Scared to do the back roll entry

[TexasKaren68]

My last pool class is today and we're going to have to enter the pool using a seated back roll from a platform which looked to me to be about two feet or so above the water. I've done a back roll before, right from the edge of the water but those couple extra feet are freaking me out.

I hate falling backwards. I can't see where I'm going and I'm afraid I'm either going to smash my feet on the platform or end up twisting in such a way that I injure my neck or back (I have previous neck problems and just got done with a couple months of physical therapy for a stiff neck).

Any helpful hints?

 

[Downing]

Watch others do it first, try to relax as much as possible and think of something funny as you go over. Follow the instructions (one hand on mask, the other holding onto your console onto your stomach, knees bent, etc), and you'll be surprised at how easy it is.

Just remember it's a soft landing, much like falling backwards into bed except more fun because you'll splash down instead of bounce.

It's an unnatural act, for sure, but with a huge reward, so you'll be a pro at it by the end of the session.

 

[BgDadddy]

Inflate your BC, hold your mask & reg on/in with one hand, close your eyes and go for it. Your tank breaks the water so you will land soft. By the time you open your eyes, you will be upright and on the surface.

After a couple times it will be your favorite way to enter the water.

 

[Downing]

I agree. It's my preferred method as there's just no work involved. I'm very good at falling down.

One other thing: the actual time in the air is less than a second so by time your brain says, "Oh crap, I'm falling," you're already in the water and your brain will move quickly on to other things, like "Hey, I'm breathing underwater--cool!".

 

[explorer08]

It is not so easy to give a recommendation without knowing you and also without knowing the location.

In the worst case, with your medical problems in mind you should be aware - at least if your course is a PADI course - that you don't have to do a back roll entry for your certification. The requirement from PADI is just "to demonstrate adequate entries". So if you don't want to do the back roll, do another one.

The most important advice I would give you is, talk with your instructor about your concerns!

 

[scubafanatic]

for one thing, you will just have to trust your training facility......they won't put you in a position to hurt yourself, you will need to take a little leap-of-faith here. Your new scuba lifestyle will continue to present you with many more 'firsts', and this 'first' will by no means be the scariest 'first' you will encounter, there are many more headed your way. It will be for a good cause, as this mode of entry off of either small rigid boats or small inflatable boats (RIBs) is pretty common out in the diving 'real world', so you DO need to know how to do it.

The key is RELAX and don't fight to immediately position yourself upon hitting the water......don't try to instantly 'twist' your body anywhere......the water will absorb the initial impact, and your body will naturally orient itself in the water....give it a few seconds after impact before you attempt to do anything/move anywhere so your body will establish equilibrium (bouyancy) in the water and to allow the big splash bubbles to clear away so you can see your surroundings. The biggest issues are losing one's mask/reg, or having another diver crash/collide with you if everyone has to do a simultaneous backroll.....or if in a high current area getting swept under the boat so that you could get hit by the boat hull/prop....or losing your mask/reg, starting to panic, and not being able to surface immediately because the boat is overhead. The only real cure for any of this this is more diving experience, and like most divers, you will experience some rough patches along the way as you gain that real-world experience in the unpredictable/wild ocean versus pool diving/book learning.....I'm just being honest with you.

 

[explorer08]

... as this mode of entry off of either small rigid boats or small inflatable boats (RIBs) is pretty common out in the diving 'real world',...

So far OK!

...so you DO need to know how to do it.

If you never dive from a RIB (or similar) in your life, you never need a back roll entry in your life.

I depends on the kind of diving you will do in the future!

And if you don't need it right now, there is enought time to learn it when you will need it. And probably than you feel much more comfortable with your diving in general and than it will be much easier for you to learn.

And never forget, there will always be something new for you to learn in the future, because good divers never stop learning!

 

[Bob DBF]

May be too late for this one but you should have talked to your physical therapist or doctor about the effects on your neck and back about this and diving in general. You could talk to the instructor about doing that skill later and work it out with the Doc.

I had been diving long before my back problems so I knew what I had to adjust in my diving, which was just my entry over the rock beaches up here on the No. CA coast.


Bob
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I may be old, but I’m not dead yet.

 

[BgDadddy]

If you never dive from a RIB (or similar) in your life, you never need a back roll entry in your life.

Disagree.

I dove off of a 6 pack in Key Largo a few years ago and we had to back roll off of the side of a 30 something ft boat. It was about a 6 foot drop to the water.

That one made me a bit uneasy at first, but it was just a little longer hang time and a bigger splash. It still wasn't anything unpleasant.

The way to get over your fears is to just go out and do it (within reason of course )

I still say go for it. I think you'll learn to like it.

 

[Ana]

for one thing, you will just have to trust your training facility......they won't put you in a position to hurt yourself, you will need to take a little leap-of-faith here.

I wouldn't suggest blind trust or the faith thing, there is no telling on what some outfits will do for money. However, it seems like the OP is trying to find out more about the issue in question, to me that is the proper way to solve it.

I would suggest doing this back roll with just mask and fins. If you don't have access to a boat (which would be the ideal practice) put a bench at the edge of a pool and having someone else holding that bench practice the move. It almost seem like the safest way to do it would be from a boat, but if your helper is strong enough to hold the bench, it may be ok.

It will be for a good cause, as this mode of entry off of either small rigid boats or small inflatable boats (RIBs) is pretty common out in the diving 'real world', so you DO need to know how to do it.

I agree, depending on the area, even not so small boats use the back roll as THE only way to enter.
From the point of view of the operator's insurance, a way to minimize risk of injury is to minimize the amount of time the passenger is standing up in the deck with full gear.

If you never dive from a RIB (or similar) in your life, you never need a back roll entry in your life.

I depends on the kind of diving you will do in the future!

Yes, as always the devil is in the details.... "(or similar)" has the potential to cover a great amount of vessel types. If you're going to limit your options so much why bother getting a certification of a boat?
Following that logic get your certification from a spring or quarry and be done with it.