AfterDark
Contributor
I misspoke. Yes, I'm sure anyone CAN put ANY weight pocket back in while in the water. Should have first said that with some BCDs it is probably a pain. Our classes remove belts and replace them, both in pool and ocean, as per the standards. We have students drop the pockets in shallow enough ocean water for me to easily/quickly retrieve them--this is to fulfill the (new) actual requirement of dropping weights so students experience the change in buoyancy. Maybe an instructor at some point will ask them to put them back in themselves--would be interested to see how that goes.
I agree with most here that removing and replacing any weights is certainly an important skill, and of course should remain a requirement. I suppose my inexperience shows in asking this, but I've wondered what scenario would require one to not just drop weights in an emergency (or remove them to pass up to the boat), but to also then put them back on?
Now I wouldn't know from experience or anything like that but if a diver LEAVES the weight belt on the boat and someone can hand it to the diver,putting it on in the water saves the and effort of getting back into the boat;especially when the diver is older and has bad knees and the surface is rough.