Is scuba gear life support?

[chthonicly]

So many jimmies being rustled here!

I do agree that for it to be recreational diving you must be able to get to the surface without stopping if you have a failure. There's a huge section of pushy recreational diving which is more dangerous than conservative technical diving, due to things like the lack of redundancy in the rec configs. It feels like that's what's being poked at here.

My personal practices are more in line with what the guy in the video is suggesting. I currently dislike diving singles and I don't do single tank dives below about seventy feet any more. Saying that rec scuba equipment is not life support equipment since definitionally in recreational diving you can get to the surface in one breath is hilariously provocative, a bit tautological, but not entirely wrong.

All in all, I would give this about a 6/10 for trolling. Could definitely be improved, I'm sure there's a way to work split fins into this. Extra points for the exquisitely antique 4chan jimmies meme callback.

 

[lizardland]

He's making a bit of a silly semantics argument.

Until you can evolve a way to suck oxygen from water then your equipment is supporting life at depth. Ask a commercial dive operation whether they view equipment as life support or not. I don't agree it's like a climber's rope. A rope does nothing until you need it to, you can climb successfully without rope. You cannot dive without equipment. A rope and protection (and ultimately someone belaying you because it all falls down without that) is life-saving equipment. It is not life-supporting. Unless you like your dives to last a couple of minutes then you need equipment to support life underwater.

Treat it as such. I've worked in the subsea industry in the past and the recreational diving industry a lot of the time just strikes me as a bizarre mix of cognitive blindness, exceptionalism and hubris.

 

[Scared Silly]

As someone who does all kinds of activities that many would consider bat crap crazy scuba gear is not life support equipment but merely equipment which enables one to do the activity safely. No different than the other equipment in my basement that allows me to go to high altitudes.

Life support equipment has very specific meaning that has been co-opted for the wrong reasons. Therein lies the real issue.

Someone on life support equipment will die without that equipment. That is they need that equipment to live. I have some personal experience with that (Sidebar, if you do not have a living will, seriously consider writing one, your family will appreciate it).

One will not die without scuba equipment. Now the lay person would say one can not go under water without scuba gear. A free diver would disagree. Which the lay person rebuttal would be one can not stay under water for long periods of time without scuba gear (or similar). While true, one does not need to stay under water for long periods of time in order to live.

More accurately, one wants to stay under water for long periods of time and needs equipment which to do so. No different than the equipment I need to stay for long periods of time at high altitude. I do not need to do that any more than I need to dive. I want to do those things (and other bat crap crazy things many would not consider fun but I do).

Therein lies the differential, needing life support equipment so to physically live vs wanting equipment so to mentally live.

The above are semantics but semantics are important.

As for the perspective in the video. All-in-all rather reasonable.

 

[tursiops]

I do agree that for it to be recreational diving you must be able to get to the surface without stopping if you have a failure.

Nonsense. You need to get to an air source, Yes, but the surface is the air source of last resort. Better choices involve your buddy or anybody nearby, and pony bottles.

 

[scubadada]

Stupid sh!t in an interview by a scuba "influencer"

 

[BoltSnap]

scuba "influencer"

An "influencer," not a "luminary"? lol

 

[tursiops]

An "influencer," not a "luminary"? lol

I think "influencer" is code for egocentric blabbermouth.

 

[hammet]

An "influencer," not a "luminary"? lol

Are you not impressed with his steve zissou beanie?

 

[lizardland]

Stupid sh!t in an interview by a scuba "influencer"

"Influencers" is one of many answers to the question "Who should we get to stand in front of this Maxim gun today?"

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

That's the big buzzword now, "Influencer",
Used to be "Professional" or "expert", now everyone's an influencer.
How about a bad influence, anybody ever hear of those?
Didn't your mama ever tell you that so and so is a bad influence and you shouldn't hang out with them?

Is scuba life support?
Technically yes, right at that moment it is, that's where your oxygen is coming from. Like to see you live without it. Can you get out of it and bail? I suppose if you're shallow enough. If you do a blow and go then your S.C.U.B.A is no longer supporting your life because it doesn't work. If you keep the reg in your mouth and can get a sip or two of air on the way up I suppose it's kind of life support.
But then, just because something isn't supporting your life right at the moment doesn't mean it's a death sentence. The circumstances and depth have everything to do with the definition.
Do you think the guys running around on the moon were this lax? Probably not. Without 100% effective and fail free life support those guys would have been toast.