Starstruck*
Guest
Hey guys, English 16 year old bloke here who thaught i had no chance of learning how to dive unless i moved.. i was wrong. which i was gladly pleased at,
I went to the local diving centre which i didnt know existed until people from this board mentioned it (BSAC not PADI but any organisation to dive). My mum came along but i went in to ask questions and find out information inside the main complex. I did not have time to jump in the pool etc as my mum was on a tight schedule and wondering what the heck i was up to. Anyways i talked to the lady and she said the "learn to dive" programme has already started and the next one will start next january, however she said i could start asap and still get onto the programme. i was like wow at this point she asks for information about home address to give the information pack and i was extactic. She also revealed they have 2 marine biologists, which is exactly what i want tobe.. inspiration! At this point i realised what this may do to the bank, even the nice lady in the red top said so too, so i finished talking and was going out thinking oh dear shes going to say no, and my mum was like right ok so were going to get you in next week. !!! how could i possibly hold in my excitement.
So the next week i got into the pool.
My dad came along to sort all the finances out, and to know exactly what is going to happen in the however many weeks it was. [he likes to get involved] and its his money thats being spent here.
At the time i had no equipment, nor do i now. I might buy a mask or booties "maybe" as these are equipment that take certain fits and it was possibly advised to do so.
So i got there, and waited for people to flock in - i felt like an odd one out at the time, so misplaced but all the people who spoke to me were very nice and supporting.
now to the diving part
I got to the side of the pool, and discussed pre-diving checks - buddy checks etc, and basic things but still important like lying down cyclenders on their side, spit in mask, rinse in water, then empty. The buddy check was one thing i wanted to learn the most, as your buddy relies on you and your checks so i observed closely when he was checking me. Then with another member i helped check my buddy. I learnt to carefully open the O2 valve, then open it right up, and turn it forward slightly.
So when i got in the water i already went over with my instructor safety precautions etc. At this point i was all kitted up and ready to submerge, i had to be careful excitement didn't take over 100% of my body and remember what my instructor had told me. In the water i did the regulator proceedure - take out of the mouth, put back in but exhale before inhale OR press the button to allow water out. Clearing the mask by lifting the bottom part up and blowing through the nose - Both of these went well. However the other one on my first attempt went a bit dodgey. I had to allow water into my mask, and then clear it. When i first allowed water in i stopped breathing, and panicked and had to come up for air. I think what happened here is that everytime water has hit my face around my eyes and nose i automaticaly have held my breath and so it happened here aswell i think. So after 5 seconds on the surface coughing, i asked to do it again. So i insisted we go to deeper water to do it, and we did [thought it would give me more concentration] So i took the whole mask of my face, couldnt see anything apart from a few blurred blobs - waited about 5 seconds then put the mask back on and got the water out of the mask. Only thing this time was i could feel water up my nose, so on the second attempt i exhaled out of my nose.
I heard that putting your mask on your forehead was to some a sign of distress, but when i did my try dive it was more of a safety precaution - incase a wave comes behind you and knock it off your head. I had never thought of it this way before.
At the end of the dive i had so much excitement left, but that went away because i was freezing my b******s off! and needed to get changed quickly. So now i cant wait to return to the water but in the mean time, i have theory to go to. Ill keep you all up to date
Since then i have had 2 more lessons. its based on one thory and one practical a week. and so far i am enjoying it thoroughly.
Slightly of note: Marine biology was my career choice, however i want to be in there more being involved. and marine biology entails measuring shrimp in certain areas. So i hope to become a Diving instructor some place foruign maybe - ideas
[sorry for long post]
I went to the local diving centre which i didnt know existed until people from this board mentioned it (BSAC not PADI but any organisation to dive). My mum came along but i went in to ask questions and find out information inside the main complex. I did not have time to jump in the pool etc as my mum was on a tight schedule and wondering what the heck i was up to. Anyways i talked to the lady and she said the "learn to dive" programme has already started and the next one will start next january, however she said i could start asap and still get onto the programme. i was like wow at this point she asks for information about home address to give the information pack and i was extactic. She also revealed they have 2 marine biologists, which is exactly what i want tobe.. inspiration! At this point i realised what this may do to the bank, even the nice lady in the red top said so too, so i finished talking and was going out thinking oh dear shes going to say no, and my mum was like right ok so were going to get you in next week. !!! how could i possibly hold in my excitement.
So the next week i got into the pool.
My dad came along to sort all the finances out, and to know exactly what is going to happen in the however many weeks it was. [he likes to get involved] and its his money thats being spent here.
At the time i had no equipment, nor do i now. I might buy a mask or booties "maybe" as these are equipment that take certain fits and it was possibly advised to do so.
So i got there, and waited for people to flock in - i felt like an odd one out at the time, so misplaced but all the people who spoke to me were very nice and supporting.
now to the diving part
I got to the side of the pool, and discussed pre-diving checks - buddy checks etc, and basic things but still important like lying down cyclenders on their side, spit in mask, rinse in water, then empty. The buddy check was one thing i wanted to learn the most, as your buddy relies on you and your checks so i observed closely when he was checking me. Then with another member i helped check my buddy. I learnt to carefully open the O2 valve, then open it right up, and turn it forward slightly.
So when i got in the water i already went over with my instructor safety precautions etc. At this point i was all kitted up and ready to submerge, i had to be careful excitement didn't take over 100% of my body and remember what my instructor had told me. In the water i did the regulator proceedure - take out of the mouth, put back in but exhale before inhale OR press the button to allow water out. Clearing the mask by lifting the bottom part up and blowing through the nose - Both of these went well. However the other one on my first attempt went a bit dodgey. I had to allow water into my mask, and then clear it. When i first allowed water in i stopped breathing, and panicked and had to come up for air. I think what happened here is that everytime water has hit my face around my eyes and nose i automaticaly have held my breath and so it happened here aswell i think. So after 5 seconds on the surface coughing, i asked to do it again. So i insisted we go to deeper water to do it, and we did [thought it would give me more concentration] So i took the whole mask of my face, couldnt see anything apart from a few blurred blobs - waited about 5 seconds then put the mask back on and got the water out of the mask. Only thing this time was i could feel water up my nose, so on the second attempt i exhaled out of my nose.
I heard that putting your mask on your forehead was to some a sign of distress, but when i did my try dive it was more of a safety precaution - incase a wave comes behind you and knock it off your head. I had never thought of it this way before.
At the end of the dive i had so much excitement left, but that went away because i was freezing my b******s off! and needed to get changed quickly. So now i cant wait to return to the water but in the mean time, i have theory to go to. Ill keep you all up to date
Since then i have had 2 more lessons. its based on one thory and one practical a week. and so far i am enjoying it thoroughly.
Slightly of note: Marine biology was my career choice, however i want to be in there more being involved. and marine biology entails measuring shrimp in certain areas. So i hope to become a Diving instructor some place foruign maybe - ideas
[sorry for long post]
