padi self reliant diver

[Wookie]

I use a 60gal shop compressor tank as my pony with my Steel 100s. Is that big enough? ...just messing with you - Friday coffee morning you know haha

Bet you don't get much bottom time with that....

 

[Diver0001]

I seem to have opened a can of worms here LOL. No time to respond now. Let me give it some thought and try to get back to you all with some brilliant anecdote a little later on.

R..

 

[maniago]

I seem to have opened a can of worms here LOL. No time to respond now. Let me give it some thought and try to get back to you all with some brilliant anecdote a little later on.

R..

The worms are likely to be snakes by the time you get back haha!

 

[uncfnp]

...//.. who can't shoot a DSMB to save their lives. I can teach that skill like there is no tomorrow...//...

Wookie, if I ever have the great good fortune to dive off the Spree I'm going to put that to the test. It is the one skill that I can't seem to develop any proficiency in...

 

[drbill]

I have been told by instructors that I could teach the course since I've been doing mostly solo diving for over 50 years, but I have no solo certification. Some operators know me and allow me to solo, others don't. I respect their policies. When I'm in unfamiliar waters, I almost always dive with a buddy.

As for the PADI self reliant certification, I've heard several divers tell me they weren't allowed to solo dive with it because the certification doesn't say "solo." Don't know how prevalent that is in the dive community. If I were to take a solo course, I would choose something other than this PADI certification (not a PADI bash though).

 

[doctormike]

I take great exception to this statement. Yes, I prefer to teach cave divers, deep wreck divers, and trimix divers a solo class. I charge them for the card, because they aren't likely to learn anything from me. Even if I did teach them, they aren't going to do it my way anyway, so there..

Full disclosure - Wookie was my solo instructor, and it was DEFINITELY worth it. I really enjoy solo diving, and with the card, I can do it at my local quarry without trouble (they give you a transponder and ask you to file a dive plan). Plus, I had such a good time solo diving in the Dry Tortugas off Wookie's boat, that I'm going back this year.

I think that there is a major disconnect about the definitions of solo diving and the social aspects of diving.

I am VERY much involved in the social aspects of diving. Almost all of my friends are divers, I'm the president of our local dive club and a member of two others. Almost every week we have some sort of social event. In the season, we have lots of group trips. I really enjoy the company of other divers - on the road, at the quarry, on the dive boat, and in the bar afterwards.

But I also like underwater macro photography. While I don't do this on every dive, one of my favorite types of dives is to just be on my own with my camera, looking for little critters. Without worrying about a buddy who is bored while I spend 30 minutes on one coral head. It's something that I really enjoy, and the solo card lets me do that in places where there might otherwise be a problem... Yes, if I have the wide angle lens, I need a buddy because I need a model. And if I'm diving in such a way that it's not appropriate (at my level) for solo diving, then I want a buddy. But I wouldn't imply (as some have) that there's a problem with someone who wants to dive alone...

To follow up on the other analogy, I ski too, and of course it's a lot of fun to go on a ski trip with someone. The car ride, the lift lines, the apres-ski bar - all very social situations. You know what isn't a social situation? Skiing! I mean, I find it annoying to try to match my pace with another skier, it's not like you are talking while you are skiing, I'm either having to hurry up or wait when I do have someone who wants to stick with me. I MUCH prefer to say "see you at the lift, have a good run".

 

[danvolker]

The car ride, the lift lines, the apres-ski bar - all very social situations. You know what isn't a social situation? Skiing! I mean, I find it annoying to try to match my pace with another skier, it's not like you are talking while you are skiing, I'm either having to hurry up or wait when I do have someone who wants to stick with me. I MUCH prefer to say "see you at the lift, have a good run".

Ok, fair enough....you want to do the run "you" want to do..... I used to like skiing with the other guys I used to race with, when free skiing at Killington, Jay Peak, Pat's Peak, and other places in the East I did most of my skiing at in highschool and college.
Here is a youtube of a run in Europe, that looks very much like the Downhill course from the World cup at Beaver Creek near Vail Colorado.
I am not saying I ran this course as fast as the two guys in this video ....But I would have been enjoying myself and going fast, with a friend....

There is the guy you see in the video, and the guy skiing behind with the Gopro
[video=youtube_share;UrxEZt-tz_k]http://youtu.be/UrxEZt-tz_k[/video]
Drag the timeline cursor to 51 seconds in, so you don't waste time watching the long intro.
This is the skiing equivalent to buddy based tech diving off the Badlands at 280 feet deep off Singer Island.....a long desert like drift that has enormous dunes and huge blowouts, that appear to have formed by monstrous underwater STORMS. The terrain is up and down, and all over, and you scooter this at full speed with the current....so maybe going 7 or 8 mph.....a lot like a downhill run
I will have to shoot a video of this Badlands area some time

 

[TMHeimer]

doctormike, I agree. I enjoy socializing with other divers, shop staffs, on charters, etc. I try to always buddy up if diving below 30-40' like on a charter (sometimes I do wind up pretty much on my own because others need more attention from the DM and they know I am one also)-- I'm not crazy about that at 80' depths or more. But, if I had no concerns about depth without a buddy, I would very much rather be alone as a shell collector--I just don't have any other objectives down there. With a buddy your first objective is to stay together and consider the buddy's interests-- and that means maybe going places you don't want to go.

 

[Diver0001]

The worms are likely to be snakes by the time you get back haha!

Well... I just got back from giving lessons and instead of a cute anecdote I've decided to back off my previous opinion.

I know. That's no fun but I think I was being too harsh.

I still think it's important that you have enough experience to know what you're doing but there's nothing wrong with learning about the risks in a controlled environment so you're sure you didn't miss anything.

Sorry.

R..

 

[scubadada]

What happened to danvolkers oxymorons and the comments on same? This moderating thing really is coming across as undue censorship. Boo!!!