DIR- GUE Seeking Fundies I buddy for possible May/June 2019 course

[seeker242]

I explained how/why it could be bad in the parts of the post you deleted.

Sounds more like a problem with obsessing rather than goal setting.

 

[PfcAJ]

Aims, goals, expectations.

If you *expect* to earn a tech pass, you’re gunna have a bad time.

If you *aim* to get better, you’ll learn a lot.

If your *goal* is to perform at a tech pass level, you’ll keep at it till you’re successful.

 

[dewdropsonrosa]

If your *goal* is to perform at a tech pass level, you’ll keep at it till you’re successful.

This is what I intended in post #1 - thanks for finding better words for it.

 

[MichaelMc]

And if you are a highly experienced diver there may well be behaviors you have ingrained that are are not allowed per GUE standards, and that is a real pain to fix. So getting onto the path early in your diving career is probably best.

What type of behavior would not be allowed per GUE?

 

[Jack Hammer]

I did Fundies about 10 years ago with my regular dive buddies. At first I had zero interest in it because I was already making tech dives and thought I'd be wasting time and "going backwards." After talking to my tech instructor, he highly recommended it, so I joined the class around a week before it started with no expectation of getting a tech pass, just learning a lot and getting better.

We did it over two weekends. By the end of the first weekend I was failing miserably for a tech pass. I was so bad it was difficult for my buddies to keep straight faces underwater while I demonstrated skills. We practiced together in between and I managed to eek out a tech pass by the end of the class. Basically the class changed my diving and made it much better. The lessons I learned in it have made all my training since more enjoyable and I feel I've learned more because of it.

 

[Jack Hammer]

What type of behavior would not be allowed per GUE?

Holding the line for stops, trying to do a buncha stuff at the same time, dives where you dive together then separate and follow your own deco plan, not checking gear and mixes because "you know" what's in the tank, a buncha old school tech diver stuff...

 

[KevinNM]

What type of behavior would not be allowed per GUE?

Plus, at an OW level, things like finning with your hands and how you position yourself with a buddy. I'm sure there are others, but those were my biggies.

 

[Pavao]

...Just doing the class with doubles is harder. With a DS it's even harder. And the standards for a tech pass are much higher than a rec pass...

This is likely true for most, but wasn't/isn't my case, I'm very naturally leg-heavy, so a drysuit actually made things easier for me, much better trim, and I had no more than 1/2 dozen dives on a drysuit prior to class, some corrections was definitely needed on how I dove a drysuit, but my instructors were able to work that out.

So unless you are a very experienced tech diver already or a freak of nature you are extremely unlikely to get a tech pass the first time you try....

I had about 2000-2500 dives when I took it, but no more than 20 tech dives, including the training ones, I went for a tech pass and did the 4 straight days class, my buddy was on single tank and rec pass, we both got the crap beat out of us and felt super miserable from day 1, but we both passed, definitely doable, maybe an advice is, just listen to your instructor, let him guide you and take the advises, I butted head a lot with my instructor, maybe our personalities don't match, but my buddy also felt from day 1 our instructors were aholes, regardless, we both learned a lot, passed and it most definitely made a difference on my diving.

...and you have to perform consistently at that level, not just have one great run...

This, to me, this is one of the biggest difference about what GUE does and the other agencies teaching the typical recreational classes, XYZ agency will say on their standards, and what instructors will do, is ask student to hover for 5 min during a dive, remove a mask at another point, do an air share at a later dive, etc, not only the "mastery" of these skills are such a broad definition, they are never tied together, GUE will ask you to perform a given skill, but you are not excused to deviate from your target depth or trim, ever, that's what makes those classes so hard, and why they form such great divers afterwards, like myself

 

[1atm]

Yep, trim is a good example of what even experienced divers can struggle with. In my fundies class, we had four students:

- An experienced divemaster/assistant instructor who used to guide liveaboards with ~600 dives
- An experienced advanced open water diver with ~150-200 dives
- Myself with 60 dives
- A freshly certified open water diver with 20 dives

The dive master struggled the hardest, and the open water diver performed best out of this group, the other two of us in between. So imho there definitely is merit in taking fundies as early as possible before you ingrain any bad habits that can be hard to unlearn.

The other thing I concur with is the mindset that you have for the class. We all enterd really wanting to pass, preferably tech pass, and very quickly found out that this likely wont be happening. So by day 2ish we had all given up on the idea of passing and just focused on the learning and improving. I really was convinced I would fail so thought “what the hell, might as well roll with it and learn as much as I can whilst at it, because the result doesnt matter anymore”. This made a big difference and all four of us managed a rec pass. But there definitely were some lows on the way when we felt like quitting, or at least toying with the idea to deflate the wing and lie in the sand for a bit ... ;-)

Also funny was the start of day four, when the instructor asked who wants to add a can light to their kit (we had all originally stated we might want to go for tech pass, but on instructor advice had started day 1 without). So he asks “who wants a light?” and we all silently look at the floor, being happy to not have to fight with more task loading etc. At the end we had established the insider joke that the only reason we didnt pass was because we didnt have a light ... *wink wink*

Looking back it was definitely worth it! By now I am Cave 2 (aka GUE full cave), and while I am still learning every day, fundies was the one course where I learnt most.

 

[dewdropsonrosa]

@Pavao - we crossed paths at least once last week! I was pulling a jump reel somewhere behind Hill 400 on my way out, but I remember seeing your labeled tanks.