Would you do it THAT way?

[lermontov]

Made me think of this one btw, although South West Rocks is a tiny bit easier as it is a straight line. When I went there, I got weird looks from about everyone for asking for 2 tanks. Heck, even some tech divers dismiss the potential issues... (and that one was from one if not the most conservative agency there is when it comes to safety...)

what could possibly go wrong

 

[andrei_c]

You think people in first movie I posted are wrong? Noooo, could be worst than that.

 

[boulderjohn]

Since it has been about 10 years or so since I have done that dive I went to their website and Dos Ojos is marketed as a Cavern dive. I really can't remember if at all times I could see some type of ambient light but I do know at times you were definitely in an overhead environment. Most of the time actually. There were a couple of places, one was called the bat cave, where we surfaced and the guide pointed out the bats above us and then continued the dive.

Dos Ojos has a definite cavern area, and its bottom is hard, with no chance of raising silt. It also has a place where it turns into a cave. It is an extremely popular cavern diving site.

I have long argued that the "no overheads whatsoever!" rule is both counterproductive and dangerous. Does it mean you can't swim under the mooring line? How about a simple arch 10 feet from the surface? Well, of course not. Anyone can do those. How about a 5 foot long swim through? How about the wide open area under the bridge if a wreck? All of these should be easily done by any diver. So at what point does a specific overhead environment become too dangerous for YOU at YOUR LEVEL of training?

My fear is that people who get used to doing simple swim throughs will decide that the "no overheads whatsoever!" rule has no validity at all, and once they throw the only rule they know at the window, they are left with no guidance whatsoever. I made that argument with PADI a couple years ago, and the result was that they approved a Distinctive Specialty named "Understanding Overhead Environments." The course progresses sequentially from anchor chains to caves, explaining the increasing levels of danger and showing why people with different levels of training, experience, and equipment can enter different kinds of overhead environments. It attempts to show as clearly as possible why the fact that you can enjoy a simple swim through in Cozumel does not mean you can go into a cave as well.

 

[BDSC]

I think that would be a very useful course for divers but especially for newer divers to give them a good perspective on overheads. Is that a course that only you teach or is it available to other instructors?

 

[boulderjohn]

In order to teach the course, you have to be approved, which means you have to submit a request with the outline of the course in the proper format. I have given that outline to several people, and I would give it to anyone else who wanted it. They would have to create their own course materials to support the outline--I have several different versions of PowerPoints I have made. The course is information only--it is not a skills course at all. It teaches you what kinds of skills courses (like Cavern Diver) you should take for the more advanced overheads, but it does not actually teach those skills in an overhead environment. A pool-based skill session is an option. (That limitation was a requirement for course approval.)