Below is an excerpt from my book - SCUBA: A Practical Guide for the New Diver, dealing with buddy skills. There have been a few threads recently asking for advice on this subject. I am posting this in the hopes that it may answer some of those questions.
"This brings us to the point of this essay: How do we as divers and instructors develop good buddy skills?
The answer is to start using them as early as possible. The best place to start is in the first pool session, during
the swimming and snorkeling portion of the OW course. By pairing up students from the beginning, we
demonstrate the importance of the buddy system. There are a number of ways to develop and practice good
buddy skills. I emphasize all of the following in my OW course because I consider them essential:
1. Communication between the divers, both on the surface and underwater.
2. Position. From day one, divers should be buddied up and required to stay in position.
3. Buoyancy control should be introduced immediately, to facilitate position.
4. Horizontal positioning from the very beginning, for skills. Skills are actually easier to perform in a
horizontal position.
5. Looking like divers. Divers who look like divers will think, act, and feel like divers.
6. Speed during descents, swims, and ascents. No matter what, the slowest diver sets the pace of all
aspects of the dive.
7. Good judgment, demonstrated by choosing appropriate dive sites, equipment, dive buddies, and
whether or not to do a given dive at all. These are all parts of being a good buddy.
8. Rescue skills. Even basic skills such as tows, bringing an unconscious diver to the surface, air shares,
assisting a panicked diver at the surface, and knowing how to release each others weights are
skills that every Open Water Diver should have. Unfortunately, many OW programs no longer
include them all.
(list continues on next page)
9. Choosing the right buddy. This goes back to good judgment, but also includes other considerations
such as size, strength, skill, training, attitude, and personality.
10. Personal responsibility. The best divers always maintain ultimate responsibility for their own safety
and should not expect their buddies to carry them through any dive.
Having summarized these ten essential elements of strong buddy skills, well now expand on each one a
bit further.
Communication
Establishing and developing good communication skills is essential to any endeavor involving two or
more people. For dive buddies, this actually starts long before they enter the water; it begins when the
decision to dive is made. This is when good dive buddies will begin to discuss a plan for the dive or dives,
including choosing a site, discussing the dive, considering entry options, or deciding on a boat operator. Each
of these tasks requires the divers to communicate effectively. At the site, you will agree on hand signals and
possibly also written methods such as a slate or wetnotes. During the dive you will monitor air pressures,
depths, times, and course. Not only will you monitor these items and more, you will effectively communicate
them to each other. Failure to do so can lead to situations where the end result is anything from a minor
inconvenience to a tragedy.
Position
The importance of position in true buddy diving cannot be underestimated or overemphasized. Good
instructors will see that new divers are buddied up with each other whenever possible from day one. Buddies
then stay in position throughout all pool sessions. Even when repeating skills demonstrated by the instructor,
the divers buddy will be within arms reach at all times. I require my students to do this; when a student is
asked to move forward to perform a skill, the buddy also moves forward.
Buoyancy Control
Good buoyancy control is another essential aspect of being a good buddy. This is why I introduce basic
buoyancy control within the first 20 minutes of the second pool session, which is the first night on SCUBA.
This happens after I have properly weighted students and shown them how to do the check, themselves. There
is no reason to delay this critical aspect of diving.
Horizontal Positioning
Basic skills are easier to perform in a horizontal position and are more natural to the beginning diver.
Having students descend to a kneeling position often results in them flailing around trying to maintain their
balance, falling backwards or sideways. In some cases, this may result in them getting upset enough to panic.
If we introduce buoyancy control by having students descend in a horizontal position in the beginning, with
feet spread in a nice stable base, they do not feel out of control. This results in students whose confidence has
already been increased by the method of instruction, and who are more open to further instruction in early
skills like mask clearing, regulator retrieval, and weight belt remove/replace. When students are asked to clear
a mask while kneeling, they may tend to look down or straight ahead and have to be reminded to look up.
When horizontal, it is natural to look up to see the instructor, which facilitates the skill. Regulator retrieval is
easier since the regulator tends to fall to the side as it would on an actual dive. Weight belts are much easier to
doff and don while prone. My students first practice new skills with their knees on the step in the pool and
their bodies neutrally buoyant in midwater while horizontal; they eventually progress to doing the skills while
having no contact with the pool bottom. The result is that by the time we hit open water, I can ask students to
perform the skills at any time during the dive and they do not need to settle to their knees in order to comply.
