How many dives before solo diving, part II

[MXGratefulDiver]

Bob
You missunderstand what I post, I;m not saying anything at all about you pre say, As a matter of fact I think you have alot to offer......My bit is about that narsayers that come on this thred and belittle solo diving and make it out thow we solo diver have some forum of dethwish and that Bu!! sh!t gets old fast,,,,,making blanket statements get old fast. as far as solo diving right out of onpen water there will alway be happening no matter what you or I think about it, right or worng it;s just a fact of life. I'm aposted to not telling the info to lean how to do it in a safe manner......the poles speek for them selfs

Let me break this down into little words for you ...

THERE IS NO SAFE MANNER TO LEARN TO SOLO DIVE RIGHT OUT OF OPEN WATER!

You need to learn a little something about diving first.

Relying on overconfidence is a great way to end up the subject of an A&I thread ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

Talking about solo diving to a newly OW'd diver is like talking about sex to a 10-year old. It all sounds very exciting, but in reality they don't have a clue what you're talking about ... and still won't even after you get done explaining it to 'em ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

You know if you don't like the idea of solo diving, don't come into the fourm.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

I think that some people simply have too much ego to accept guidance.

Pot calling the kettle black...

 

[DevonDiver]

Well it would seem that you rather insult me than think about what everyone (other then instructors) have to say about when they started solo diving

Pot calling the kettle black...

Gentlemen.... play nicely please. A sense of humor and/or willingness to tolerate other people's perceptions is necessary for rational debate.

You may not like, or agree with, our points-of-view, but please don't turn this into a petty slanging match.

 

[Kingpatzer]

The current learning system for solo is based on arbitrary numbers of dives and classes taken. We need to base the availability of classes on observed behavior. Have you ever seen someone with a c-card that didn't have the ability to perform the basic skills, even having a buddy? The opposite can be true as well. Some folks are ready before 100 dives to learn solo.

First, I'm one who believes that the 100 dives is almost certainly too few dives for most people to be ready to solo dive. Second, as a relatively new instructor I can tell you that observed behavior in a controlled skill review session doesn't show how someone deals with difficulties on a real dive.

Ultimately, the minimum dive number is a heuristic, but that is the best we can do unless you are suggesting limiting solo diving classes to those who have made multiple real dives with an instructor and at least one where a problem was encountered so that the instructor can evaluate how the person responds to stress.

Overconfidence drives foolish behavior that is justified by the perpetrator by ego and ignorance. I realize that no matter how many of us point that out, there is going to be a (large) percentage who don't believe us. But with maturity and experience comes wisdom, and after a few hundred more dives, and a couple of problem moments, minds change.

Folks posting here are not anti-solo diving. But advocating for responsible choices, particularly for inexperienced divers, is simply common sense.

I've met more than a few people with 20, 30, 50 or more dives whose experience led them to believe they could handle anything because they hadn't yet needed to deal with any issue of significance. I was one of them.

 

[DevonDiver]

You know if you don't like the idea of solo diving, don't come into the fourm.

Dude...READ THE THREAD. NWGratefulDiver and others do LOVE solo diving.

They are just debating their perspective; that divers should have a baseline level of competance and experience before embarking into a specialist diving activity that requires particular skills, equipment and mind-set.

If you are an advocate encouraging inexperienced divers to dive solo, then please feel free to make that opinion known.

Otherwise... please stop mis-understanding the thread.

 

[captain]

Threads like this is why I seldom visit the solo section any more. Everybody knows what's good for everybody else but no body knows anybody.

 

[DennisS]

This type of incident will cause a fatality in any number of daily activities.The possibility of a medical event can't be a deterrent to diving. I just had a good friend die in the shower getting ready for work. His wife was at the bathroom counter drying her hair when he collapsed out of the shower stall onto the floor. He had a heart condition that he was unaware of. If he was solo diving, he would have been another one of the deaths that "may" have been prevented by an attentive buddy.

Understood... I would prefer to see them get more experience too. But, the Solo Diver Fourm is supposed to be a place to talk about solo diving. It is possible to talk and discourage at the same time where necessary. However, it seems lately every post gets slammed with the 'you're gonna die' rhetoric. It's quickly becoming the Anti-Solo Diver forum.

I had a friend get up one morning and find her husband dead, halfway between the living room and bedroom. We're all going to die, some of us will be diving at the time.

I enjoy being alone under water, I also enjoy hiking alone, the two activities are similar. You're with the environment, not dealing with people. When I'm solo diving I can give my full attention to the world around me. I'm not constantly trying to keep track of someone.

I do shallow dives in clear warm water. It is over my head and the possibility of drowning is always there.

Is someone practicing bouyancy in their home pool with 10 dives soloing too soon? How about off the dock at the lake in 10 ft of clear water carrying two cutting tools, are they soloing too soon. If they stray 40-50 ft off the dock, still in 10 ft of water with a sand bottom, are they soloing too soon.

 

[Kingpatzer]

Is someone practicing bouyancy in their home pool with 10 dives soloing too soon? How about off the dock at the lake in 10 ft of clear water carrying two cutting tools, are they soloing too soon. If they stray 40-50 ft off the dock, still in 10 ft of water with a sand bottom, are they soloing too soon.

The discussions here are, frankly, about generalized advice. But that advice is sound within a certain set of assumptions. One of those assumptions is that we're not talking about confined water conditions.

 

[DennisS]

The discussions here are, frankly, about generalized advice. But that advice is sound within a certain set of assumptions. One of those assumptions is that we're not talking about confined water conditions.

I used the first example to describe a solo dive in a pool, I just expanded it to a lake and different parameters. If they do it in a lake, it's not confined water. If they are diving 50 ft from the pier in 10 foot of water, would it be OK to dive in 15 ft of water 100 ft from the pier.

My point is that there are very easy solo dives for a beginner. The poll didn't specify the difficulty of the dive.