Aqua-Andy
Contributor
This http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/basic-scuba-discussions/478674-c-card-recognition-myth-fact.html thread got me thinking. Have the SCUBA training agencys gone to far? There seams to be a specialty for just about everything you can do while diving. Please don't get me wrong, I have nothing against training diver to enjoy the sport safely it's the over zealous training agencys I have an issue with. Just to pick on SSI for a minute. Boat diving, do you really have to take a class on how to dive off a boat? Under water photography, will I be considered reckless if I don't take this class and dive with a camera? Drysuit diving, this was just a waste of money for me but was a means to an end. Perfect buoyancy, shouldn't they have taught this to you in your open water course? The list goes on and on, Fish ID, recreational wreck diving, navigation, waves tides and currents, altitude diving. If you feel uncomfortable doing any of these thing by all means seek some mentoring or take a class but to have a "certification" for some of these courses is ridiculous. When I purchased my drysuit I was told I would not be able to take my advanced open water with my suit unless I took the cert first. I felt the drysuit class was a total waste of money for me but I did get to do the rest of my advanced cert in comfort. The problem is calling these "certifications" set a precedent and then these courses start to be required to dive in certain situations. I know the certification agencys need to make money and that is done by selling course materials for classes, but it just feels like they are trying to nickle and dime the consumer. I would rather take a "class" with the fellow that runs Backscatter under water photo than a "certification" with a dive shop employee who does not know half as much as the former instructor. If a cert agency comes out with a P-valve cert will I have to take the cert class so I can attach myself to my suits P-valve while on a dive charter? Yes for certain types of diving I think certification should be a requirement to protect dive operators, IE: cave diving, deep diving on mixed gasses, decompression. But for using my compass or taking a picture, I think they have gone a little to far.