Feeling like a blimp
- Thread starter jehle
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I will add something that kept nagging at me. Most people replying here are nestors and there's a problem with nestors - they forgot how it is to be a noobie. 
I am a noobie and therefore I remember very well what happens then.
One of the things that affected one of us horribly in the first 5 hours was the fins.
My wife had a set of fins she kept from our "fire extinguisher tank filled with air on the back" days. They served her very well in the OC days and the profile and time/speeds we were doing.
I was using the stiff version of Quattros and wasn't affected.
During the second MOD1 course dive our instructor told her "you need to change your fins, you're slapping your own heels and you're out of control half of the time".
The problem with "resort dipper" fins is that they're soft and optimised for low energy slow speed movement.
What it means is typically they store a lot of elastic energy for later in the stroke (which is going to bite you on the CCR) and have a very shallow limit on hard output.
Because of high drag and high mass - you put up to triple energy into a stroke when diving with a CCR.
That puts soft/resort fins way out of their zone and not only will make you lose energy by inefficiency - it will confuse and destabilise you by releasing it later and when you don't need it.
I think you had plenty enough muscle power to chase the kids on bikes - but it's possible the fins were "failing" you.
The best fins we have are S-Tek, but they're absurdly expensive (I still feel bad about getting them as a gift).
Any proper "rocket" tec fins should make a huge difference in both handling and speed (if you don't have them already).
Try proper stiff tec fins out, you may be surprised.
Just my 5 cents.
I am a noobie and therefore I remember very well what happens then. One of the things that affected one of us horribly in the first 5 hours was the fins.
My wife had a set of fins she kept from our "fire extinguisher tank filled with air on the back" days. They served her very well in the OC days and the profile and time/speeds we were doing.
I was using the stiff version of Quattros and wasn't affected.
During the second MOD1 course dive our instructor told her "you need to change your fins, you're slapping your own heels and you're out of control half of the time".
The problem with "resort dipper" fins is that they're soft and optimised for low energy slow speed movement.
What it means is typically they store a lot of elastic energy for later in the stroke (which is going to bite you on the CCR) and have a very shallow limit on hard output.
Because of high drag and high mass - you put up to triple energy into a stroke when diving with a CCR.
That puts soft/resort fins way out of their zone and not only will make you lose energy by inefficiency - it will confuse and destabilise you by releasing it later and when you don't need it.
I think you had plenty enough muscle power to chase the kids on bikes - but it's possible the fins were "failing" you.
The best fins we have are S-Tek, but they're absurdly expensive (I still feel bad about getting them as a gift).
Any proper "rocket" tec fins should make a huge difference in both handling and speed (if you don't have them already).
Try proper stiff tec fins out, you may be surprised.
Just my 5 cents.
Oh - and fins or no fins - don't chase kids on bikes - you're riding a limo.
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