Over my short tenure diving I have quickly realized that there are several things I want from diving. The first and foremost is the ability to live history. Wrecks speak to me. They tell me their tragedy. You can see the human story unfold beneath the waves. Ive also realized to really have the ability to see these wrecks I needed to perfect and extend my dive training to allow me the capability to stay a little longer, dive a little deeper. You know the drill.
In the search to go deeper and stay longer I also have a desire to obtain serious training. Not the do the time get your card kind of instruction. I have a beautiful wife and amazing kids to go home to. I need to be sure my boys have their college paid for, have someone to teach them to ride a bike, to pick them up and brush them off when they fall down.
Anyway upon shopping for a tech instructor I looked no further than Precision Divings Duane Johnson. Duane holds his students to a standard above the course standards. He specifically outlines in his curriculum that tuition is paying for education not certification. He is particular on the details. The kind of instructor that makes you think.
In fact, his opener to the course was Welcome to your first day as a thinking diver. He reinforced the concept that advanced diving is all about being able to not just know the bookwork. Not just about knowing how to gas switch. Not just being able to do a valve drill. Indeed, advanced diving is all of these things, but the most important thing is to be able to think your way through incidents. Think your way out of trouble. In fact, think it through before trouble finds you.
Day 1 was no walk in the park. We met promptly at 9 am at Haigh Quarry. We quickly entered the water. Dive 1 was a review of basic dive skills and getting comfortable in the water. A shakeout dive if you will. Except in Duanes courses, there is no such thing as a low stress dive. We were immediately bombarded with task loading, bag shooting, mask removal, etc etc. All was to be done in a controlled manner with neutral buoyancy ya right .I felt like someone had kicked my dog, peed in my Wheaties, and hit on my wife all in the same day. You feel a bit like boot camp maybe youre being torn down to be rebuilt a new diver. We focused on the unified team diving approach, basic six tech skills, and shooting a bag. Loads of 6 minute ascents filled the day as well. It wasnt a test of a diving skill. It was a test of all of you diving skills.
Day 2 we focused on nothing BUT valve drills. Thats right an entire day of valve drills. Every time one issue was resolved along came another. Duane teaches the failure points of the manifold and how/what to do in the event youre unlucky enough to be presented with the situation. Duane very accurately mimics a manifold failure and it is the buddy teams job to define/resolve the issue and make on the fly decisions about the dive. We spent four dives and countless sore muscles getting beat into us that valve drills are your friend. They could even safe your life. Every time I get in the water after this class I think about what if I have to shut down? Will my undergarments restrict me? Have I not been stretching enough? See Duanes entire philosophy is really pretty simple. Think. Dont just go dive. Define your objectives, your intent, and your emergency procedures. Talk it through with your buddy. Understanding what to do in the event the stuff hits the fan is half the battle. When it does hit the fan if youve trained, thought through the situations, and practiced the what if scenarios, you give yourself a much better chance of survival.
Day 3 was some line work, lots more valve drills, and stress loading. My buddy and I didnt feel like wed faired so well over the weekend. We were facing simulated deco and actual decompression dives the following weekend. Were we up to the challenge? Could we really be prepped for this environment? Only time would tell.
Day 4 - we all met early in the morning at Lake Wazee in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. Thats right northern Wisconsin. In the summer the surface temps are in the 50s. Its cold. Its deep. Its intimidating. We suited up, albeit not as quickly as Duane would have liked. In Duanes courses stress loading isnt just in the water. Hell push you on the surface. Hell be sure that you are on edge when you hit the water. That way youre sure to be already like a cat on a screen. Only then will you really see how you do under pressure. We executed two dives simulating deco, doing valve drills, having out of air situations. You name it our ascent from 100 was sheer hell. My buddy and I each had the pleasure of losing a mask between 30-70. I can tell you from experience that conducting deco from depth with no mask is no cakewalk for the maskless or his buddy trying to get them both to safety. Even worse about 20 minutes of that deco was in 38F water.
Day 4 really had me questioning if I was ready to do a real deco dive. I felt like I was struggling with basics. How was I capable of ensuring that my buddy and me were eliminating as many obstacles and barriers between safety and us. To be honest I talked to Duane about it. We broke down where I was. He helped me understand that day 5 wasnt his choice it was mine. See, thinking divers dont need an instructor to tell them that they are or are not ready for the next level. They should be capable of measuring themselves and prevent dangerous situations by being very honest. I made the choice to press into day 5 and commit myself to real decompression.
