Yes, I've been laughed at for bringing jackets or boat coats on tropical boats . . . But having something windproof to protect you between dives is a big factor in staying warm.
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Don't beat yourself up too much. Every diver on this board has had problems with their first few dives. You are learning. And now you know what you must learn more about. You consumed your gas too quickly! Yes, but you were excited. Slow down and with experience your gas consumption will come down. Good Luck and keep diving. OFTEN!
Sorry that your dive didnt go as planned. At least you have the right attitude about it. None of us are perfect.
Just a suggestion, you may want to try some lake, river diving. This would be more convienent and cheaper too. You can hone your skills there, and then ocean diving will seem easy, by comparison.
Keep learning.
@John B: Thanks for sharing your experience with us. It sounds like you had a really good learning experience. I'll address just 2 points and I'll let others address the others.
First of all, there could be several reasons why you had difficulty with your initial descent. You were in a wetsuit. It's possible that your suit was trapping air, making you more buoyant at the beginning of the dive. It's possible that you were unknowingly kicking up -- this is why some novice divers are asked to cross their legs during descent. It's possible that you weren't exhaling fully -- due to nervousness. It's possible that you didn't vent all of the air out of your BCD -- this can happen if you're unfamiliar with the gear. Of course, it's also possible that you didn't have enough weight. As others will explain, if you're properly weighted at the beginning of your dive, once you exhaust all of the air out of your BCD, you will be negatively buoyant by the weight of your gas. If you were diving an AL80, that means you should be about 6 lbs. negatively buoyant. That's definitely enough to make initiating the descent very easy. If it's not coming easily, then something is wrong. Since you didn't mention feeling "light" at the end of your dive with an empty tank, I suspect that you might have been wearing enough lead. Do a proper weight check to determine your weighting requirements.
Secondly, the Venturi adjustment knob really shouldn't affect your air consumption in any significant way. Even if left in the pre-dive (-) position, your reg should deliver plenty of gas at depth. If you're interested, you can read up on how Venturi adjustment knobs work (redirecting the flow of gas through the second stage by repositioning a vane) and how they differ from inhalation adjustment (cracking pressure) knobs. Most reg manufacturers suggest positioning the Venturi knob to the "-" sign pre-dive and the "+" sign during the dive. Depending on how the reg is adjusted, you may or may not detect much of a breathing difference.
Have fun and dive safe.
John-
Your a new diver and made new diver mistakes. This shouldn't be a surprise to you or anyone else.
I suggest you print out your post, and make a few copies, One for the refrigerator, since some of the lessons like prior planning, and making check lists apply to other things besides diving. While you're at it make a list of required dive gear, and stick it with your BC or regs, along with one of the copies of the post.
One place you think you erred, was in thinking you erred with the flow control on your regs. The
adjustment is mainly to fine tune the cracking pressure to prevent free flows at the surface, while allowing easier breathing during the dive. Regardless of the setting it has nothing to do with your air consumption which is controlled by your breathing pattern. You used up your air because you're a new diver and were also using more air because of the hardships you were encountering.
Lastly, while it's good to learn from ones mistakes and you should definitely reread this post before your next dive, the flip side is that you don't want to work yourself into a frenzy over it. You have to get comfortable with yourself, and somehow stay focused and relaxed at the same time, so as to enjoy your dives.
You'll repeat some of these mistakes and think up some creative new ones, that's just part of the growing process, but they'll become fewer and farther in between.
Years ago someone told me that wisdom is the ability to recognize dogs*** when you step in it,....again.
John, I'm sorry your dive probably wasn't as enjoyable as you hoped for (although it sounds like you still did enjoy it due to the shark), but you have an excellent attitude as far as your mistakes go by being able to objectively analyze what went wrong, what you could have done better, and sharing it with us. Plenty of good advice has already been given on this thread, so I can't offer much, but I would like to point out that while you may not have enjoyed this dive that much, you learned a great deal from it and for that reason it's probably good that you had the experiences that you did.
We don't learn from the dives that went great; we learn from the dives that went wrong.
my intention on this dive was to practice the things you mentioned above but seems like from the get go my game plan went south."Small steps"... Maybe for the next dive, particularly if your buddy doesn't have a conflicting agenda (find one that doesn't), concentrate on proper weighting, buoyancy at depth and controlling your breathing.
