Scuba etiquette 101

[Bomber]

Hello Everyone, I'm a new member here and this should be my second post.

From what I've been reading on this great board, I'm pretty sure that I do a lot of things that are either considered wrong or in the least very different. I do have a pet peeve, not a big one though.

I usually dive a shallow patch reef area that runs offshore of Islamorada, 15-35ft deep. Not a lot of people are familiar with the area and don't seem to know where to dive. It's not unusual to have boats drive right over you or drive over you and then anchor right on top of you. I guess they figure you must know where the only patch reef is in the entire Keys.

Not a big gripe, but it sure can be aggravating sometimes.

Bomber

 

[Cave Diver]

Bomber once bubbled...
It's not unusual to have boats drive right over you or drive over you and then anchor right on top of you. I guess they figure you must know where the only patch reef is in the entire Keys.

Do you use a dive flag/float? If not, perhaps you should consider one...

 

[Bomber]

Sure

One on the boat and one on a float on a safety line behind the boat. That's how they know you are diving.

Bomber

 

[kwesler]

Divers who stand up and/or ignore the briefing. First of all, I think it is a mistake, no matter what your experience level, to ignore what the briefer has to say. Secondly, it is rude to the person doing the briefing, and finally it is rude to the rest of us who are trying to listen in and around this person's activity.

Divers who do not change over their gear in a timely fashion. I have been on several boats who want you to change over before moving to a 2nd site. There always seems to be one person who is relaxing and holding up the boat. I do not want to be rushed when I am diving either, but if there are 12 divers on the boat, and everyone is switched over but me, I am going to assume it is MY problem.

 

[raviepoo]

Walter once bubbled...

I can plan my dive, I don't need a DM who has no idea what my mix might be or what my profile is or how many safety stops I make or of their duration or any idea of my RMV to tell me how long I should stay down. If a captain has an unusual scheduling problem, I'm happy to work with them.

Sure you can and so can I. But a dive boat is a business run on a schedule. The 8:00 AM boat you departed on might need to make it back to the dock in time to re-load and take another batch of divers out again.

I'm not saying there is anything wrong with diving to the extent of your training and ability. There are appropriate times and places for different types of diving. There are certain expectations for a trip to a deep, northeast Atlantic wreck that don't hold true for boat carrying a bunch of warm water, twice a year, recreational divers to a 40 foot reef in Islamorada.

The problem in my example is one of communication. The divers in my example could have informed the divemaster that their dive plans called for them to stay down beyond the time he designated. They could have tried to negotiate a mutally acceptable return time with the DM. They didn't.

I don't think these divers had a dive plan at all. They just farted around under water until their gas ran out.

My point is that if you are on a boat, it is rude not to follow the boat's rules. Have a little respect for the dive master and the other divers on the boat.

 

[derweasel]

Hate it when I put something in a cooler on a boat and someone else takes it!!! If you didn't put it in there, don't take it out unless the crew has told you it is for the general public.

 

[jeffcali]

A few weeks ago I was doing my AOW class on Bottom Scratcher, and there were these kids, "maybe early 20's" that I had to smear my eyes to reassure myself I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. After putting on my gear and fins in hand to walk to the dive exit opening, these kids were lined up right in front of the opening with ALL their gear on the deck. I mean their BCs strapped to the tanks and fins sitting right next to them on the ground. These cats for some reason actually thought that they had to wait their turn in line to exit and wouldn't put on their gear until their turn. I had to bust my way past them, saying excuse me the whole way to get off the boat. I walked up to the DM at the exit, barrowed his shoulder to put my fins on and jumped in. Turned around, and these buggers were still standing there starring at each other right in front of the exit.

These kids just got there c cards, but i guess they never did a boat. All fresh new gear, but had no idea on how to use it properly.

Please put on ALL gear and do buddy checks before standing in front of the exit door...thank you for playing

 

[g2]

Pet peeve numero uno...

People who excessively use noise makers, tank bangers, rattlers, dive-alert gadgets, fist-in-the-palm pops, bang their knives, etc., or whose computers persistently beep.

Fer cryin' out loud, stop that! (Unless you see a whale shark...)

 

[jonnythan]

Excessively negative people

 

[chepar]

jonnythan once bubbled...
Excessively negative people

LOL! Now that's why I didn't post my latest pet peeve - I didn't want to seem too petty. But since we're letting it all hang out, my latest peeve are the people that seem to think I am a living, breathing extension of the ladder back up to the boat.

I always watch for people approaching the ladder to get back on the boat and give them lots of space. Some people seem in an all fired rush to get back on, which is fine (it's not a race, but they seem to think it is) - I can always hang out for a few more minutes.

However, just a few weeks ago, before my "final approach", I looked around just to make sure no one was heading for the ladder - approached, and just as I was about to grab the bottom rung - I was mowed over from behind by some guy out of nowhere. Good thing I saw that arm reaching from above my shoulder area - I dropped back down, avoiding a faceful of fin.

What really got me was no one was using the other ladder (they were side by side).