When and how did you switch to side-mount?

[CAPTAIN SINBAD]

Those of you who are doing cave diving in side mount, how did you transition into it? Did you take your cave class in SM or did you log a few dives in backmount and then started doing your cave diving in self-taught side mount? Thanks.

 

[WetRocks]

Open water dive #26 was dive #1 of my sidemount course. Straight from there to cavern/intro. No time to learn bad habits. Doesn't work for everyone but I had recently moved to Marianna and had excellent mentors/dive buddies/instructors at my disposal.

 

[rjack321]

Those of you who are doing cave diving in side mount, how did you transition into it? Did you take your cave class in SM or did you log a few dives in backmount and then started doing your cave diving in self-taught side mount? Thanks.

Well over 100 cave dives in backmount.
I only started sidemounting when I required it because double were too heavy to carry (almost 1km) and the caves too small to backmount. And I started with tourist SM caves like Gator at the Mill Pond in Marianna.

 

[tbone1004]

Learned sidemount on my own in end of 2009
About a year later I took my cave course in sidemount, but similar to taking cave in doubles, you aren't taught your configuration in the class, you are expected to know it before you come into cave. That course is supposed to teach you how to take your current diving level into a cave, not teach you how to dive properly or use your equipment.

I made the transition early because of a history of knee problems and wanted to be ahead of the curve in case my knee became worse. If you think you'll want to dive sidemount, then take the course in sidemount, but learn it properly before you get down there.

Of note, I still have several sets of doubles and put more dives in terms of # of dives/year in doubles than I do in sidemount since I teach in doubles. I prefer sidemount for cave diving and will use it as primary configuration. I dive doubles primarily in OW as I consider it a better configuration and use sidemount when the job requires it. Vice versa in the caves.

 

[kensuf]

I built my first sidemount rig in spring 1999. I had just come back from an expedition in Merida Mexico and decided I wanted to focus on some of the more "off the beaten path" places in the area. I had already been cave diving for 5 years and had probably 500 or so cave dives under my belt at that time.

The only commercial sidemount rig that was available back then wasn't that great, so I followed my friend Derek Hagler's lead and assembled my own sidemount rig out of 2" webbing, bicycle innertube, and a Seatec wing. What we assembled was very similar to the modern Razor system, but it had a bit more lift because we were using a seatec wing, and aside from the wing, it cost me all of about $50 in parts and an hour or two of my life to assemble. I dove this rig almost exclusively between March 1999 and May 2001 when the death of a friend caused me to give up cave diving for awhile.

For me, sidemount opened up access to a number of caves that we could only get to by boat, such as Rock Bluff, and access to caves that needed sidemount to get into them (such as Rock Bluff). Trying to get a set of double 104's in and out of a canoe was a nightmare.

Now, when I feel the need to dive sidemount, I use a Nomad LTZ but I'm supposed to be getting my hands on a ScubaForce Blade sometime soon.

 

[JohnnyC]

I haven't "switched" anything. I still dive backmount as well as sidemount. It's a tool. Like any other tool it has its uses, like many tools it can be used for several things, some better than others. I was cave diving before I started sidemount. It was just a progression to get to some places where backmount wasn't possible.

In my case I happen to be friends with the guy that designed the rig I use, so when I got mine, I took it to him to help set it up and get up to speed on the lessons he's learned over the years. Could I have done it myself? Sure. Would I have been as comfortable as quickly? Nope. It doesn't mean you can't figure it all out yourself, but since sidemount is the death of a thousand cuts so to speak, having someone who really knows how to set it up and tweak it is really helpful. The actual diving isn't much different from any other configuration.

 

[Miyaru]

Got my first sidemount set when I was invited for a cave that's impossible in backmount. But before actually diving that cave I did several wider caves to gain some experience.
Mainly self-taught, a few dives with helpful tips from another instructor on SB.
I did the sidemount (instructor) course much later, it would have shortened my learning curve. Also gave me a broader insight on other options/configurations and more adaptive teaching methods.

 

[Konrad M]

I dive sidemount religiously, and have done for years. Started diving sidemount here in Mexico several years ago and still at each available opportunity. Even for single tank I find the configuration much more comfortable. However often for my work, backmount is required.

 

[a878bob]

I have been diving sm for 7 years now i think. I started by slinging an alum80 off my singles bp/w for redundandcy. That’s what was available. I really didn’t notice it there and really liked the idea of having it.

As I like to tinker and try new things, I started building a sm rig that would suit my purpose. I built the plates, and added a manta sm wing. I watched lots of videos and was self learning, and not that good I must admit. Then I met my everyday dive buddy who was proficient at sm. He got me started on a good footing. And I was off to the races. I bought one of his rigs and built a 3rd rig for warm water. And dove sm exclusively, including cave and tech training.

I sm my bailouts on my breather now, I help my breather buddies do the same. It was an easy transition as I had spent so much time on sm, it was a natural extension.

 

[Scott]

Transitioned from backmount to sidemount around 2009 after becoming a tech instructor and before my cave course.
Last thing I wanted was to go into my cave course trying to sort out sidemount.