Question Agency vs instructor selection (Netherlands)

[Wibble]

@Cheizz - are you solo certified / trained?

Ask that as you could easily do a single day's sidemount mentoring with someone who'd help you configure your harness and cylinders, then you can go off and practice until it works.

There's not much to sidemount except there's the messing around with adjusting the bungees, etc. The rest is just normal diving stuff.



@mac64 - of course it's easier with a single lump on your back. Until it isn't when you'll curse the damn thing for being a massive lump on your back. Walking down to boats with tins swinging isn't hard. When you're trying to move around in somewhere a bit more constricted, then sidemount rules.

Would like to try some sidemount on a submarine. Being able to move the tins out of the way would -- maybe -- give you the ability to drop into the conning tower.

 

[Cheizz]

Nope, not solo certified. The faffing around is not something I dread. It's just that I am a first-time-right kind of person.

 

[Searcaigh]

Are you talking about walking from where your car is parked on the ground to where you enter the water is 100-200m?

Distance from shore to the reef edge. It could also be the distance from where my car is parked to the shoreline.

You walk with a tank on your back from your car to the water for 2km????

Yes, plus on these reefs we would usually bring a float with extra gear and cooler to do the SI on the reef edge before the second dive.

Photo of what we used as a float ..... it had a hard wooden bottom strapped to the lower part.

Diane

Diane

scubaboard.com

 

[BoltSnap]

Distance from shore to the reef edge. It could also be the distance from where my car is parked to the shoreline.


Yes, plus on these reefs we would usually bring a float with extra gear and cooler to do the SI on the reef edge before the second dive.

Photo of what we used as a float ..... it had a hard wooden bottom strapped to the lower part.

Diane

Diane

scubaboard.com

Who is Diane???

 

[BoltSnap]

There's such a dramatic difference in CDs/ITs of the largest agencies, it isn't even funny. What is written may be the same, but what is interpreted and implemented are not. One has to be incredibly unobservant to not be aware. That's why other agencies can have such an impact on an instructor. If the CD/IT is top notch and trains to a high level, the impact of other agencirs (of the instructor continues to learn and train) will be less. For those interpreting at low level, the impact will be .more

Instructor training is very different and should NOT be subject to interpretation, there should be very little room for maneuvering in instructor training/evaluation with proper agencies.

Are you an Instructor Trainer/Course Director/Instructor Examiner for any agency?

 

[Marie13]

Nope, not solo certified. The faffing around is not something I dread. It's just that I am a first-time-right kind of person.

Did you ever answer why you’ve chosen SM over doubles? You have no local buddies who dive it. You don’t seem to have any physical issues that would make doubles a no go. Doubles would be better for your local diving. You have no caves or mines to dive.

 

[rjack321]

You could go to Plura in Norway. The Mo I Rani airport is close, Ina and Jani will do transfers, have lodging, and a dive shop and cylinder rentals on-site. You could easily take a legit sidemount cave course there on a 4-6 day vacation (assuming you have some cave training already). Water is cold but the system is open year round.

If you just doing sidemount "because" and a special trip to Norway for a course seems excessive - then I question the reason you're looking for change from the local backmount standard, which obviously works for other Dutch divers locally.

 

[Celt]

@mac64 - of course it's easier with a single lump on your back. Until it isn't when you'll curse the damn thing for being a massive lump on your back. Walking down to boats with tins swinging isn't hard. When you're trying to move around in somewhere a bit more constricted, then sidemount rules.

The tanks don’t get bigger on your back they get neater and more secure. Walking with tanks swinging from d rings is simply not easier you have to control them with your elbows. The only time there handy is if the restriction is in the height. In narrow gullies and walkways tanks on your back are much handier. Shore diving there a real pain especially where you have narrow swim throughs. Apart from halving the weight on land side mount has no benefit to the average diver.

 

[Wibble]

One thing that really impressed me about GUE's system is how well they handle quality. Very much like I've experienced in an IT training organisation I wrote a course for. This requires feedback and a high level of trainer mentoring from the company.

The results are clear to see within these hallowed pages; few people ever disparage GUE's Fundamentals course. Definitely not the same high regard for all agencies.

 

[tursiops]

It's just that I am a first-time-right kind of person.

You may want to forget SM. It is always a tweak away from being perfect.