A Funny but Serious Teaching monent

[dive_turkey]

Ludwigsv you are "spot on"!


Sarge
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Thank you, fellow Ft. Worth diver.

I attempted to add more to that earlier, but was difficult from the phone.

I was going to say that it doesn't take much for simple situations involving highly trained personnel to turn dangerous. I was on a MEDEVAC crew for a while, where all crew members had many hours in the aircraft together and were all trained to the highest readiness levels. While conducting a training hoist mission, one of the pilots had decided he wanted to try a new procedure sequence. The result was a cabin door opening before the medic (myself) was clipped into the floor or buddy checks had been completed. Needless to say, I was not happy. I could have very easily taken a header right out of the aircraft with no attachment points. Much like a dive, we aborted right then and there by issuing a "go around" until we could get our heads right to repeat the procedure with the proper safety checks.

Your situation, like this one, is a perfect example of how routines and complacency can kill. We had a routine, and when that routine was broken, we failed to adapt properly. Thanks again for sharing! I know that I will always put air into my BC during my set up and reg checks, and this is one more good reason to do so.

 

[tphelps]

That's a good lesson learned, glad that you and everyone else is okay. Thank you for sharing!

 

[volauvent]

Thanks so much for sharing.

Hypothetically, if for some reason the grip on the ladder was lost, what are some of the options then? Hold breath and wiggle out of gear? Hold breath and wait for rescue? Kick furiously?

 

[TSandM]

Kick furiously, orally inflate the wing. If you can't keep your head above water without air in the wing, you should have some ditchable weight, IMO.

 

[finnks]

I returned last Sunday from Cozumel from 6 days of diving. The purpose of the dive trip was for me to get dive time in my new Sidemount setup before my upcoming trip to Truk Lagoon.

We were diving in a medium size boat and the were either 6 or 8 divers each day. All but an older couple and me typically would do a backwards roll into the water. The older couple would do a giant stride off the rear as I would. My routine was to put my SMS-50 on, mask and fins and the boat crew would set my two tanks on the rear part of the boat where I could stand on the swim deck, clip the tanks into the top D ring and then turn and do a giant stride. I would clip both tanks in at the bottom, put on the bungee cords and get my long hose on the right tank in place as I descended. By the time I was at depth I would be set for my dive.

I had 10 pounds of weight on my SMS50, a 4 pound weight on each tank and was diving with 2 AL 80s. I had plenty of lift yet enough weight to do safety stops with both tanks at 500 psi. As the week progressed I became relaxed in the routine. On the first dive of the 3rd morning the rest of the divers were rolling into he water, the boat crew grabbed my tanks had them ready for me. I put my fins by my tanks stepped onto the swim platform with the idea to step around (swing around) the boarding ladder to where my tanks were.

As I swung around the ladder I suddenly realized that the single ladder placed in the middle on the platform did not "latch" and was free to fold into the water. As this realization hit me also was the immediate thought of wearing my SMS50 BC with 10 pounds on weight, no fins on, no mask on and ZERO air in the badder. As I hit the water (while the divers and crew watched) my only thought was to NOT loose grip of the ladder! Luckily I kept my grip and was able to climb right back up, hook up, get fins and mask on and step in for my dive.

The obvious lesson here is to insure you don't get lax, keep air in the BC - especially one where you can't ditch weights (they were strung on the webbing) and be sure you understand even the simple things about the operation on the boat. With 40 feet of water below it would have been interesting to try to kick back up with boots on.

So that was my lesson learned from last week!



Sarge
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I've been known to overweight with gear, water (fresh/salt) or personal (weight) changes due to uncertainty regarding my requirements. By the second day, and well before complacency sets in I've usually worked those issues out...

Observation regarding your set up. Appears you've got 4 lbs added to each of your AL80s. To the best of my knowledge this makes them slightly negative when empty. Thus wearing your BC but without the tanks as you were, you should be weighted to be neutral (or even positive) at 10'. Is the 10 lbs on SMS50 inherently built in so that you cannot remove it - like a back plate? Otherwise we you perhaps a bit overweighted for the gear and conditions? Personally I typically won't dive my doubles or steel tank unless it's cold enough for a 7mm wetsuit so that I won't be overweighted in fresh water with 0 lbs.

