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I *never* said that. Never, not once nor do I believe anything of the sort. I take a tremendous amount of responsibility for the safety and enjoyment of the divers I'm with but that's doesn't let the divers off the hook when it comes to selecting an operator or a trip that meets their needs...

In my experience, the vast majority of dives in resort destinations are led by competent divemasters and have competent divers as guests. It is the few rare examples of either being poor that make the news. Everyone in the industry has stories, and divers that have done a lot of guided dives...

SSI OW cards are issued with a "5 or more logged dives" thing on them. You can upgrade the cards to reflect more dives and when you complete additional training they are upgraded as well. R

... or more. There's the kicker right there. R

Wow, hi, how ya doin'? I don't think we've met. I'm, Rachel, and you are? So, it's not my job to check if everyone is diving within limits, but I'm not to plan a dive where they will be forced to break them? I do make an effort to get to know my divers both in booking, in the shop and...

More often than not it's a site selection issue more than staying shallower or going deeper on the same site. We do ask and the answers we get may help us make the decision to go to a certain site but as it turns out the divers aren't up for it and now we're in the water and site is the wrong...

What we end up doing is acting as a safety net in case something does happen. We are trained to react quickly and appropriately in emergency situations. The vast majority of dives need no such intervention so you wouldn't see it. R

Well, I am the 'resort divemaster' and one thing that everyone needs to keep in mind is that there is a difference between my role in training and with certified divers. As an instructor or as a certified assistant helping another instructor I am responsible for the divers under my control...

I'm guessing they want to eat it. R

He doesn't need instruction, remember? Just had to get certified to get air fills. Those darn pesky fill station people.

There's no disagreement, the donor breathes from the inflator unit, the receiver gets the primary. R

It's not an agency thing, it's a gear configuration thing. People who have an integrated inflator/octo they will donate the primary and use the AirII/Airsource/whatever as their back-up. Someone diving a long hose with a bungeed back-up will donate the primary. The standard configuration that...

As a woman who is perpetually single and a diver, I often find myself in the company of attached men and I try to give their wives/girlfriends no cause to worry by actively introducing myself, talking to them and keeping the subjects of the conversations I have with the men strictly on topics...

Thanks, Uncle Ricky :D R

IMO, the 2nd stages would start leaking way before a hose would blow apart due to high IP. Rachel

My answer to this question is... as long as it takes. There is no one plan that meets the needs of all students and all instructor's expectations. If you score lower than a 3 on any aspect of a training session it's a do-over. I can't tell anyone if they'll get each check box checked in the...

How many open water classes have you participated in again? Actually, according to PADI standards, part of the night diving adventure dive does require the student to navigate at night, so they should be leading at least some portion of the dive. Physically fitness is only marginally...

Oh, hey, Glenn!! I thought the story sounded familiar! I'm actually going to be off island while you're here, but the rest of the crew will take great care of you! Rachel

What you are describing is bad training. If OW students aren't diving, they aren't learning how to dive. WRONG!!!!!!!!!! Just... wrong. No. Non. Nyet. Ix-nay... Buoyancy IS diving. It is not an exercise, it is not something you carve time out of a dive to practice. It is not a fin...

Hi Scubanut! <disclaimer, I am an employee so consider my opinion extremely biased> I work for St. Thomas Diving Club and we can offer van pick-up at the dock to transport you here to the shop and your non-diving companions can go out on the boat and snorkel or stay here and hang out on the...