124 ft without a buddy and not liking it.

[pilot fish]

Mindful of the possibilities of confusion on who is to buddy with whom I was very clear about wanting to, and needing to, buddy with the dive master on this dive. It was a fast boat, EDP, experienced divers package, with 6 divers, me and 5 others, plus a DM. An experienced elderly couple, late 60s early 70s, a young French mother and her two teenage children ages 16 & 18, who did not speak English or Spanish and looked as if they might be using rental gear. I have no idea why they were on that boat. I said to the DM that I was diving alone and wanted to buddy with him. He said, yes, ok.

The dive briefing on Santa Rosa Wall: 45 minutes, 80 ft max; all stick together and follow him. Agreed. We splash and while at the surface he yells over to me “ I go with them, you go with them” pointing to where the other couple were, but are no longer – they had already descended. Damn! I see bubbles where they were but because they descended before me I’m in stronger current at the surface, I surmise. I descend quickly to catch them but they are behind me and lower by about 30 ft. I try to descend to their level so as not to be alone but that takes me much lower than the agreed upon max depth. I’m at 124 ft with them and not liking it- my first dive in 3 ½ months and this is not where I want to be. The elderly couple are shooting video, big rig, she pointing stuff out and too far from each other, 40 ft, in my opinion. They not only are too far from each other, I think, but really too far from me. I am being pushed faster in current ahead of them so I have to angle into the wall and hold on to something, or else I will be pushed a 100 ft ahead of them. They catch up, 30 ft distance, and I start to ascend gradually.

They had no real idea I was diving with them so they dove as they usually do. I did this dive alone without a buddy. I was angry I was caught in another solo diving situation that I did not want, or anticipate. Because I do not have a designated dive buddy this is something that happens from time to time and I’d like to avoid it. What did I do wrong, DM do wrong, or is this something I have to get used to?

 

[El Orans]

Did you ask the DM why he sent you to the other couple?

 

[gangrel441]

If I read your profile correctly, you are an AOW diver. Diving 124 ft solo is from what you have written beyond your comfort zone. It is probably also beyond your level of training. As an AOW diver, you have no duty or training to supervise other divers, which is what it sounds like the DM wanted you to do. You had decided with the DM before you entered the water that you were buddying with him. The couple that you went down to follow sounds like they are pretty experienced buddy team, and while they violated the DM's dive plan, they were probably ok as a team. IMHO, the dm should not have altered the plan and sent you after them. You did as the DM told you to, and the only thing you did wrong in a nutshell was not listen to that voice in your head that told you the DM was wrong. He had two divers take off on him and two less experienced divers on the surface. That was his problem, not yours. The couple you followed was probably functioning fine as a buddy team (40 ft apart isn't that terribly bad depending on the vis), but if you had an equipment failure on the way down, no one would have known where you were, let alone been able to help. I am assuming that your gear was not set up with enough redundancy for solo diving, as that wasn't your plan.

The biggest lesson for you to take away from this is probably not to trust the DM just because he is the DM. Your training is there to tell you what to do and not to do, even if it contradicts the DM. Of course, if any of my assumptions are incorrect, I apologize. Please let me know.

It helps me to hear stories like this, as I have just begun my DM candidacy, and want to be the best DM I can. Happy diving!

 

[Jamdiver]

Pilot fish, did you speak to the DM while you were en route to the dive site or was it before you left the dock?

Just curious.

 

[laserdoc]

You know this same thing sort of happened to me in Cozumal years ago.. I was in a group of about 5 people so I was the odd man out. Current dive and the other 4 went down faster than me I find myself hanging in about 40 feet of water and the last I saw of them they were down to depth and far behind me. Alone and sort of scary. I finally got down to depth and hung on to a rock and waited. Here they came and waived to me....hiiiiiiiii. Thing is it seems that buddies do not stay together when you don't know them and are paired up with them on a dive boat. Things like this makes you think about spending the $$ and getting a spare air bottle. Miight be a good thing to have. Also same trip my pressure guage (rental)was off and I had to buddy breath to the surface. Lucky the buddy I had that day stayed around. That was years ago maybe 15. I don't rent anymore because of that problem I had with rental guages years ago

 

[pilot fish]

Did you ask the DM why he sent you to the other couple?

Yes, he said he wanted to keep a closer eye on the French group [something he should have realized on the boat] and that the other couple were experienced like me. I'm sure he did not take into consideration they had already left the surface.

 

[Mike Veitch]

Didn't you post this same thing a few months back?!?!

 

[pilot fish]

If I read your profile correctly, you are an AOW diver. Diving 124 ft solo is from what you have written beyond your comfort zone. It is probably also beyond your level of training. As an AOW diver, you have no duty or training to supervise other divers, which is what it sounds like the DM wanted you to do. You had decided with the DM before you entered the water that you were buddying with him. The couple that you went down to follow sounds like they are pretty experienced buddy team, and while they violated the DM's dive plan, they were probably ok as a team. IMHO, the dm should not have altered the plan and sent you after them. You did as the DM told you to, and the only thing you did wrong in a nutshell was not listen to that voice in your head that told you the DM was wrong. He had two divers take off on him and two less experienced divers on the surface. That was his problem, not yours. The couple you followed was probably functioning fine as a buddy team (40 ft apart isn't that terribly bad depending on the vis), but if you had an equipment failure on the way down, no one would have known where you were, let alone been able to help. I am assuming that your gear was not set up with enough redundancy for solo diving, as that wasn't your plan.

The biggest lesson for you to take away from this is probably not to trust the DM just because he is the DM. Your training is there to tell you what to do and not to do, even if it contradicts the DM. Of course, if any of my assumptions are incorrect, I apologize. Please let me know.

It helps me to hear stories like this, as I have just begun my DM candidacy, and want to be the best DM I can. Happy diving!

gangre, you are correct, 124 ft *alone* is beyond my training and comfort zone, not the depth, but the ALONE PART. My gear does not have redundancy, spare air etc. You are also right that I listened to him and not the voice in my head. At that moment I thought the couple was going to stick with the profile and we'd be closer. I did not know, how could I? that it was going ot be like that.

 

[pilot fish]

Pilot fish, did you speak to the DM while you were en route to the dive site or was it before you left the dock?

Just curious.

While enroute to the site. He was clear in his response, and me in my request, that we'd buddy, since I was the one lone diver.

 

[HowardE]

gangre, you are correct, 124 ft *alone* is beyond my training and comfort zone, not the depth, but the ALONE PART. My gear does not have redundancy, spare air etc. You are also right that I listened to him and not the voice in my head. At that moment I thought the couple was going to stick with the profile and we'd be closer. I did not know, how could I? that it was going ot be like that.

So... how long before you looked at your depth? You didn't realize that you were so deep? Were you diving Air or Nitrox BTW?

Honestly... You should have learned from the last incident, that if you're not in your comfort zone... you should ABORT THE DIVE.