PADI's new *solo* course

[MXGratefulDiver]

Rob, when I crossed over to SDI/TDI, I didn't bring any records of students certified. When I found out the standards for the SDI Solo course, I decided that I would only apply students that I certified through SDI/TDI to acquire that rating. When I reach 50 students who have successfully completed training, I'll put in for the upgrade. It's my way of saying WTF since an instructor can get the SDI Solo Instructor rating without having ever been solo diving or having taken the diver level class. An instructor friend of mine who crossed to SDI from PADI submitted his PADI certs and was made an SDI Solo Instructor.

That right there is what concerns me about recreational agencies offering solo classes. How can you teach something you've never done before? There's a mindset that goes into solo diving that just doesn't exist in typical recreational dive instruction ... it involves a lower tolerance for compromises, more thought put into risk assessment, and a higher level of dive planning ... particularly with respect to gas management. If an instructor has never been exposed to those things, how can they even consider them ... much less teach others how to?

My point about going to cave instructors for this course was that most know what good trim, buoyancy, propulsion, and equipment streamlining really are and dive better than most recreational instructors.

I don't think you need to be a cave instructor to teach solo, but I DO think you need to adopt some of the mindset that goes into cave instruction ... namely the emphasis on failure analysis and on testing the student's ability to deal with stress and task loading. If you're the sort that gets flustered easily, you have no more business solo diving than you do going into a cave ... and for the exact same reasons. Because when the dive starts going sideways, your ability to get yourself to the surface safely is directly proportional to your ability to stay calm and deal with the problem. Stress management is a fundamental skill for the solo diver ... just as it is for the cave diver.

I'd be interested in hearing what sort of in-water self-rescue exercises are applied to either the SDI solo course or this new PADI self-sufficiency course ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

A CD mate. Takes his Tec Deep. Then takes his Tec Deep Instructor course. Then immediately applies for his Tec Instructor Trainer.

... sounds like Amway ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[knotical]

...I'd be interested in hearing what sort of in-water self-rescue exercises are applied to either the SDI solo course or this new PADI self-sufficiency course ...

Can't speak to PADI's yet, but the SDI course doesn't have a lot. SDI standards require swapping to a bailout bottle at depth, and deploying an SMB. To this my instructor added mask swap-out. The SDI course does include gas management, both planning and complying to the plan. Most everything else was stuff I'd done in early PADI courses.

Academically, the SDI course emphasizes redundancy, planning, and problem management.

 

[waterpirate]

I don't know why I am unable to "like" this post ... but I completely agree with it.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

It's O.K. I am used to it, lol
Eric

 

[waterpirate]

It would scare the bejesus out of me to be a dive operator. It has been my experiance that it is a "don't ask don't tell in regard to solo" as long as the staff or capt. feels you are "squared away".
The issue I have with the padi 5 star is if the shop is not comfortable with the transition they are not going to attract a quality instructor to get them comfortable. It will most likely be the "shop" guy who got gifted a nother line of instruction who prolly does not solo let alone tech. There are acceptions I am sure, but the majority will be the first option.
Eric

 

[Searcaigh]

If I thought that any "solo" C card would allow me to dive solo from any dive operator I would probably do the course to obtain one, but I doubt that any diver operator is going to accept this especially in the US with such a history of litigation in every aspect of living there.

Some local diver operators where I live know me well enough, and are not so bothered about me dropping off the boat alone, and I am usually first off the boat as the other divers are trying to locate their dive gear, so this is good for me.

It would be good to have the same treatment when traveling to other places, if pony bottles could be rented (as I do not carry one when traveling), that would be a bonus and a good sign that solo diving is accepted.

 

[Wookie]

In all the time I've allowed solo diving, I've only had one "train wreck". As I typically do when I have a train wreck, I assigned his trip leader (the person who comes for free, the trip organizer) to dive with him. Problem solved, the solo diver wasn't diving solo anymore, and the trip leader learned to screen their customers a little more carefully.

 

[drbill]

I'm still waiting for a certification that really teaches students good buddy skills... until then I'll continue to dive solo (and probably even afterward). Of course as a scientist/videographer, I don't make the best buddy myself.

Seriously there are many of us who are in situations where solo diving is preferred. As long as we have the proper experience, training and equipment; accept the inherent risks; and hold the boats we dive from harmless from liability related directly to our diving solo.. let us be. After diving solo for almost 50 years now, I would go for a solo certification that dive boats would accept (and one that holds them harmless).

 

[Trace Malinowski]

I'm still waiting for a certification that really teaches students good buddy skills... until then I'll continue to dive solo (and probably even afterward).

Bill, it's called GUE-Fundamentals.

 

[Trace Malinowski]

That right there is what concerns me about recreational agencies offering solo classes. How can you teach something you've never done before? There's a mindset that goes into solo diving that just doesn't exist in typical recreational dive instruction ... it involves a lower tolerance for compromises, more thought put into risk assessment, and a higher level of dive planning ... particularly with respect to gas management. If an instructor has never been exposed to those things, how can they even consider them ... much less teach others how to?


I'd be interested in hearing what sort of in-water self-rescue exercises are applied to either the SDI solo course or this new PADI self-sufficiency course ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Bob,

When I crossed over to SDI/TDI and found out the standards for solo diving, I was surprised there was nothing in there about experience or even having taken the class at the diver level. Simply 50 students certified.

So, there I was trying to plead my case for teaching the class as a more justifiable standard:

1) I had lots of experience solo diving. I started solo diving at age 15 in lakes, rivers, quarries, the ocean, from shore, from boats, under ice, in wrecks in every environment including NJ & NY wrecks, in caverns, and in caves. Half my cave dives are solo. 90% of the cave diving I did in the Caribbean has been solo. Such solo cave diving included making exits through silt and required anywhere from a handful of nav changes to nearly 70 directional changes on T's.

2) I had taken the SDI solo class at the diver level from a TDI cave instructor who admitted he hammered me far more brutally in my solo class than in my cave class and I learned a lot - especially about staging, deco and buddy bottles when alone.

3) I was also a wilderness first aid instructor and former climber and used that knowledge to create self-rescue techniques and plans to get me out of isolated holes in the Bahamas including out of the 50 foot ladder at Owl Hole.

4) I was already an instructor trainer and instructor trainer examiner with another agency.

5) I had video of me surviving a beating by Ed Hayes that demonstrated the skills needed for solo diving.

The answer was 50 certs please. That's it.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"So, if I was crossing over from PADI and brought 50 open water student certifications with me, all of which were done on the platforms in Dutch Springs, and if I've never been diving solo or diving anywhere else, that would allow me to teach solo diving?"

"Well ... yes."

"50 certs?"

"Yes, 50 certs. But, with all of your experience you can just send proof of those to us when you get home and we can upgrade you."

I got home and went to my filing cabinet to start copying student records and then I decided that I needed to create a solo class for PDIC with a different standard that would incorporate all I learned from experience and training over the years. Rather than flip open my scanner/copier I opened the word processor instead. PDIC gave Sean Harrison a copy of the program at the next DEMA.