Day 5 came and we found ourselves at Wazee Sports Center picking up our gear. My nerves were on edge. I knew I had the skills I just had to put it all together. We geared up and splashed for dive 1 of the day. The plan was to descend to 100 and do a quick sanity check to ensure everyone was ready. Amazingly enough at about 95 I had a simulated manifold failure. My buddy and I made quick work of it and gave the thumbs to head down. 30 minute bottom time at 140 in Lake Wazee. Two words come to mind. Cold. Dark. Its actually a pretty cool experience. The lake is an old quartz mine. You can still see the quartz in the walls. Spraying the light from your can against the wall makes it shimmer like diamonds. Being a little narced it was a defining moment in my diving career. I knew I made the right choice. I was enjoying the opportunity to see a wall that 98% of the diving population would never possess the skills to be able to safely visit. 30 minutes came and went. We thumbed the dive and began our slow, cold ascent. We nailed the 70 gas switch. We gave ourselves 3 minutes to take advantage of the O2 clock. We progressed through our dive profile as planned the night before. About 58 minutes past and we were on the surface celebrating a successful dive.
Two hours on the surface was relatively quiet. We checked and double-checked gas mixes. We ensured our plan from last night was still appropriate from the profile we just completed. We tried to think warm thoughts (average temp of dive 1 was 46F). Gear on and we splash. This time my buddy leads. We descend. Again we make the stop around 100 ft to confirm everyone is comfortable and ready. Down we go on the wall. This time 140 doesnt feel so deep. Its cold, its dark, but its comfortable. The quartz glowed, our buddy team was in check and Duane lurked in the shadows to keep our nerves on edge. Again without incident we thumbed the dive at 30 minutes and nailed our profile. 1 hour 6 minutes. Average temp of 49F. Life was good. Apparently even the cluster of a diver I felt I was the weekend before could pull it together and be a thinking diver.
We got our gear packed up and debriefed. I felt accomplishment. I was able to safely conduct deco profiles. I had the tools I needed if Murphy decides to visit me underwater. The surface isnt my saving grace any longer. My skills and my buddy are. I drove the 8 hours home mostly in quiet reflection. I had done what not more than a few years ago I thought to be impossible. I had done it with on the toughest instructors I could find. I had a reason to be proud.
If you are serious about your dive training and ensuring that youre really ready to hold the card you receive, call Duane Johnson Precision Diving.
In the search to go deeper and stay longer I also have a desire to obtain serious training. Not the do the time get your card kind of instruction. I have a beautiful wife and amazing kids to go home to. I need to be sure my boys have their college paid for, have someone to teach them to ride a bike, to pick them up and brush them off when they fall down.
Anyway upon shopping for a tech instructor I looked no further than Precision Divings Duane Johnson. Duane holds his students to a standard above the course standards. He specifically outlines in his curriculum that tuition is paying for education not certification. He is particular on the details. The kind of instructor that makes you think.
In fact, his opener to the course was Welcome to your first day as a thinking diver. He reinforced the concept that advanced diving is all about being able to not just know the bookwork. Not just about knowing how to gas switch. Not just being able to do a valve drill. Indeed, advanced diving is all of these things, but the most important thing is to be able to think your way through incidents. Think your way out of trouble. In fact, think it through before trouble finds you.
Day 1 was no walk in the park. We met promptly at 9 am at Haigh Quarry. We quickly entered the water. Dive 1 was a review of basic dive skills and getting comfortable in the water. A shakeout dive if you will. Except in Duanes courses, there is no such thing as a low stress dive. We were immediately bombarded with task loading, bag shooting, mask removal, etc etc. All was to be done in a controlled manner with neutral buoyancy ya right .I felt like someone had kicked my dog, peed in my Wheaties, and hit on my wife all in the same day. You feel a bit like boot camp maybe youre being torn down to be rebuilt a new diver. We focused on the unified team diving approach, basic six tech skills, and shooting a bag. Loads of 6 minute ascents filled the day as well. It wasnt a test of a diving skill. It was a test of all of you diving skills.
