The Wisdom? of Split Dives Discussion

[scubadada]

I've been diving in SE Florida (Boynton Beach, Jupiter, Palm Beach) for about 14 years/a little under 1300 dives. I only regularly use 5 operators. I am mainly a rec diver, about 5% light deco. I pretty frequently dive with divers on rebreathers or divers on doubles. I have never done a split dive where one group does a technical dive at a different site than the rec divers. At certain sites, the tech divers are given the option of a single dive vs. 2 rec dives.

In Boynton Beach, there is a relatively well known tech dive on the Skye Cliff. As far as I know, that dive is always conducted as a dedicated tech dive. The boat stays on station and then follows the DSMBs during the drift deco.

Different operators in my region or operators south of me may do different profiles. I do not dive out of Pompano.

 

[L13]

OK, I agree. You shouldn't do the Lowrance as a shore dive.

I wasn't referring to doing the Lowrance as a shore dive.

People routinely do shore dives with 15 min or more surface swims. We don't consider that "unsafe diving".

People routinely do cave and other tech dives where the surface is more than an hour away, and surface support is even further. Are they all being "stupidly" unsafe? Is there something about the Lowrance that makes it more prone to heart attacks than a cave dive? If not, then I don't think it is fair to call these split dives "stupid". Yes, they are less safe than they could be, but that is true about every dive. Every dive is less safe than it could be, but we make a conscious decision to accept the risk level on each dive when we decide to make the dive.

I would rather not do a split drop, but I don't think it is "stupid" to do one.

 

[berndo]

People routinely do shore dives with 15 min or more surface swims. We don't consider that "unsafe diving".

When a boat drops you off to take rec divers to another spot it will stay with the rec divers and it's gone for more than 15 min.
Drifting miles off shore is a very different story from being 15 min from the beach.

 

[Vicko]

When a boat drops you off to take rec divers to another spot it will stay with the rec divers and it's gone for more than 15 min.
Drifting miles off shore is a very different story from being 15 min from the beach.

Not if you are having a medical event and require immediate cpr.

 

[berndo]

Not if you are having a medical event and require immediate cpr.

There are more than this situation were being closer to help is better. Arguing that is doesn't matter if the boat is 15 min away or 50 min is just silly.

 

[Vicko]

I'm not arguing that, of course having immediate access to aid is better than not having it, but there are pleanty of less than ideal, risky situations we put ourselves in daily. Including diving.
I hate split drops, I hate it when I'm in the water with no support, and I hate it when I'm in the boat and can just hope all of my groups are ok but sometimes that's the only way some dives are possible.

 

[johndiver999]

Split drops are a great way for divers of different experience and training levels to enjoy the sport.

To say the practice is "stupid" and should be stopped is simply short sighted and shallowminded. Especially since there isn't any factual data to support that the practice has resulted in more fatalities or poorer outcome of dive accidents that would have happened regardless of whether or not it was a split drop, a hot drop, a moored dive, or a shore dive.

Might as well say whatever color the guys tank was should be outlawed because hey, it could have been part of the problem or made it worse for some reason.

Obviously it is less safe to not have surface support. Whether diving with or without surface support, is a reasonable gamble is a personal decision. I guess it is not that big of a deal if the training agencies don’t have guidance on the issue???

I came up yesterday from a drift dive 12 miles offshore and the boat was not right there and we had to yell for a while. It’s not a good feeling in a 20 mph wind.

 

[doctormike]

I wasn't referring to doing the Lowrance as a shore dive.

I know

People routinely do shore dives with 15 min or more surface swims. We don't consider that "unsafe diving".

All diving has risks, and those risks vary with the type of diving. Many divers try to minimize those risks by optimizing the conditions of the dive.

There is no practical way to have serious surface support for a shore dive. I mean, I guess you could have a portable chamber and a helicopter on standby, but given the fact that most shore dives are in about 20 feet of water, you are probably less likely to have a significant dive injury there than on a wreck in 200 FSW in a shipping channel.

On the other hand, the standard for most wreck diving - and certainly for a deep technical rebreather dive - is a dive boat on station during the dive. I'm calling it the standard because this is the first I have heard of "split drops", so I'm assuming that it is done in a small percentage of the wreck dives done in the world. Although it's clearly common in Florida.

Again, I'm happy to learn about another way of diving from more experienced Florida tech divers. But so far, it seems like the primary reason that it's OK to do a deep technical dive with no dive platform immediately available is that it's a better business model. But please (not being snarky), correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[doctormike]

sometimes that's the only way some dives are possible.

This is the part I don't understand

 

[berndo]

I'm not arguing that, of course having immediate access to aid is better than not having it

L13 was asking "How is a split drop any less safe than a a shore dive?"
He apparently doesn't know that on a split drop the boat is usually gone for much longer than a "15 min swim".
I just answered his question.