Looking like Divers
Divers who look like divers will think, act, and feel like divers. When we include the first four items in
basic instruction, it results in students who look like divers: horizontal, together, and in good trim. As a result
they feel like the divers theyve seen. Students will remain within arms reach of each other at all times, and I
will remind them to buddy up if they begin to get too far apart. By the end of the third or fourth session, they
are beginning to think and act like divers. They will instinctively get in position relative to their buddies when
entering the pool. They will confidently assist each other with equipment checks and verify proper weighting.
They will look to each other before entering the water. The more they look, think, and act like divers, the
more they will feel like divers, and the more they can actively engage in the process of learning.
Speed -- Descents, Swims, and Ascents
A common factor in buddy separations is one diver who descends, swims, or ascends faster than the other.
If divers in Open Water training are firmly convinced of the need to let the slowest diver set the pace, there is
no need for separation to ever occur. Even in low visibility situations, divers who are descending, swimming,
and ascending at the same rate can maintain contact and communication. When planning a dive, the strengths
and limitations of each diver need to be taken into account. If one buddy has equalization issues, that buddy
sets the rate of ascent and descent. If one is a slower swimmer, then that buddy sets the pace of the swim.
During Open Water checkout dives it is imperative that not only do buddies stay in proper position, but that
the pace of the swims is adjusted to these guidelines regarding speed. It is unacceptable for an instructor or
divemaster to set a pace that leaves students struggling to keep up.
Good Judgment
Choosing dive sites, equipment, dive buddies, and whether or not to do a dive at all are part of being a
good buddy, and developing these abilities should begin in the OW class. It falls to the instructor to impress
upon students that all of these choices have safety implications and are not to be taken lightly. A diver will
make an effort to research the proposed dive sites, choose the proper equipment, ask questions of potential
dive buddies to see if they are compatible, and assess whether or not a dive is within the training and abilities
of the team. This does not happen overnight or in one session. It should be impressed upon the diver that
time, experience, and good training are the principle factors in developing good judgment. Another factor that
should never be overlooked or minimized in importance is that little voice that comes from inside, the one that
says, This may not be a good idea. That voice can mean the difference between a good dive and a bad one,
or in some cases, the difference between life and death.
Rescue Skills
At one time, every Open Water course contained basic rescue skills such as bringing an unconscious diver
up from depth, rescue tow to shore while removing gear, and getting control of a panicked diver. These skills
are now often reserved for the actual Rescue Diver course, which most divers never take. As we have seen in
several cases described in an earlier chapter, lack of basic rescue skills resulted in dive buddies not knowing
how to assist their buddy, and in at least three of these cases, contributed to a fatal outcome. The push to
shorten classes and, by necessity, eliminate skills, has left us with untold numbers of accidents waiting to
happen on every dive boat and shore diving site in the world. There have been countless incidents in which
injury or death was avoided due only to dumb luck, not skill.
Pre-dive equipment checks alone are not sufficient to protect the diver in the event of an emergency
requiring assistance. By keeping basic rescue skills sharp and actually instructing divers in these procedures
before they even hit OW checkouts, we lessen the risk of someone dying. At a minimum, we need to practice
the assist of an unconscious diver to the surface, assist of a diver who has lost his or her means of buoyancy
control, supporting a diver at the surface, assisting a panicked diver, ditching weight systems, and basic tows.
The agency I teach for still includes these skills in OW class, and I am free to add skills that I feel will benefit
my students for the dives they will do and the locations they may choose. I will often add a no-mask swim and
ascent to OW checkouts (which we have done in the pool), and every dive in my Advanced Open Water
(AOW) class will include a rescue or assist of some type. Out of air (OOA) drills -- previously practiced in the
pool -- may occur at any time during any activity as training progresses, because this is how OOA emergencies
occur on actual dives. Proper buddy position and techniques must be practiced throughout. For my AOW
class, this is a basic safety issue that if blatantly ignored or disregarded, will result in a fail for the class and no
card issued.
Choosing the Right Dive Buddy
Many divers regularly dive with the same person. They know each others skills and limitations and have
established protocols for the majority of their dives. But what about those who do not dive with a regular
buddy? As an instructor, I often find myself diving with new buddies. Even when not teaching, my diving
interests and training often result in me diving with many different people of various skill levels, from new
OW divers to experienced tech divers; these divers may have come from any number of different agencies and
training programs as well. This is not an issue for me, as one of the things I have worked to achieve is the
ability to dive with most anyone and be a good buddy to them. That does not always mean they are the best
dive buddy, but being responsible for my safety and that of my teammates, I choose to develop the skills and
knowledge to be up to the task. This includes familiarizing myself with the skills, training, knowledge, and
attitude of my new dive buddy. We will begin with a meeting to get to know each other, perhaps do a dive or
two before taking on anything challenging, and just feel each other out.
