Spare air/pony bottle---should I get one?

[redacted]

But: You should only have to chase an insta buddy once. After that they should be fully aware of their transgression. A few seconds of sign language after you lampreyed on their leg or fins for a few minutes and they will get the message.

Think of an insta buddy as a insta wedding with no divorce allowed until you resurface...

I don't believe I have to chase an insta-buddy even once. I do watch to see the direction they choose to disappear. And I am never disappointed to see them again.

 

[KeithG]

Okay, and if the assigned buddy doesn't care? Topside he/she just says you couldn't keep up? What do you do then? I'd personally recommend joining two other divers. But you may not have options.

That is why I preach/teach self-reliance. I talk about it in my open water classes to be aware. I encourage my students to buddy up with people they know or are referred to them, as insta buddies are a gamble.

Topside they would be having the conversation with the SAR team not me. Part of the predive buddy team conversation is going over the rules...These include the normal expected procedures when my buddy disappears and is presumed drowned.

We have a similar "safety" situation at my curling club. There is now a standard procedure for any curler who falls and hits their head on the ice. We call the paramedics - no questions asked This is a well known rule and is discussed every time we have new curlers at the club (as an instructor for rental groups I repeat it several times a week). So far this year I have only had to call the ambulance once. It turned out okay. For others it has not - these new procedures are a result of several head strike related deaths last year.

In both of these situations there is no need for you to be second guessing yourself afterwards if things turned out poorly for the other person. We have well known rules and procedures that have been created for a reason - follow them.

If you do not want me to call SAR if you disappear as my divebuddy, then please just say that you want to dive solo - before the dive starts. I am happy with that.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Topside they would be having the conversation with the SAR team not me.

I'm going to assume you are serious, and therefore will not take you seriously after this.

Your dive buddy may be back at the boat before you or show up shortly thereafter. Good luck with that one, especially if you are in some tropical destination. I'm sure that if you get the same boat captain that left those 7 divers from Japan at sea to refuel, you'll get loads of support.

 

[scubadada]

Re instabuddy discussion

I've always been for a complete and detailed discussion before undertaking a dive with an instabuddy. I am a relatively strong personality and this strategy almost always works, but not always.

I went out on a dive on the Duane in Key Largo. I was paired with a young, very fit man. It turns out my buddy was a Navy man who had just finished OW and AOW and had a total of 9 training dives. This was his first OW dive out of training. Among other instructions and hints, I told him to advise me when he was at 1500 psi and then, again, when he was at 1000 psi. So, the current was relatively ripping, as is pretty common at the Duane. We used the line to get to the descent line and went down to the stern. Once down, it was pretty easy to stay out of the direct current. After about 15 minutes, near the bow, I asked my buddy about his tank pressure. He did not signal me but showed me his gauge with about 800 psi. I signaled my dismay and immediately accompanied him to the stern ascent line and went up with him. He had enough air for the safety stop and, after that was completed and he surfaced, I descended to finish my dive.

As a buddy, you have to be observant and flexible. I'd rather dive solo.

 

[Bob DBF]

My (obtuse?) point is that you are either a dive buddy pair or you are a solo diver. There is no middle ground. Kind of like Pregnant or NOT Pregnant?

The problem I see is that there is a Solo diver that does not want or need a dive buddy, and a situation where a buddy team is broken and both divers wind up diving alone. The members of the buddy team are solo, as in alone, not Solo diving as in wanting to be a solo diver.

So technically I would say three:
1. Solo Diver
2. Buddy or Team diving
3. Broken Buddy or Team

The problem with a broken buddy or team is that if they are not well trained, or also solo divers, the elevated stress level may lead to other issues.


Bob

 

[AdivingBel]

I went out on a dive on the Duane in Key Largo. I was paired with a young, very fit man. It turns out my buddy was a Navy man who had just finished OW and AOW and had a total of 9 training dives. This was his first OW dive out of training.

 

[scubadada]

Actually, after the fact, that was my response also

 

[drrich2]

My (obtuse?) point is that you are either a dive buddy pair or you are a solo diver. There is no middle ground. Kind of like Pregnant or NOT Pregnant?

I'm gonna disagree with this one; there are shades of grey.

On a true solo dive, you are alone. In the event of an emergency at depth, the odds of someone coming to your assistance are one in...none, pretty much.

If you are diving as part of a loosely affiliated group following a guide in high-viz., excellent tropical conditions as is common in some tourist diving destinations, in the event of an emergency, the odds that someone will see you and help are better than that. And the odds that in a simple OOA situation you can fin over, get someone's attention and get assistance may not be bad.

Similarly, if there's 1 chance in 4 a 'bad buddy' will render effective aid on an OOA emergency, that's 1 more chance in 4 vs. a true solo dive.

There is some middle ground, where situational resources at hand fall somewhere in between.

One question is what you expect out of the buddy system:

1.) Remain in immediate proximity, frequent visualization of each other, noticing nuances of each other's behavior, like having your own personal rescue diver ready to intercede if needed.

2.) Same area, could be 15 feet apart, looking for each other occasionally, generally remaining in the same area, if someone goes OOA fin over and indicate the need; if you were to have a seizure or something, well, you're probably dead... Basically, the buddy is viewed as a redundant gas source swimming in the area.

1 Is the politically correct answer here; 2 I suspect is more common in many places.

You won't get much more agreement on how to handle solo. The politically correct answer is the full setup recommended in class, a redundant gas supply (e.g.: pony) with enough gas to make it back from the farther planned point of the dive to point of origin at the surface using a rule of 3rds, and plan the dive around getting back with 1/3rd remaining in primary gas supply. Yet some people post to the effect dives that aren't too deep, in their view, they can CESA if things go bad and they may not pack a redundant gas source.

The Spare Air is sort of a middle ground there.

Richard.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

On a true solo dive, you are alone. In the event of an emergency at depth, the odds of someone coming to your assistance are one in...none, pretty much.

I was solo diving off a boat in Neah Bay, had an entanglement issue. Was struggling with it when two other divers from the same boat came by. I signaled them "problem" and "come here". They took off (the leader of the two said he wanted nothing to do with my situation - the boat captains royally chewed their asses off and I'm guessing are banned from his boat).

So there is that. You may have a problem (I solved it myself) and come across others. Don't expect them to help however. You can hope, but not expect it.

 

[IBjones]

"I don't need redundancy because I watch my SPG". Great for you.
I had a buddy back about 2011-ish who blew an O-ring at 100 feet on the Aeolus wreck. The fact that she checked her SPG about every 3 minutes up until that moment was irrelevant. She had about 2,000 PSI when the ring extruded. Watching her SPG for the remainder of the dive was pretty pointless.


"You train for the emergency you're gonna have, not the emergency you'd like to have."