So why is my LDS so excited about sidemount all of a sudden?

[Johanan]

2. As mentioned in your thread, it takes a tremendous amount of time to lower cylinders into the water. My boat carries 24 divers. We wouldn't have the
4. I may be all wrong, but the weight is the weight. I don't see trekkers carrying their kit on their hips with shoulder rigs, I see them with back packs on. I'm 50, and I just can't see how (on land) low and out to the sides is any easier than high and on the back.

I'm a whole half decade older than you. I have never tried to carry around a twinset, but imagine that for me it might be a challenge for shore dives where I have to walk a longer distance over rocks or climb down and up. With the sidemount it is possible to carry the tanks one by one and clip them on in the water.

 

[616fun]

I'm with Wookie on this one. It's a system designed for certain types of diving.

 

[Diver0001]

This is what Steve Martin says:

Top 5 benefits for why we should choose sidemount!!

Generally most sidemount harnesses are custom fit, this adds comfort and allows correct fitting for all body shapes & sizes.

If your gear fits then it fits. Nothing about sidemount makes that any different than any other configuration.

Having the option to put on the heavy bits (cylinders) in water first, makes scuba divingfar easier and gives you more energy for underwater swimming.

This is context dependent and would only really be applicable to some shore dives .

Being more streamlined underwater makes more dive sites accessible, as many sites have challenging conditions like currents, long swims etc…

More streamlined than what? I think claims like this should be verified with more than opinion.

For many people sidemount makes technical diving possible (no twinsets to carry)

and if you don't have any physical disabilities?

Using sidemount diving just looks way cooler and much more fun!!

And this is one of the "top 5"? So let's tally it up.

That's 2 that are unverified matters of opinion, 2 that are false and 1 that only applies if you have physical disabilities.

Personally I see it as a fad. There seems to be nothing inherent about side mount that makes it any better than any other config for most applications. As for why the LSD like its.... yeah. They'd literally like anything if they thought you'd buy it.

R..

 

[JamesK]

I see it as a fad for some, but a true way of diving for others. Some will try it because it "looks cool". Lord I hate that crap. Others will try it because it fits some need in their diving, and they will continue with it.

 

[spectrum]

I have seen them work well for awkward shore dives. The diver gets down to the water unencumbered. Tenders relay the cylinder(s). The diver clips off and is off to the races.

 

[Johanan]

Some will try it because it "looks cool". Lord I hate that crap.

But it does look cool, doesn't it?

BTW, can anyone identify what fins is he using?

 

[Wookie]

I'm a whole half decade older than you. I have never tried to carry around a twinset, but imagine that for me it might be a challenge for shore dives where I have to walk a longer distance over rocks or climb down and up. With the sidemount it is possible to carry the tanks one by one and clip them on in the water.

Yes, good point. I don't do that type of diving, but I can see where it would be an advantage if you did.

 

[ianr33]

I'm a whole half decade older than you. I have never tried to carry around a twinset, but imagine that for me it might be a challenge for shore dives where I have to walk a longer distance over rocks or climb down and up. With the sidemount it is possible to carry the tanks one by one and clip them on in the water.

Yes,but........... with sidemount you have to make twice as many trips to the water. Often it's easier to make one trip with doubles on your back rather than two carrying a heavy steel tank in your arms.

Putting the tanks in the water first is great when diving a calm lake with with convenient shallows to gear up in. It's not so much fun in six foot waves! (That goes for both boat and shore dives)

I dive sidemount pretty much exclusively these days,but only because I need it for the site I dive most. (And I'm too lazy to switch back and forth between sidemount and backmount)
If you don't NEED sidemount then, IMHO it's more trouble than it's worth.

 

[Colliam7]

It might be helpful to have a little more background on the title line:

So why is my LDS so excited about sidemount all of a sudden?

Could you clarify what you mean? HOW are they so excited – what are they doing that suggests sudden excitement? The cynicism about ‘selling more gear’ is just that, cynicism, and probably not germaine to what you are asking. But, I would be curious to know what it is that has caused you to raise the question.

I think Steve Martin (whomever he is) has just pointed out everything wrong with the popularity of sidemount. All of those things (except 5) are gear solutions to skills problems.

I am not sure these are accurate statements, particularly with regard to 2. and 4., and possibly even 3. There are more than a few people who, for whatever reason, are physically challenged when trying to dive backmount doubles. For them, a sidemount configuration is a reasonable alternative. Honestly, I would rather carry two individual 130 cf cylinders up the stairs at 40 Fathom - making two trips – than carry my double 130s in one trip (although I do, and have done, that at times).

Steve Martin (Steve Martin Sidemount Diving - Course Director PADI TecRec Side Mount Scuba Diving Instructor Technical Recreational Training > Home), not unlike Steve Bogaerts, is a fairly active advocate of sidemount diving. And, probably not unlike Jeff Loflin, has done quite a bit of traveling around the world doing sidemount training.

I see a couple of somewhat exaggerated reactions associated with sidemount's popularity – there are the extreme afficionados, who may be so overbearing in their advocacy that it turns some people off. And, there are the extreme skeptics at the other end of the spectrum, who seem to refuse to accept SM as a simple equivalent of, and reasonable alternative to, backmount doubles. Saying that sidemount is a gear solution to a skills problem is very much like saying that a backplate is a gear solution to a skills problem. Both statements are irrelevant. Rather, both a SM rig, and a backplate, are simply preferred gear configurations for some people because, for those people, the configuration, be it a backplate / wing, or sidemount doubles, offers greater appeal. But, both also have some glitz appeal to a few, unrelated to their functionality.

I dive both sidemount and backmount in OW, for recreational and technical diving. I prefer certain aspects of sidemount in OW, and certain aspects of backmount in OW. To answer the OP’s original question:

. . . is there a reason to embrace sidemount rather than conventional backmount, other than for cave diving?

The answer is, ‘Absolutely.’ SM entries may be a bit easier in certain ways, sidemount rigging may be a bit more stable in the water for some – if I am diving wet, with doubled heavy steels, I usually need a bit of continuous ‘station-keeping’ with backmount to keep from turning turtle, while in sidemount, I don’t notice that. That is not a gear solution to a skills problem – it is a matter of weight and balance.

We won't handle your gear from boat to water or water to boat. If you can't jump off a boat fully kitted and get back on, you need to develop more skills....

It is your boat, and your privilege, and I support you 100% in taking that position. I am curious - for tec charters, do you require divers to climb up the ladder with their deco bottles in place?

 

[Wookie]

It is your boat, and your privilege, and I support you 100% in taking that position. I am curious - for tec charters, do you require divers to climb up the ladder with their deco bottles in place?

Until we can reach them at the top of the ladder, or we hang deco lines. Deco lines are for scooters, deco bottles, bailouts, whatever someone wants to hang there, but if you come up the ladder with your bottles on (as I do) we take them from you at the top of the ladder (if you so choose).

---------- Post added February 9th, 2013 at 06:07 PM ----------

I dive sidemount pretty much exclusively these days,but only because I need it for the site I dive most.

Yes, but you have to pull yourself through a restriction that some of your team members can't even fit through (nor could I) with a chain against the flow. You aren't diving in the calm ocean.....