But what if youre a new diver who has not been around many other divers? How do you discover the best
dive buddies and choose one who will be best for you? You can frequent local dive sites, join a dive club, and
join message boards. You can ask your instructor to pair you with local divers and include you on trips; you
can even ask to go along on checkout dives with other students after you have been certified. In choosing a
buddy, you will need to develop a knack for recognizing the signs of a good partner and trusting your own
instincts. Once a likely buddy is identified, you should dive together as much as possible in safe conditions
where you can get to know each other and learn how to work well together.
Potential buddies obviously need to evaluate each others skills and training, but also need to consider each
others interests and attitudes. Divers of equal skill and training do not necessarily make good buddies. One
diver may love wrecks while the other may prefer reef dives. The skills junkie may not be a good match for
the diver who is content with maintaining fair skills and just having fun. We may have heard that underwater
photographers make less then desirable dive buddies, but they can be fun to dive with if we take the right
attitude about the dive. Each dive with an underwater photographer is an opportunity to practice our buddy
attentiveness, work on buoyancy skills, propulsion techniques, and observation skills. It can be one of divings
more rewarding experiences if we choose to make it one. When choosing a dive buddy, we have all the power
in the world. There is no reason to team up with someone who gives you a feeling of unease or concern. Its
better to call the dive or hire a professional for the dive. When traveling as a single diver, we seldom have the
time to get to know a new diver as well as wed like. Diving with what are affectionately known as instabuddies
can be fun, rewarding, and educational or a disaster.
This means that we always, even when diving with a buddy, have to be prepared to save our own skin. We
also have to be prepared to end a dive alone and get back to shore or on the boat if our new friend decides to
deviate from the plan, disappears, or is just too scary to continue the dive with! Numerous issues can arise
with these insta-buddies, including lack of communication, use of different hand signals, different goals, and
different basic practices. Some divers seriously overstate their qualifications and skills, which does not
become apparent until a dive has actually commenced. Unfortunately, this is a common occurrence."
"This brings us to the point of this essay: How do we as divers and instructors develop good buddy skills?
The answer is to start using them as early as possible. The best place to start is in the first pool session, during
the swimming and snorkeling portion of the OW course. By pairing up students from the beginning, we
demonstrate the importance of the buddy system. There are a number of ways to develop and practice good
buddy skills. I emphasize all of the following in my OW course because I consider them essential:
1. Communication between the divers, both on the surface and underwater.
2. Position. From day one, divers should be buddied up and required to stay in position.
3. Buoyancy control should be introduced immediately, to facilitate position.
4. Horizontal positioning from the very beginning, for skills. Skills are actually easier to perform in a
horizontal position.
5. Looking like divers. Divers who look like divers will think, act, and feel like divers.
6. Speed during descents, swims, and ascents. No matter what, the slowest diver sets the pace of all
aspects of the dive.
7. Good judgment, demonstrated by choosing appropriate dive sites, equipment, dive buddies, and
whether or not to do a given dive at all. These are all parts of being a good buddy.
8. Rescue skills. Even basic skills such as tows, bringing an unconscious diver to the surface, air shares,
assisting a panicked diver at the surface, and knowing how to release each others weights are
skills that every Open Water Diver should have. Unfortunately, many OW programs no longer
include them all.
(list continues on next page)
9. Choosing the right buddy. This goes back to good judgment, but also includes other considerations
such as size, strength, skill, training, attitude, and personality.
10. Personal responsibility. The best divers always maintain ultimate responsibility for their own safety
and should not expect their buddies to carry them through any dive.
Having summarized these ten essential elements of strong buddy skills, well now expand on each one a
bit further.
Communication
Establishing and developing good communication skills is essential to any endeavor involving two or
more people. For dive buddies, this actually starts long before they enter the water; it begins when the
decision to dive is made. This is when good dive buddies will begin to discuss a plan for the dive or dives,
including choosing a site, discussing the dive, considering entry options, or deciding on a boat operator. Each
of these tasks requires the divers to communicate effectively. At the site, you will agree on hand signals and
possibly also written methods such as a slate or wetnotes. During the dive you will monitor air pressures,
depths, times, and course. Not only will you monitor these items and more, you will effectively communicate
them to each other. Failure to do so can lead to situations where the end result is anything from a minor
inconvenience to a tragedy.
