Should I do my Advanced OW?

[TSandM]

After 600 some odd dives, I am absolutely convinced of one thing. Diving is much like skiing, in that the amount of fun you can have doing it is MASSIVELY increased by any improvement in skills. And like most physical activities, diving is something that improves with practice, and further with frequent practice, and even more with good feedback and criticism from someone who knows what he's doing.

If you really love to dive, learn to dive at home. At home, you will dive more frequently, and where you are, dive in more challenging conditions, and if you find good guidance, you will become more skilled, more relaxed, and more competent. And diving will, quite simply, become more fun.

Then, when you head for the tropics, you will roll off the boat laughing, because it's so easy, and so much fun.

 

[ERIC.K]

Certainly if you have the opportunity and the AOW certification lands in your lap then go for it...however don't think for a second that that makes you more experienced, just additional training. My wife and I had our basic OW certification for years and logged some 100-200 dives at least before finding the time to complete our AOW. Back then when we only was OW certified we had many more dives than others on the boat who went right from their basic into AOW and for some reason they felt it gave them carte blanc if you will for riskier diving activities. Training is certainly a good thing, however just being in the water and getting good dives logged is just as important.....my $.02 cents

 

[jonnybigfoot]

Again - all good points. The last thing I want is to be on a trip and get myself into a situation where I am qualified on paper but not up to it through experience.

Cold dark waters and poor visibility it is. Lincoln Street and the 'visual' benefits of Miami and South Florida will have to wait......

 

[Rhone Man]

Again - all good points. The last thing I want is to be on a trip and get myself into a situation where I am qualified on paper but not up to it through experience.

Cold dark waters and poor visibility it is. Lincoln Street and the 'visual' benefits of Miami and South Florida will have to wait......

A very sensible approach. I still think the AOW course is a good one though, because it gently introduces you into some wider diving experiences under instructor supervision (which is the best place (if there is such a thing) to make your diving mistakes).

 

[Colliam7]

I did my OW last November (Key Largo) and just did a couple of dives in Portugal (Albufeira). I have a grand total of six YES SIX dives.

Which I read as your four OW cert dives, and two in Portugal. Right?

I am back in Miami in 6 weeks and was planning on nipping down and doing my AOW. ... Should I just do more dives and ease my way in? ... What are the benefits of doing my AOW?

It appears that you are able to dive at the moment only on a limited basis. You are going to be very near some enjoyable, easy diving for 6 weeks. Why not do it? As El Orans said, think of it as 'Additional' OW. But, it provides a supervised structure for additional diving, and therefore skill development. Not infrequently, pursuing AOW is what gets newly certified OW divers back into the water after their initial plunge. Years ago, I completed my OW in FL in December. Didn't dive again until the next May. I signed up for AOW (to get me back in the water as much as anything), then decided I needed to do something before the class (honestly, to avoid embarrassment) and went to the quarry with another recently minted, equally inexperienced buddy to make certain I remembered basics. It was a bit of a comedy of errors. Doing AOW was what actually put me into diving. Had I not done it when I did, I might have joined the ample ranks of those who certify and dive very little afterward.

Cold dark waters and poor visibility it is. Lincoln Street and the 'visual' benefits of Miami and South Florida will have to wait......

I fully agree with the sentiments about the differences between cold and dark, and warm and bright (personally, I now prefer deep, dark and cold). And certainly, you should work to gain experience in the environment closest to you, so you can dive comfortably on a more regular basis. But, if you are going to be in Miami for 6 weeks, dive as much as you can. Consider setting up the AOW course the first week(end) if possible, then dive as often as possible for the remainder. AOW doesn't make you a great diver by any means. But the right AOW course can get you in the water and expand your limits.

 

[stairman]

I would talk to your prospective instructor about AOW,and your few dives as OW diver.If your buancy and trim are fair youll be ok.If not then you still may be ok with a patient instructor.Peak performance buancy should be one of your electives and would help tremendously.After AOW,if you really want to be the best you can be,take a cavern course.

 

[burnsfamily382]

hi Jonny,

i can speak with experience on this as i did my ow in ilford, essex and now live in orlando. learning to dive in 50' water at aveley, essex (the lake was called crystal lake.....boy, was that a misnomer) and stoney cove quarry in leicestershire was a great preparation for diving off the coast of florida. watching people get kitted up in full body wetsuits here i can't help but chuckle to myself as i jump into the water wearing just a pair of shorts and my gear. practising and perfecting your ow and aow skills wearing 7mm wetsuit, 5mm kevlar gloves and hood means that everything after that is much easier.

i would say that ow is the course that gets you in the water and aow is the course that teaches you how to dive.

do it as soon as you feel comfortable.it is the best course i did.

Joe

 

[Izu]

Johnnybigfoot I say go for it if you have the time but dont think of it as a substitute for experience. I vowed not to go past my standard OW cert until I had 1000 dives worth of experience under my belt but my favorite boat operation suddenly slapped a "AOW required" status on many of the dive sites they deemed advanced. At 200 dives, I was forced to get my AOW cert to dive sites I had been to many times before as a "rank" OW diver

 

[goldenwingk]

How do,

I apologise if this question has been asked before............

I did my OW last November (Key Largo) and just did a couple of dives in Portugal (Albufeira). I have a grand total of six YES SIX dives.

I really enjoy this stuff and obviously want to get better and more into it.

I am back in Miami in 6 weeks and was planning on nipping down and doing my AOW. I realise I will get more dives and more tuition and I can also go deeper but is it worth it at this stage.

Should I just do more dives and ease my way in?
What are the benefits of doing my AOW?

I am new to this forum and enjoying reading about your passion.

Cheers...........

haha i did my AOW after 6 dives and i think it was worth it! i got more dives and i also did my dry suit specialty right away with the course
so i got some more dives. for me it was really basic stuff we did some skills and all but it was fairly simple and u spent more time doing the dive. i unfortiunetly had rented regs and they froze on me and had to cancle one dive after 10 mins which sucks.
But the AOW was well worth it!!

 

[jonnybigfoot]

Thanks everyone.

A consistent reply from you all.

I will go and speak to the instructor and let them decide after a proper appraisal of my skills. It makes sense that get trained in the area I am going to do the bulk of my diving.