The Other State of Diving

[Herk_Man]

Nice vis. I'm going to try and find gear to dive Dale Hollow Lake this summer in Tennessee. I've gone there since I was a kid and the visibility is some of the best you'll find in lakes anywhere.

And I guess the fish was a bass, not a grouper then.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I couldn't see the vid all the way thru when I first posted due to the filter programs at work. It was real choppy. But nice work Dave. And again there is absolutely no reason why all OW divers can;t look like this on their checkouts. I liked the positioning for the most part of all the divers. There were a couple short times when I did not see a buddy IN FRAME but for the most part there is no reason to single file as this video shows. It is also evident that not only were antisilting kicks talked about but the students knew how to do them. The modified flutter that the split fin guy was using was very nice and effective. Who noticed that the water behind the divers was as clear as in front of them?

Now how many times have you seen an OW checkout where that was not the case? It begs the question as to why. I'd dive with any of these guys. Not only do they look like they are having fun but I'd guess given the bar they met they will only want to try and keep improving. And those are the divers I want to dive with.

 

[fresh_fish]

I've been diving for a couple years and still have dreams of someday being able to dive like this. My class was taught by someone that was perfect in the water. He did not move unless he chose to. It was good to see what the ideal was, but for a student, I was trying to be like him, not skulling, etc. and found myself in a worse situation than if I had skulled a little. It wasn't until I went out with just a group of friends that I was able to look at the average proficient diver's skill level and be able to match myself to that. I was also able to have people make suggestions on adjusting trim, weighting, etc. since there was a group of us all skilled, not just one pro to several students. I don't think enough time gets spent on trim and movement. It's all clearing skills and basic buoyancy to stay at depth. If I had even one more open water dive to focus on turning to look at your buddy, stopping, etc. I would have been grateful. To this day, I have a problem when the tank weight shifts. I always use my hands! (working on it...)

 

[ScubaFeenD]

I think there is something incredibly sad about the fact that the first thread, with bad divers, ran pages and pages -- yet so few of us can find anything to say about people who are well trained.

It really great to see new divers with such skills. I think it speaks volumes regarding the instructor, and it is certainly a great example of what training should be. Im sure it didn't cost 1500 dollars either to get these divers either exactly where they should be or at least to have an idea of where they should be. Bravo!

 

[ScubaFeenD]

Id thank you *dave*, but much like in the fire service, politeness is now assumed on scubaboard

 

[ScubaSteve]

It really great to see new divers with such skills. I think it speaks volumes regarding the instructor, and it is certainly a great example of what training should be. Im sure it didn't cost 1500 dollars either to get these divers either exactly where they should be or at least to have an idea of where they should be. Bravo!

This is why I asked what the investment was. People seem to believe that a "better training regiment" would never work because of the cost and time available. Dave has shown that it is in fact possible. I spent more money on my certification and did not get what these divers got. I needed to dive a lot to get to where these students are out of the gate. I enjoyed all my dives and continuing to learn and work on my diving style, and can really enjoy diving now, but it would have been nice to be at that level from the beginning.

 

[ScubaFeenD]

This is why I asked what the investment was. People seem to believe that a "better training regiment" would never work because of the cost and time available. Dave has shown that it is in fact possible. I spent more money on my certification and did not get what these divers got. I needed to dive a lot to get to where these students are out of the gate. I enjoyed all my dives and continuing to learn and work on my diving style, and can really enjoy diving now, but it would have been nice to be at that level from the beginning.

Not sure it requires more money, but I think the cut-throat pricing of classes dissuades some potentially amazing instructors from doing the job professionally. I just think great instructors should receive compensation commensurate with their ability to accomplish their task and train competent divers.

 

[rollerboi]

I'm disappointed as well, I wish my own instructors had taken the time to *really* show us how to control ourselves in the water column. As such, trim and the like were concepts I took off ScubaBoard and applied to myself on my own with the help of some wonderful dive buddies.

Good job!

 

[RU4SKUBA]

This group you filmed was certainly skilled if they were students and kudos if they were your students. It goes to show you that good learners, prepared for the adventure, do not require more agency standards interference or requirements.

I do very much like the addition of the anti-silting kicks and trim positioning, which is a measuring standard in my book, but I still don't think it really requires additional time to accomplish if taught early with students who can swim.

The reality is there will always be bad divers because the majority are bad learners, so there's a strong case for putting all future posts about raising industry standards in the wine/cheese forum unless the OPs got a specific standard they'd like to individually address.

 

[TEArrington]

*dave* says "Unfortunately, the vast majority of certified divers accrue no more than 15 dives in their lifetime." and "The feedback students receive while reviewing in pool videos seems to make a significant difference from session to session."

These things were significant to me. First, I believe you about the 15 dives but find that incredibly sad, as I was hooked from the first try and can't imagine life without diving.

The video idea might be one of the reasons for better techniques of the students. I've never seen videos longer than 15 seconds of me diving, and I think I could learn tremendously from watching my good and bad techniques. Maybe organizations could consider adding this training aid as a requirement. I'd like to see some video of me, even if it makes me cringe. It definitely would be helpful in my ongoing quest to continuously improve as a diver.