Position
The importance of position in true buddy diving cannot be underestimated or overemphasized. Good
instructors will see that new divers are buddied up with each other whenever possible from day one. Buddies
then stay in position throughout all pool sessions. Even when repeating skills demonstrated by the instructor,
the divers buddy will be within arms reach at all times. I require my students to do this; when a student is
asked to move forward to perform a skill, the buddy also moves forward.
Buoyancy Control
Good buoyancy control is another essential aspect of being a good buddy. This is why I introduce basic
buoyancy control within the first 20 minutes of the second pool session, which is the first night on SCUBA.
This happens after I have properly weighted students and shown them how to do the check, themselves. There
is no reason to delay this critical aspect of diving.
Horizontal Positioning
Basic skills are easier to perform in a horizontal position and are more natural to the beginning diver.
Having students descend to a kneeling position often results in them flailing around trying to maintain their
balance, falling backwards or sideways. In some cases, this may result in them getting upset enough to panic.
If we introduce buoyancy control by having students descend in a horizontal position in the beginning, with
feet spread in a nice stable base, they do not feel out of control. This results in students whose confidence has
already been increased by the method of instruction, and who are more open to further instruction in early
skills like mask clearing, regulator retrieval, and weight belt remove/replace. When students are asked to clear
a mask while kneeling, they may tend to look down or straight ahead and have to be reminded to look up.
When horizontal, it is natural to look up to see the instructor, which facilitates the skill. Regulator retrieval is
easier since the regulator tends to fall to the side as it would on an actual dive. Weight belts are much easier to
doff and don while prone. My students first practice new skills with their knees on the step in the pool and
their bodies neutrally buoyant in midwater while horizontal; they eventually progress to doing the skills while
having no contact with the pool bottom. The result is that by the time we hit open water, I can ask students to
perform the skills at any time during the dive and they do not need to settle to their knees in order to comply.
Looking like Divers
Divers who look like divers will think, act, and feel like divers. When we include the first four items in
basic instruction, it results in students who look like divers: horizontal, together, and in good trim. As a result
they feel like the divers theyve seen. Students will remain within arms reach of each other at all times, and I
will remind them to buddy up if they begin to get too far apart. By the end of the third or fourth session, they
are beginning to think and act like divers. They will instinctively get in position relative to their buddies when
entering the pool. They will confidently assist each other with equipment checks and verify proper weighting.
They will look to each other before entering the water. The more they look, think, and act like divers, the
more they will feel like divers, and the more they can actively engage in the process of learning.
Speed -- Descents, Swims, and Ascents
A common factor in buddy separations is one diver who descends, swims, or ascends faster than the other.
If divers in Open Water training are firmly convinced of the need to let the slowest diver set the pace, there is
no need for separation to ever occur. Even in low visibility situations, divers who are descending, swimming,
and ascending at the same rate can maintain contact and communication. When planning a dive, the strengths
and limitations of each diver need to be taken into account. If one buddy has equalization issues, that buddy
sets the rate of ascent and descent. If one is a slower swimmer, then that buddy sets the pace of the swim.
During Open Water checkout dives it is imperative that not only do buddies stay in proper position, but that
the pace of the swims is adjusted to these guidelines regarding speed. It is unacceptable for an instructor or
divemaster to set a pace that leaves students struggling to keep up.
Good Judgment
Choosing dive sites, equipment, dive buddies, and whether or not to do a dive at all are part of being a
good buddy, and developing these abilities should begin in the OW class. It falls to the instructor to impress
upon students that all of these choices have safety implications and are not to be taken lightly. A diver will
make an effort to research the proposed dive sites, choose the proper equipment, ask questions of potential
dive buddies to see if they are compatible, and assess whether or not a dive is within the training and abilities
of the team. This does not happen overnight or in one session. It should be impressed upon the diver that
time, experience, and good training are the principle factors in developing good judgment. Another factor that
should never be overlooked or minimized in importance is that little voice that comes from inside, the one that
says, This may not be a good idea. That voice can mean the difference between a good dive and a bad one,
or in some cases, the difference between life and death.
