hyperventilate a bit-maybe three breaths before starting the skill and diving down as this puts more oxygen in your system and helps you to delay the breathing response and exhale as you descend.

 

[Divingguy]

Thanks, Jim. I will try your weight and breathing suggestions, and am going to try donning the mask first. I hope to use Scubatoy's pool one night during the week, and see how it goes.
Tom

 

[Ice9]

I ended up with more weight than I should have. The surface swim was a pain but wow it was sure easy staying down!

 

[Divingguy]

Yeah, that was the real kicker Friday night. If I got enough weight to stay down on the recovery dive, it made it REALLY hard to tread water in between and get a good second breath. I have got to practice some more and find the right "balances" of weight, and air.

 

[tceylan]

FYI, purging CO2 also means purging some still usable O2 in your lungs.

 

[ClayJar]

You should be neutral if using a suit. Just enough weight to offset the suit buoyancy. We have to do ours with no weight but the pool is warm enough for that.

I was actually looking at the whole wetsuit/weight thing this weekend (since I just got my NAUI Standards and Policies Manual last Friday). I was actually wondering about having to wear a wetsuit for the snorkel swim, since it seems that would be too hot in the pool. (The outdoor pool I normally swim in is comfortable in a swimsuit, even with air temperatures near freezing.) According to the manual (page 2.77), it is indeed "To be performed wearing at least a wet suit jacket...".

Looking at the "Skin Ditch and Recovery" skill, that specifies "To be performed wearing at least a wet suit, a weight belt adjusted for proper buoyancy,..." (S&P page 2.117). From that, it seems as if you're supposed to need weight. Looking above that on the page, it says:

In skill descriptions that require wearing "at least a wet suit" the term is used generically. It is intended that the performer wear dive apparel that, because of its buoyant characteristic, requires additional ballast to achieve neutral buoyancy.

Obviously, I'm really new at this, and I may easily be missing something. (I'm glad the Leadership text made a point to say that errors happen and should be learned from.) I just want to see if I'm reading everything correctly.... (Okay, and remembering items from the S&P is one of the scariest parts of any prospective test, so practicing by asking seems like reasonable study. :biggrin


Incidentally, any news on the Skin Ditch and Recovery? We were expressly told that we were *NOT* to try it on our own before we were shown it in the pool, so it's one skill I have not practiced.

 

[Divingguy]

I was not able to practice or attempt the skindiver ditch/don last weekend. We spent the entire weekend working an OW class in the pool. I hope to accomplish several other skills while helping out at the lake this weekend, and then come back to that skindiver ditch and don in the next week or two.