The Final Chapter On Solo Diving

[Rick Inman]

The original post on this thread is 3 1/2 years old. One of the negative effects of populating the solo forum with existing threads when it was created was that it brought in threads that in their original form did not meet the current standards of the solo diving forum. This is one of them.

I think we need a reminder:

"This is a no-troll zone! The discussion is not to be centered around whether to do a solo dive, but in the techniques and strategies involved. Do not participate if you have already decided that solo diving is not for you! Thanks in advance."

If the members or mods participating want to continue the discussion I think that's great, but if that's the case the thread really should be moved out of the solo diving forum as the discussion does not belong in here.

As an occasional solo diver, I find this discussion highly educational and beneficial, including posts like this:

In these threads on the solo forum I really think I see an accute lack of understanding of the kinds of chains of events that sometimes lead to injury.

A buddy may not be much help in the case of a single catastrophic event like a rock falling on your head or a heart attack. What often happens though is a smallish problem that causes or allows another one to sneak up that starts a couple more until a straw finally breaks the camels back...with task loading being a big problem in the end.

Task overload and time pressure are two of a divers biggest concerns. You can only do so much at once and the more you have to do the longer it will take. The more you have to do or the less time you have to do it in the more stress there will be and stress is bad. Having a buddy is one effective way to help hedge your bet against those general risks regardless of what some idiot says in an article. There may be others but I don't see many here discussing those. I just see a bunch of people trying to convince themselves or some one else that they somehow won't have problems if they are alone or that if they do a buddy couldn't help anyway.

Say for example that a solo diver is looking out at the surf & swells, and thinking, It's higher than I like, but I think I can handle it. And then he/she remembers reading this:

. What often happens though is a smallish problem that causes or allows another one to sneak up that starts a couple more until a straw finally breaks the camels back...with task loading being a big problem in the end.

...so he decides to dive another day, and maybe saves himself in the process.
There is nothing wrong with this level of discussion in the solo forum. Keep it up, Mike.

 

[Nemrod]

"This is a no-troll zone! The discussion is not to be centered around whether to do a solo dive, but in the techniques and strategies involved. Do not participate if you have already decided that solo diving is not for you! Thanks in advance."

Amen to that---not to point fingers but I think Mike, your welcome to not dive solo. Your diving as you mention involves long decompression etc and at least in my case and my thoughts is not the type of diving best done solo. I am an advocate for solo diving --no deco--no cave--no wreck. If people choose to dive solo in such cases I am sure it can be done with proper preparation/training. I would not myself. I do dive OW, no deco, sport dives within the Navy or computer limits solo routinely. Frankly it appears that your style of diving and personality may not be suited to solo and "not that there is anything wrong with that" (Seinfeld episode). That is fine. This is a no troll zone. I would much prefer to discuss methods and techniques of solo diving including types of solo diving that I have never done (such as cave and wreck) and OW/no deco solo, how to set up equipment, how to accomplish the dive, safety precautions and places that allow solo diving etc, surface support needed. Just me maybe but in the DIR forum if you don't part your hair correct they ask you to leave, in the solo forum if you don't go solo maybe this is not the place to be. What is this forum for anyway other than a continual rehashing of solo vs the buddy system. I thought it was for those who have chosen to go solo, so then, now how do we go about it. Thanks, not meaning to ruffle feathers. N

 

[MikeFerrara]

"This is a no-troll zone! The discussion is not to be centered around whether to do a solo dive, but in the techniques and strategies involved. Do not participate if you have already decided that solo diving is not for you! Thanks in advance."

Amen to that---not to point fingers but I think Mike, your welcome to not dive solo.

Don't jump to conclusions. I've done my share of solo diving.

Your diving as you mention involves long decompression etc and at least in my case and my thoughts is not the type of diving best done solo.

So, notice that I dont always avoid types of diving that aren't "the safest". Shorter, shallower and no overhead is the safest right? I'm not saying that you shouldn't dive solo. I do think it's a mistake to believe that it's somehow "safer" though just as I know that 300ft is a little riskier than 30 ft (all else being equal).

What is this forum for anyway other than a continual rehashing of solo vs the buddy system. I thought it was for those who have chosen to go solo, so then, now how do we go about it. Thanks, not meaning to ruffle feathers. N

I think that's what the forum is for but I also think that some of the articles like those these threads reference need to be rebuted because they're liable to talk some one into getting themselves hurt.

I would much prefer to discuss methods and techniques of solo diving including types of solo diving that I have never done (such as cave and wreck) and OW/no deco solo, how to set up equipment, how to accomplish the dive, safety precautions and places that allow solo diving etc, surface support needed.

I'm up for that too. Pick a subject and start another thread. I'll participate if I have something to contribute.