Deep cert or aim for tech

[soggybadger]

Hi folks. Thanks for all the replies. I appreciate all the comments from every one and have taken the advice on board. I also have a couple of things to add. Firstly my profile isn't up to date and I will be correcting it shortly. Secondly the reason that I am looking into tec diving already with my low experience is that I'm already learning the theory so why not the practice? I know in myself that this is the direction for me and my energy and finances should be focused in that direction. I clearly have a long way to go with regards to practice and experience. Thanks Iain.

 

[boulderjohn]

In order to not violate PADI's code of conduct, I won't name agencies, but I have taken tech courses with two other agencies, neither of which required skills to be executed even remotely at the same level as I had to in GUE fundies. Not even close. Not in the same ballpark. "Did Kosta close and open his valves? Check." My experience does not mean that a diver won't acquire fundies/essentials/basics level of skills in their courses, but it does mean that it isn't guaranteed.

I don't question it.

Different agencies have different philosophies. Most agencies have the philosophy that a course trains you until you are capable of performing the required skills competently and safely. You then receive a certification card that allows you to do whatever it is you allowed to do at that certification level. You then go out and seek after excellence as you perform those dives on your own. GUE's philosophy is more like they will train you until you achieve excellence, and then they will issue a certification card allowing you to do those dives on your own.

In judging the difference between those two philosophies, consider the practical consequences for the diver. UTD has the same philosophy, and when I was in training for technical diving, I looked at the training steps I had ahead of me. At that point I was UTD certified at roughly the level most agencies would consider to be normoxic trimix--I had many, many trimix dives under my belt. My future requirements included 90 experience dives at various depths (including many beyond 200 feet) in addition to the required training dives in the various courses I would have had to take to complete my trimix training. I tried to calculate how many years it would take to go what would be one more level in almost any other agency. I decided to get TDI certification instead (I already had the earlier TDI courses). I got full trimix certification a month later.

So the difference is that I got the TDI trimix certification and then went on to do trimix dives at my choosing for the next few years. If I had stayed with UTD, I would have been a much better diver when I was done, but I could only have done those dives over all those years while paying a UTD instructor, because I would not have had the certification card to qualify for them. Frankly, I couldn't have afforded it.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

IMost agencies have the philosophy that a course trains you until you are capable of performing the required skills competently and safely.

This is not reflective of my experience at all, hence my frequent recommendation for a fundies like program before starting a tech program. I believe the theory is going to be pretty much the same (ratio deco is one exception), and that the general skills are going to be the same. From my own experience, I feel having sharp skills is a requirement and the only agencies where this can be found as a guarantee are GUE, UTD, and ISE. I wish all other agencies would follow suit in their tech programs.

 

[KevinNM]

GUE isn't like that. You take tech 1, then need 25 or 50 (can't remember) experience dives at the tech 1 level before the next course. Which can be tech 2 or tech 60 depending on how you want to play it. After the tech 2 experience dives you can do rebreather or a shorter unlimited course that certifies you to dive as deep as you want.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

GUE isn't like that. You take tech 1, then need 25 or 50 (can't remember) experience dives at the tech 1 level before the next course. Which can be tech 2 or tech 60 depending on how you want to play it. After the tech 2 experience dives you can do rebreather or a shorter unlimited course that certifies you to dive as deep as you want.

Between fundies and tech 1, I'm pretty sure it is 25.