Buoyancy at depth is critical to air consumption. If you can hover just off the bottom, you won't have to struggle and waste a bunch of air swimming up off the bottom all the time. If you are properly balanced, you won't be swimming in a heads up orientation.
Forcibly reduce your motion, hover and relax. If you get that right, the rest of diving is easy.
Richard
I have dove with Sandy's a few times and I think they are really great. However, I think all "cattle boats" breed nervousness. I typically dive on my own boat and have hundreds of dives. When I occasionally dive on a cattle boat it seems to get a little hectic.
I think you should have made it a point to explain your experience level to the captain and tried to get paired up with a buddy.
I have seen the crew of Sandy's take a few new divers under their wing and help them have an enjoyable dive.
That being said, there may be boats that are a little better suited to your experience level. I think the boats going out of Boynton Beach (Underwater explorers) would be good. They also dive a little shallower water.
It is unlikely you will find a boat in the Palm Beach area without lobster hunters this time of year.
Sounds like you learned some valuable lessons and got a little more experience.
Other people have covered the specifics, like the fact that your Venturi control doesn't affect your gas consumption, and that technique may have impacted both your ability to descend and your gas consumption rate.
What I want to mention is something I think is very difficult for new divers (at least it was for me), and that is assertiveness. It's perfectly okay to be new. And it's okay to ask the DM, "Hey, I understand about the boat stuff, but what's this site like? What are the depths? What's the structure and the navigation?" Now, of course, they are SUPPOSED to tell you those things without you asking, but if you don't feel you have enough information to start the dive with confidence, ASK! It's the same with the buddy system. If you want a buddy, and none has been identified for you, ASK. It may be that no one wants to buddy up with you, because they are all hunting, in which case the DM ought to offer to have you dive with him.
One of the big lessons you should have gotten from your OW instructor is that, as a certified diver, you are responsible for your own dive. That means you don't take your lead from other divers who are doing things you mistrust or disapprove of. It means you are proactive in obtaining enough information to dive safely (or to make the decision that this dive is not for you). It means you do safety checks, even when people are annoyed with you for doing them. It's VERY hard to resist the pressure to go with the crowd, but good habits are built day by day, and the best time to start developing them is from the very beginning.
I like the idea about joining a dive club problem is I live on the west coast Tampa area and from what I've been told not much good diving in the Gulf.In addition to the helpful comments above, I'd like to add a suggestion that you join a local dive club, so you can go diving with experienced divers willing to share the benefit of their experience with you.
You obviously have the best possible attitude for learning to be an excellent diver. You KNOW that you don't know everything (that alone puts you head and shoulders above most folks) and you are willing to critique yourself. Surely, you'll get much, much better - and fairly rapidly, too.
Go dive!!
John,
Hello, I was actually on this trip with you. My dive buddy and I were also in your group with Todd, he is the instructor that was leading our little group. My friend was completing his check out dives and the four of us plus one other kid were all diving together. I was sitting there when we were given the boat briefing, and also remember Todd telling us about staying together, monitoring our air, and that when one of us hit 800 psi that we would all head up. I also remember Sandy asking you if you had a safety sausage, then Matt bringing you one and giving it to you, maybe you missed something then?? I'm not sure of what else was said then, I returned to putting my gear together. Anyway, I also just wanted to mention that you shouldn't be afraid to ask questions or speak up. As far as the hunters goes, there were four that we dropped completely away from us on the back side of the reef. I know this charter very well, I've dove with them a couple years now and they are great about looking after thier divers, and will go out of thier way to make sure everyone is SAFE and happy. You shouldn't worry about interferring with somebody's dive, just speak up...besides you were with a dive instructor, use that oppurtunity to ask questions and get thier advice, it's free!!
Two divers Kim and Chris also talked about skipping the second dive because of the cold...the water was much warmer than the air that is for sure. I thought that is why you didn't join us for the second dive also? But don't worry to much, I had the same issues when I was a newer diver, each dive though I got more confidence and felt more comfortable. When in doubt carry a extra pound or two, it doesnt hurt as much to be slightly over weighted then to be under weighted. I've had dives I've forgot my weights, one that I fought my bouyancy the whole time because I had all my weights on one side of my body?? It happens, but just take your time, relax and remain calm, you'll find you can learn each dive something to make you a better diver.
Hope you have some great diving experiences in the future and warmer conditions to do them in. Good Luck
I like the idea about joining a dive club problem is I live on the west coast Tampa area and from what I've been told not much good diving in the Gulf.
John B