Pony or buddy when low/no air?

[Steve_C]

If buddy needs air (or thinks they do) the first priority is to keep them calm and avoid panic. They get my spare reg. Then once they are relaxed and we are thinking clearly we proceed. We may stay on my reg or I may hang the pony on them and then have them use the pony. Depends on the situation. Most likely since this is a NC dive in all likelihood we air share back to the anchor line if we cannot fix the issue. And they go up on the pony. Air sharing along a bouncing hang bar is less desirable.

I have only had one diver who thought they were OOA. Once they were on my spare we sorted out the issue. Was her first ocean dive, in fact her first post cert dive, in rental gear and capt had her put her spare in her pocket. Her mouth piece had come off, her spare was not where she thought it would be and she shot over to me with the OOA sign. I found her spare and put her back on that. Figured that I was now her reg backup. We continued the dive but I was extra careful to stay close. Depth was only 50 ft on a small wreck. Pony not put in play on this dive.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Ive just been rethinking this particular issue. Consider you are diving with a buddy, you have your pony and your dive buddy runs out of gas, so you switch your side mounted Pony/stage bottle to your buddy, who likely has had no training with a pony. This alters his buoyancy/trim/list. Additionally, there is a significant task-load associated with carrying a pony, especially under oog scenarios. I believe it is safety to hand off a pony to a person shop has used and trained with one, but not necessarily with someone who is naive to a pony.

When I dove with a pony, I would NEVER give my pony bottle to anyone. That is mine and mine alone. if a buddy is oog, I give my AAS and ascend. Now I'd put them on my long hose.

 

[Doc]

I do mostly boat diving in the Caribbean and almost always....

Let us know how traveling on a commercial airliner goes for you.

(Remember, that cylinder has to be "open"...not "the valve, the cylinder)

Sometimes TSA doesn't care, other times it just magically disappears, only a note left in its place. Best luck carrying it on, better to simply manage your gas plunging into the darkness of the treacherous environment of chartered Caribbean dive boats.

It's a Darwin thing, cannot be overcome by iron.

 

[Edward3c]

Thanks for all the replies. I was thinking pony first, and this seems to be the consensus. Btw, I never expect to have to use it and do not plan to substitute it for good skill, I am religious about checking my air and have never come close to a low air situation, I do not plan to use the pony air as part of my dive plan, and I did a detailed calculation on bottle size based on my SAC rate (x 2), a minute at depth (100', which is generally my max) to get sorted, an ascension rate of 30'/min, and a safety stop. Just using a bottle for peace of mind at a very small cost.

So pony first, it is.

At least once a year I switch over to my pony at 30-35m, deploy a DSMB and make a controlled ascent to the surface. This is a dedicated dive done for no other purpose.

I’ve been carrying a pony ever since finding a diver’s body. Never had to use it for real. Would not hand it over to an OOG diver as its my redundant gas not theirs.

However, when overseas pony’s are not normally available. The cost of taking one on a plane is more than buying one then throwing it away. For example, UK to Belize 4 x import/export charges of US$100 to transit the US.

 

[RainPilot]

I dive twin side mount so no need for pony, a travel stage kit would let you sling a 40 or a 80 without too much hassle, I would never try take a pony on a plane.

The hay is never fresh.

 

[Frontpointer1000]

When I dove with a pony, I would NEVER give my pony bottle to anyone. That is mine and mine alone. if a buddy is oog, I give my AAS and ascend. Now I'd put them on my long hose.

I think this should be the way to manage diving with a pony. I like the idea of keeping it on my body, and keeping the oog diver close.
Tech gas sharing principles would say give your primary air source to the oog diver then take your backup yourself.

When I dive solo I'll only have one first/second stage reg connected to my back gas, and one reg from my pony. I dont have an "octopus". I do this bc of simplicity and streamlining. If I use this set up while diving with a buddy, I always discuss this unique configuration so they know not to look for the octo.
I suppose once an oog diver gets sorted out, I could switch back to my primary and give him the reg from the pony for ascent (while still managing the pony myself). This is what I have done in practice drills, just never cemented it into SOP.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Tech gas sharing principles would say give your primary air source to the oog diver then take your backup yourself.

My understanding is that when diving doubles, the long hose is given to the OOG diver and the donor switches to the short hose. It is the same air source.

For sidemount, long hose again for the receiver, donor on short hose, and now they are on 2 different sources of air. Neither is primary/backup.

 

[scubadada]

When I dove with a pony, I would NEVER give my pony bottle to anyone. That is mine and mine alone. if a buddy is oog, I give my AAS and ascend. Now I'd put them on my long hose.

At least once a year I switch over to my pony at 30-35m, deploy a DSMB and make a controlled ascent to the surface. This is a dedicated dive done for no other purpose.

I’ve been carrying a pony ever since finding a diver’s body. Never had to use it for real. Would not hand it over to an OOG diver as its my redundant gas not theirs.

However, when overseas pony’s are not normally available. The cost of taking one on a plane is more than buying one then throwing it away. For example, UK to Belize 4 x import/export charges of US$100 to transit the US.

I dive with my pony when I am diving solo. If I happened to come on an OOA diver, I would gladly hand off my pony and ascend with them to safety. I would rather do this than share my primary gas. My pony is for gas emergencies, generally my own. I can't understand why others would not pass off.

 

[Frontpointer1000]

My understanding is that when diving doubles, the long hose is given to the OOG diver and the donor switches to the short hose. It is the same air source.

For sidemount, long hose again for the receiver, donor on short hose, and now they are on 2 different sources of air. Neither is primary/backup.

This is accurate. However, I would describe the primary regulator (long hose) coming off the right post as my main, and the short hose coming off my left post as a "back up". These can be considered same source if you have your manifold open (which you should have). However you can isolate your cylinders if necessary. Some people dive isolated doubles.

I dive with my pony when I am diving solo. If I happened to come on an OOA diver, I would gladly hand off my pony and ascend with them to safety. I would rather do this than share my primary gas. My pony is for gas emergencies, generally my own. I can't understand why others would not pass off.

Scubadada, just curious, you would feel good with passing off a pony to someone who is oog and had no experience with a pony? Of course I assume you would babysit them to the surface.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

For an out of air diver, I would donate my primary - right away. You know it works. Donating a pony second stage has even more potential issues than donating an octopus, in that the pony valve could be shut off and there is always the possibility that the regulator is fouled with sand, debris or the mouthpiece is compromised.

We are kinda splitting hairs, because the victim will probably be happy to have anything, but donating the primary would be my choice.

Also, if the diver was freaking out a little, I could envision that the diver, when handed a small scuba tank which he is unsure about the capacity and pressure, might be more likely to grab the bottle and sprint for the surface, compared with being presented with the primary and being held by the donor.