OTOH - even if neutral, you could sink far enough when hitting the water to make swimming up 'interesting'?

 

[logansar]

@Finnks - you are correct on the weights on the AL80s. I started at 3 lbs per tank and at 4-500 psi they were slightly positive. This concerned me thinking at a 15 foot safety stop in blue water or hanging on a line from a SMB would be hard it rough water. So I elected 4 per tank. At 15 lbs ( 9 on SMS50 and 3 on each tank) I felt lite. With 18 total I was still very positive on the surface and floated high in the water and allowed me to fine tune at all depths.

I'm going back in December and plan on running weight pockets on the SMS (will allow weights to be ditched) and should allow fine tuning a little easier. I had the weights on the SMS strung on the waist belt (2 4 pound weights) and a 2 in the center back zippered pocket. I could have undone my belt and one 4 would slide off easily. I think the weight pickets will fix the "ditch" issue.

During my Sidemount class I was running 4 pounds in the SMS with no tank weights. (fresh water) wearing the same diving gear (t-shirt and shorts)

As for gearing up on the boat, I think I will always keep air in the SMS until entry - if we are meeting on the surface I'm good to go - if I'm entering and immediately heading for the bottom ill dump the air just prior to entry.

I do know that I'm sold on Sidemount. I have never been so comfortable or "horizontal " in my life! Felt like I was flying!

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I would like to point out that a flutter kick with booties on will not be effective. A better kick would be a frog kick from breaststroke, but many divers do not know that kick.

Ditchable weights have been a mainstay of diving safety for many, many years. In another thread I found out that in Europe there are sport diving organizations who will reimburse the diver who ditches his or her weights the cost of the weight belt (or get a new weight belt). I have ditched my weights only once in the years I've been diving (54 years now). That was when my buddy and I were rolled by a 20 foot wave while attempting to abort a shore dive and swim to shore; we ultimately were picked up by he U.S. Coast Guard, and they were really happy that they had live pickups, as were we.

I have mixed feelings about over-weighting simply to ensure a good decompression stop. Sport diving did not used to have routine decompression stops--this was before "tech diving." In my mind, sport divers who do tech dives requiring decompression without a recompression chamber immediately available or hanging it out there. This is especially true in tropical areas where the chambers are an airplane ride away. It seems that the tech divers are creating a new hazard just prior to the dive to avoid a potential hazard at the end of the dive.

SeaRat

 

[dive_turkey]

Ditchable weights have been a mainstay of diving safety for many, many years. In another thread I found out that in Europe there are sport diving organizations who will reimburse the diver who ditches his or her weights the cost of the weight belt (or get a new weight belt). I have ditched my weights only once in the years I've been diving (54 years now). That was when my buddy and I were rolled by a 20 foot wave while attempting to abort a shore dive and swim to shore; we ultimately were picked up by he U.S. Coast Guard, and they were really happy that they had live pickups, as were we.
SeaRat

Some manufacturers will cover weights ditched in emergency situation. I believe Mako is one these. If you ditch their belt in an emergency and then send them a write-up on it, they will replace the belt.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I use a belt with my SM set up and it's the same belt I've used for years. I made it myself using a std nylon belt and XS Scuba weight pockets. Not long after and me preaching on here and other forums how well it worked, XS came out with their own already set up. Coincidence? Maybe. But what the individual pockets allow me to do is quickly drop a weight or two without ditching the belt and so it's perfect for me for whatever rig I am diving. SM, BPW singles, light doubles and dry suit, or snorkeling/free diving. Although to be fair I have decided to move to a Mako rubber belt for the latter activity. I got one for my GF for her birthday and I really like the way it works.

 

[FinnMom]

One should always be prepared for an unexpected trip into the water!

I thought good & hard about that once when I was nearly knocked off the dock while carrying my doubles to the boat (i.e. on my back). No regs were attached yet & I was wearing normal clothing, sneakers, etc.
Would I have been able to either get free of the shoulder straps and drop the rig or swim it up before a hastily grabbed gasp of air ran out? Very likely not. Sure never thought of that danger until it nearly happened.

Since then I make a point of keeping the bladder full of air once the rig leaves dry land. That way the rig won't sink if it should accidently go overboard. Even better, if I'm wearing it when it goes I have a better chance of not killing myself.