Out of Air at 84 ft

[Windminstrel]

I never would have thought of that. This newbie appreciates these hypo's!

Good lord, man -- if you're even considering such a thing, I'll invite you to sample the funky air in by BC. I'd rather have a glass catheter inserted and broken than breathe that feculent miasma. What would you get? 2 breaths of the nastiest air on the planet, lung cancer, and a case of the underwater heaves? No thanks, 'mano!

 

[Kim]

Does that make me a jerk?

Definitely not. It makes you someone who was obviously paying attention in your OW class, and has a healthy safe attitude.

 

[Nomaster]

Buddy skills are one thing that keeps me diving with DIR inclined divers. After diving with people who actually take buddy skills seriously its hard to go back to the style of diving described by the original poster. A good buddy really opens up the possibilties when diving as compared to always being ultra conservative because you cant count on your buddy.No amount of pony bottles or any other device is potentially as valuable as a good buddy.Its a shame that sloppy buddy skills are SOP so many places.

I realize that DIR divers aren't the only ones who practice good buddy skills but most DIR divers have big bright lights and so are easier to keep track of.

I have nothing against solo diving, but! If I'm buddy diving, I want my fricking buddy to actually be a buddy!
So, I have been assiduously reading DIR entries to glean knowledge from them and attempt to sort the divers from the diversions.

Its not safest thing to do, at least due to bacteria build up in there, but given that or no air, i would take it. However a word of caution, dont breath back into it, the extra CO2 will knock you out pretty quickly and then you drown anyway.

Isn't it a good idea to keep your BCD clean inside and out? I observe people washing theirs out all of the time, and I intend to keep mine clean when it finally arrives. Seems to me that not only bacteria, but fungus could build nice colonies and eventually eat my BCD to the point of failure.

I'm sure having a lot of good stuff brought ot my attention on this thread!
So far my problem has not been runaway buddies, more like the fins in my mask or them riding up my A..aaah, fins. Still means I have buddy skills to work out. Then another time there was the DM, who was in his own little world and though that we had left him rather than notice that he was continually jetting away from us.
Single file seems to cause fins in mask problems, side by side causes. . . Me to think that I prefer that method.

http://www.scubaboard.com/t81001-.html
All explained in this thread..........

Mea culpa!
Beauty post!

Tom

 

[UWSojourner]

In the real world of diving we all know that at times your dive Buddy and you will be more than a few kicks from each other. It happens.

Would it happen less often if dives were done consciously thinking of your "buddy" as your "spare air"?

It's not a designated Buddy you went diving with. It's one you teamed up with on the boat, or a Buddy that was designated for you by the situation on the boat.

Possibly. But will you forgo separation from your buddy (to have that extra look at whatever) to make up for a buddy-challendged "buddy". I've sometimes simply outbuddied my buddy because he wasn't a very good "buddy". Stick with your wingman (no reference to BP/W, or man rather than woman, intended!)

As Chatterton puts it, do you bolt for the sun and seagulls and go straight up vertically to the surface, or do you try to connect with one of the divers that are 20 to 30 ft away by swimming horizontally? You have to realize your actions are near panic level so the book is probably not foremost in your mind. You want air and you want it fast! [try holding your breath in a pool till you run almost out of air and then think about what you might do with your air cut off?]

At this point, Boogie711's response is best (made clear by sarcasm)! You've lost the battle, you're in full retreat, with survival paramount in your mind and likely lowest in the mind of the gods. Roll your dice and take your chances. Prevention is your best course of action.

 

[NauticalbutNice]

I've sometimes simply outbuddied my buddy because he wasn't a very good "buddy". Stick with your wingman (no reference to BP/W, or man rather than woman, intended!)

I have to agree with this. There have been some dives I've been on, with someone who isn't a great buddy and I spent the entire time trying to keep close/keep an eye on him, because he wasn't doing the same for me.

I prefer to stick with the buddies I know aren't going to leave me stranded.

As for what would I do in that situation? I don't know. Swim up to my forgetful buddy, stab him in the leg and steal his air? Possibly. Depends how much he ticked me off

I have to agree with DandyDon - panic cannot be an option.

Nauticalbutnice :fruit:

 

[pilot fish]

Would it happen less often if dives were done consciously thinking of your "buddy" as your "spare air"?



Possibly. But will you forgo separation from your buddy (to have that extra look at whatever) to make up for a buddy-challendged "buddy". I've sometimes simply outbuddied my buddy because he wasn't a very good "buddy". Stick with your wingman (no reference to BP/W, or man rather than woman, intended!)



At this point, Boogie711's response is best (made clear by sarcasm)! You've lost the battle, you're in full retreat, with survival paramount in your mind and likely lowest in the mind of the gods. Roll your dice and take your chances. Prevention is your best course of action.

It would happen less often if BOTH divers viewed the other buddy as spare air. It might be one of the things not stressed enough in OW cert now? Not sure what the problem is but it seems it happens most often with divers with a lot of dives. I THINK it's because they have so many trouble free dives that they think it is never going to happen to them?

 

[pilot fish]

I have to agree with this. There have been some dives I've been on, with someone who isn't a great buddy and I spent the entire time trying to keep close/keep an eye on him, because he wasn't doing the same for me.

I prefer to stick with the buddies I know aren't going to leave me stranded.

As for what would I do in that situation? I don't know. Swim up to my forgetful buddy, stab him in the leg and steal his air? Possibly. Depends how much he ticked me off

I have to agree with DandyDon - panic cannot be an option.

Nauticalbutnice :fruit:

One of the things I'm leaning from this thread is that I have to stick with the wandering buddy, EVEN if he strays from me. When I catch up to him/her I will try to point out that we need to stay closer and then reinforce that when we get back on the boat. I also need to make certian things clear in a pre-dive chat on teh boat PRIOR

 

[novadiver]

Most of the posts in this thread have not take into account that, the ooa diver sucks as a buddy also. What the hell was he/she doing sucking in the buddies reserve in his / her tanks.

Getting a good buddy to dive with is not the same as being a good buddy, and knowing how to dive safely.

Get a pony, it's cheaper than a casket.

 

[pilot fish]

Most of the posts in this thread have not take into account that, the ooa diver sucks as a buddy also. What the hell was he/she doing sucking in the buddies reserve in his / her tanks.

Getting a good buddy to dive with is not the same as being a good buddy, and knowing how to dive safely.

Get a pony, it's cheaper than a casket.

The hypothetical doesn't state ooa due to improper air maintenance, disregard of reserve, etc. It could have been gear failure, whatever. The question is, which direction would you head, vertically to the surface or horizontally to try and connect with another diver 30 ft away?

 

[novadiver]

The hypothetical doesn't state ooa due to improper air maintenance, disregard of reserve, etc. It could have been gear failure, whatever. The question is, which direction would you head, vertically to the surface or horizontally to try and connect with another diver 30 ft away?

I would simply turn the knob on the 50% mix. Even at 140 you can hit the 50 untill you get to your first stop at 70 feet. You just have to remember at 140 you ppo2 is about 3.2 and you ox clock is ticking fast.

To quote an instuctor" WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOUR DOING RUNNING OUT OF GAS " and then he said " THAT'S NO EXCUSE"