Rescue Skills
At one time, every Open Water course contained basic rescue skills such as bringing an unconscious diver
up from depth, rescue tow to shore while removing gear, and getting control of a panicked diver. These skills
are now often reserved for the actual Rescue Diver course, which most divers never take. As we have seen in
several cases described in an earlier chapter, lack of basic rescue skills resulted in dive buddies not knowing
how to assist their buddy, and in at least three of these cases, contributed to a fatal outcome. The push to
shorten classes and, by necessity, eliminate skills, has left us with untold numbers of accidents waiting to
happen on every dive boat and shore diving site in the world. There have been countless incidents in which
injury or death was avoided due only to dumb luck, not skill.
Pre-dive equipment checks alone are not sufficient to protect the diver in the event of an emergency
requiring assistance. By keeping basic rescue skills sharp and actually instructing divers in these procedures
before they even hit OW checkouts, we lessen the risk of someone dying. At a minimum, we need to practice
the assist of an unconscious diver to the surface, assist of a diver who has lost his or her means of buoyancy
control, supporting a diver at the surface, assisting a panicked diver, ditching weight systems, and basic tows.
The agency I teach for still includes these skills in OW class, and I am free to add skills that I feel will benefit
my students for the dives they will do and the locations they may choose. I will often add a no-mask swim and
ascent to OW checkouts (which we have done in the pool), and every dive in my Advanced Open Water
(AOW) class will include a rescue or assist of some type. Out of air (OOA) drills -- previously practiced in the
pool -- may occur at any time during any activity as training progresses, because this is how OOA emergencies
occur on actual dives. Proper buddy position and techniques must be practiced throughout. For my AOW
class, this is a basic safety issue that if blatantly ignored or disregarded, will result in a fail for the class and no
card issued.
Choosing the Right Dive Buddy
Many divers regularly dive with the same person. They know each others skills and limitations and have
established protocols for the majority of their dives. But what about those who do not dive with a regular
buddy? As an instructor, I often find myself diving with new buddies. Even when not teaching, my diving
interests and training often result in me diving with many different people of various skill levels, from new
OW divers to experienced tech divers; these divers may have come from any number of different agencies and
training programs as well. This is not an issue for me, as one of the things I have worked to achieve is the
ability to dive with most anyone and be a good buddy to them. That does not always mean they are the best
dive buddy, but being responsible for my safety and that of my teammates, I choose to develop the skills and
knowledge to be up to the task. This includes familiarizing myself with the skills, training, knowledge, and
attitude of my new dive buddy. We will begin with a meeting to get to know each other, perhaps do a dive or
two before taking on anything challenging, and just feel each other out.
But what if youre a new diver who has not been around many other divers? How do you discover the best
dive buddies and choose one who will be best for you? You can frequent local dive sites, join a dive club, and
join message boards. You can ask your instructor to pair you with local divers and include you on trips; you
can even ask to go along on checkout dives with other students after you have been certified. In choosing a
buddy, you will need to develop a knack for recognizing the signs of a good partner and trusting your own
instincts. Once a likely buddy is identified, you should dive together as much as possible in safe conditions
where you can get to know each other and learn how to work well together.
Potential buddies obviously need to evaluate each others skills and training, but also need to consider each
others interests and attitudes. Divers of equal skill and training do not necessarily make good buddies. One
diver may love wrecks while the other may prefer reef dives. The skills junkie may not be a good match for
the diver who is content with maintaining fair skills and just having fun. We may have heard that underwater
photographers make less then desirable dive buddies, but they can be fun to dive with if we take the right
attitude about the dive. Each dive with an underwater photographer is an opportunity to practice our buddy
attentiveness, work on buoyancy skills, propulsion techniques, and observation skills. It can be one of divings
more rewarding experiences if we choose to make it one. When choosing a dive buddy, we have all the power
in the world. There is no reason to team up with someone who gives you a feeling of unease or concern. Its
better to call the dive or hire a professional for the dive. When traveling as a single diver, we seldom have the
time to get to know a new diver as well as wed like. Diving with what are affectionately known as instabuddies
can be fun, rewarding, and educational or a disaster.
This means that we always, even when diving with a buddy, have to be prepared to save our own skin. We
also have to be prepared to end a dive alone and get back to shore or on the boat if our new friend decides to
deviate from the plan, disappears, or is just too scary to continue the dive with! Numerous issues can arise
with these insta-buddies, including lack of communication, use of different hand signals, different goals, and
different basic practices. Some divers seriously overstate their qualifications and skills, which does not
become apparent until a dive has actually commenced. Unfortunately, this is a common occurrence."