Day 2 we focused on nothing BUT valve drills. Thats right an entire day of valve drills. Every time one issue was resolved along came another. Duane teaches the failure points of the manifold and how/what to do in the event youre unlucky enough to be presented with the situation. Duane very accurately mimics a manifold failure and it is the buddy teams job to define/resolve the issue and make on the fly decisions about the dive. We spent four dives and countless sore muscles getting beat into us that valve drills are your friend. They could even safe your life. Every time I get in the water after this class I think about what if I have to shut down? Will my undergarments restrict me? Have I not been stretching enough? See Duanes entire philosophy is really pretty simple. Think. Dont just go dive. Define your objectives, your intent, and your emergency procedures. Talk it through with your buddy. Understanding what to do in the event the stuff hits the fan is half the battle. When it does hit the fan if youve trained, thought through the situations, and practiced the what if scenarios, you give yourself a much better chance of survival.
Day 3 was some line work, lots more valve drills, and stress loading. My buddy and I didnt feel like wed faired so well over the weekend. We were facing simulated deco and actual decompression dives the following weekend. Were we up to the challenge? Could we really be prepped for this environment? Only time would tell.
Day 4 - we all met early in the morning at Lake Wazee in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. Thats right northern Wisconsin. In the summer the surface temps are in the 50s. Its cold. Its deep. Its intimidating. We suited up, albeit not as quickly as Duane would have liked. In Duanes courses stress loading isnt just in the water. Hell push you on the surface. Hell be sure that you are on edge when you hit the water. That way youre sure to be already like a cat on a screen. Only then will you really see how you do under pressure. We executed two dives simulating deco, doing valve drills, having out of air situations. You name it our ascent from 100 was sheer hell. My buddy and I each had the pleasure of losing a mask between 30-70. I can tell you from experience that conducting deco from depth with no mask is no cakewalk for the maskless or his buddy trying to get them both to safety. Even worse about 20 minutes of that deco was in 38F water.
Day 4 really had me questioning if I was ready to do a real deco dive. I felt like I was struggling with basics. How was I capable of ensuring that my buddy and me were eliminating as many obstacles and barriers between safety and us. To be honest I talked to Duane about it. We broke down where I was. He helped me understand that day 5 wasnt his choice it was mine. See, thinking divers dont need an instructor to tell them that they are or are not ready for the next level. They should be capable of measuring themselves and prevent dangerous situations by being very honest. I made the choice to press into day 5 and commit myself to real decompression.
Day 5 came and we found ourselves at Wazee Sports Center picking up our gear. My nerves were on edge. I knew I had the skills I just had to put it all together. We geared up and splashed for dive 1 of the day. The plan was to descend to 100 and do a quick sanity check to ensure everyone was ready. Amazingly enough at about 95 I had a simulated manifold failure. My buddy and I made quick work of it and gave the thumbs to head down. 30 minute bottom time at 140 in Lake Wazee. Two words come to mind. Cold. Dark. Its actually a pretty cool experience. The lake is an old quartz mine. You can still see the quartz in the walls. Spraying the light from your can against the wall makes it shimmer like diamonds. Being a little narced it was a defining moment in my diving career. I knew I made the right choice. I was enjoying the opportunity to see a wall that 98% of the diving population would never possess the skills to be able to safely visit. 30 minutes came and went. We thumbed the dive and began our slow, cold ascent. We nailed the 70 gas switch. We gave ourselves 3 minutes to take advantage of the O2 clock. We progressed through our dive profile as planned the night before. About 58 minutes past and we were on the surface celebrating a successful dive.
Two hours on the surface was relatively quiet. We checked and double-checked gas mixes. We ensured our plan from last night was still appropriate from the profile we just completed. We tried to think warm thoughts (average temp of dive 1 was 46F). Gear on and we splash. This time my buddy leads. We descend. Again we make the stop around 100 ft to confirm everyone is comfortable and ready. Down we go on the wall. This time 140 doesnt feel so deep. Its cold, its dark, but its comfortable. The quartz glowed, our buddy team was in check and Duane lurked in the shadows to keep our nerves on edge. Again without incident we thumbed the dive at 30 minutes and nailed our profile. 1 hour 6 minutes. Average temp of 49F. Life was good. Apparently even the cluster of a diver I felt I was the weekend before could pull it together and be a thinking diver.
We got our gear packed up and debriefed. I felt accomplishment. I was able to safely conduct deco profiles. I had the tools I needed if Murphy decides to visit me underwater. The surface isnt my saving grace any longer. My skills and my buddy are. I drove the 8 hours home mostly in quiet reflection. I had done what not more than a few years ago I thought to be impossible. I had done it with on the toughest instructors I could find. I had a reason to be proud.
If you are serious about your dive training and ensuring that youre really ready to hold the card you receive, call Duane Johnson Precision Diving.
