New diver, simple question.

[moose200x]

Awesome soltari, you've made me feel even more excited for this.

Herman- You are so right about making friends, I've actually had one person already offer to dive with me.


I am getting anxious. Tomorrow I gotta call the boss lady at my local dive shop to set up a discover dive date and see if she has gear for me. This place only is charging $414 and that covers all gear cept personal gear. It gets you the OW cert and 4 local dives in a quarry.

They say the fish there will swim right up to you, that sounds amazing. Man, swimming underwater. It's like going into outer space.

 

[Aggiebq86]

Here is a wetsuit you might want to check on.

AKONA 3mm Wetsuit - 5XL - eBay (item 320678267958 end time Apr-05-11 18:27:16 PDT)

 

[Hammerhead]

I forgot to add that I am very obese. I weigh in right now at 406lbs. Will this be a problem? I am hoping to drop another 25-50 before starting classes.

Hi Moose,

One of my regular buddies is pretty much your size. With nearly 2,000 dives to my name, I still hope one day to be as good as him in the water - size isn't an issue for comfort in diving, provided you can get equipment that fits good - ill-fitting equipment is a commonly overlooked cause of diver stress. Little niggles can become a big PITA when other factors come into play.

If you can get a suit off the peg that fits OK, go for it. If not, bite the bullet and go tailor made. Also for the BCD - I'm sure there will be an ordinary BCD out there for you, but the backplate and wing option is a good one because all you need to adjust is the webbing, which can be any length. Get it right over the first few dives and you'll be comfortable for a long time.

Oh, and a mask - take your time here, try them out and get one that fits you. That could be $10 or $100, they all do the same job.

Last point (and I don't mean to be personal), you might want to get a doctor to give you the once-over to get a general idea of your real fitness. You may only be looking at non-challenging stuff, but knowing that, apart from a few lbs, you're in good shape removes another potential source of stress.

Last, last point, kudos to you for having the initaitive to look past any physical imperfections. We've all got them, and divers come in all shapes and sizes. Better still, most divers are great people, who'll accept you for what you are. I get a feeling that you're taking the first steps on a very worthwhile journey - enjoy it!

Cheers,

Larry