This year I am working on my skills in an effort to be a better diver. I'll be working on kicks and buoyancy. As part of that I plan on doing GUE Fundamentals in the Fall. I was wondering what does it take to earn a Rec pass and how difficult is it? Any advice or input is appreciated. Many thanks.
Congrats on your commitment to becoming a better diver, and good luck with the Fundamentals course. As long as you go in with an open mind and focus on learning, not passing, I think you'll have a great time. I know I learned a lot.
How hard it is to pass I think will vary a lot based on your previous experience and what gear you are familiar with. Sometimes it takes more effort to break old habits, and if you have to do the class in gear you are not familiar with it will be harder to focus on the class.
If there are any GUE divers in your area, you could see if anyone wants to do some practice dives, but remember you are taking the class to learn, not to pass. If you can't complete the required skills, you can get a provisional pass, go home and practice what you learned, and then do a check-out dive with the instructor to get a pass.
Also, if you like video instruction, and don't mind spending the cash, GUE.tv is a good resource to learn the skills properly so you can do som dry-land practice with your equipment for the Basic 5. I would also recommend reading Fundamentals of Better Diving and/or Beginning with the end in mind, to get a head start on the theory and the GUE philosophy with emphasis on team diving.
Bonus tips:
Don't rush! Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. Do everything slowly, slower than you think. Always stabilize and make sure you're neutral and comfortable before doing anything. The real test is task loading. When you're doing skills, it's not about the skills. It's about keeping control of buoyancy, trim and awareness while you're doing a task. The hardest part is lying completely still in the water, not moving, keeping position, neutral, in trim. Practice hovering.