WHY Oh WHY????

[TMHeimer]

Guys would not understand fashion, but women wear 6 inch stiletto heels, risking breaking an ankle, mini skirts in winter, catching pneumonia, and long trailing skirts that get caught in taxi cab doors, when the cab drives off.
Some of us women will take fashion "risks" to look FABULOUS! Bring on the designer wetsuits!

Honestly, I think a very large % of guys do in fact totally understand that many womens' attitudes towards fashion and the "risks" are way different than their own. Well, maybe not the guy who has yet to go on his first date. A couple of us are just curious as to why it is a concern when life and death is the real risk here..

 

[tep]

I do miss the gear colors of the past - my instructor had a "safety orange" drysuit. He was easy to find. Of course, he was also 6'5" which didn't hurt.

I had an international orange wing (AT-PAC), my wife's was bright blue. It was very easy for us to stay together.

I often saw all bright blue wetsuits. Pretty much the blue that Henderson uses as an accent now.

One divemaster had a black/white custom suit that was a dead ringer for an orca, by design. She jokingly said she was small enough she didn't want to be mistaken for a seal.

 

[drrich2]

All this talk about fashion, when I'm on a dive, I'm not looking at myself, and aside from staying with a group/buddy, I don't want to be looking at the other divers, either. I just had an image of a Caribbean guide-led group dive with all the divers decked out in hot orange, loud yellow, bright blue, pink, green, etc...

Not a pretty picture, people. Basic black has a lot to be said for it.

Richard.

 

[boulderjohn]

I do miss the gear colors of the past - my instructor had a "safety orange" drysuit.

Orange dry suits are not necessarily a thing of the past. Many public safety divers use them for dives in contaminated waters.

 

[Bubblesong]

Orange dry suits are not necessarily a thing of the past. Many public safety divers use them for dives in contaminated waters.

Thank you, this is a perfect example of "bright and easily discernible colors matter".

 

[Doby45]

Thank you, this is a perfect example of "bright and easily discernible colors matter".

Actually the color in PSD means nothing as the diver is always tethered to a tender. If I have to pull a PSD in and the source water is chocolate milk it will not matter what color the divers suit is. I personally have no issue with uber cool colored diving stuff, but the whole PSD thing was a bit of a red herring.

 

[Bubblesong]

So then why do safety divers wear bright colors? Stylin'?

 

[Doby45]

So then why do safety divers wear bright colors? Stylin'?

Cause it is smexy, and it fits with the whole public safety image.. Now non-tethered swimmer/divers like Coast Guard wear the orange for viz, but tethered PSDs could wear all black or camo or yellow or red or purple or whatever they want, it has zero bearing on their job.

 

[Storker]

tethered PSDs could wear all black or camo or yellow or red or purple or whatever they want, it has zero bearing on their job.

If were a PSD, I'd choose visible gear. Very visible. Like bright orange. You never know if you'll be tethered on your next assignment.

 

[Doby45]

If were a PSD, I'd choose visible gear. Very visible. Like bright orange. You never know if you'll be tethered on your next assignment.

You are always tethered. Atleast with our department you are and the departments my department trains with. Its kinda one of the rules, like running a line in a cave.