Advanced Open Water Certification

[Charles2]

As long as you are going to get the AOW, be sure to throw in Nitrox as well. Most shops will add Nitrox cert at a very reasonable rate when obtaining AOW.

 

[grantwiscour]

And there it is!!!! Hitler Isn't AOW. Always makes me smile.

 

[boulderjohn]

Here is a key to a couple of quotes in the video for a new generation of ScubaBoard participants:

The lady doctor who screwed up the visibility is ScubaBoard's TSandM. She has written many times about the inadequacy of her first scuba training, which had her descending backwards until she landed on the bottom on her tank before rolling over to begin her dive.

The reference to the Warhammer Maneuver is to a ScubaBoard participant named Warhammer, who is no longer active. Google the phrase "Warhammer Maneuver" and check out the images. The one you can't believe is the right one. It will usually come up first.

 

[ScubaDoo83]

Hitler video had me literally laughing out loud at my desk in the office. I have seen this video made with different themes and it gets me every time. Absolutely hilarious.

 

[jonhall]

There's a funny thread on SB from 2001 about a newcomer to SB having to perform the Warhammer Maneuver to be an actual member of SB. Glad that wasn't my initiation to join!

 

[C P]

A very good reason to take the AOW course is it is a prereq for Rescue which is a really valuable course. You should learn a lot about how to help if something goes wrong but more importantly how to recognize a problem is building

 

[Jim Lapenta]

AOW is not a pre-req for rescue. In fact I recommend rescue before AOW. AOW gives you access to dives where the stuff can hit the fan faster and with more severe consequences.
On top of that not all AOW or Advanced Level courses (as the one I teach is called) are the same.

The ones that are a taste or tour of "advanced dives" with no new skills are pretty much worthless. A good course will take into account the experience of the diver and where necessary ratchet up the requirements to challenge and educate them.

Think you know how to navigate well under water? Good. Then in my class you'll get a 400 yd course with at least 4 changes of direction using compass, natural features, and a line and reel to complete for the Nav dive.

Done some deep stuff? Ok, then you'll learn to use a stage bottle, be task loaded with running a reel in lower vis at 90 feet, then I'll pull an OOA on you as we are about to ascend. We'll ascend sharing air til we hit the 50 ft stop and retrieve/deploy the stage bottle and finish the dive on that.

The dives offered are Advanced skills, UW Nav, Night/Low Vis, Deep, Search and Recovery, Buddy Skills and Assist (rescue light skills if you will). In that order. You can sub Wreck for Search and Recovery or do an extra deep or Nav dive. The other dives are mandatory.

There is 6-8 hours of classroom covering gas management, rescue, dive planning, nav considerations, buddy skills, and emergency decompression procedures.

I teach the class at Gilboa and the cost this year is 425.00. You supply all the gear. Including a tank of no less that 95 cu ft capacity for the deep dive. I have two of those for rent. I have stage bottles/regs for rent. I also supply reels and lift bags. You should have your own spool and smb suitable to be shot from depth.

If you own the gear, or can rent it, you can also take the class in backmount doubles or sidemount. I do take more than two students at a time for AOW normally. I may take a third if a three man team wants to do it, or all the divers are really sharp. There are entry requirements as well as exit ones. I don't sell cards and the cert is not guaranteed. Training is. I'll work with you until you pass but that's also the reason for the entry requirements. If your basic skills are not down fairly well you won't have fun in this class. I don't have time for remediation in this training.

I'm not the only instructor who teaches a class like this. But right now I'm the only one I know in my area doing it. I have a class outline free for the asking.

 

[C P]

In the PADI system actually you have to have Adventure Diver with the Navigation dive as prereqs for Rescue so on a technicality Jim is right. The Adventure Diver course is three adventure dives from a list the student chooses. It is designed as a chance to explore different types of diving or skills the student may be interested in. The Advanced Open Water course is the same as above and adding a deep dive and navigation dive. You are eligible to do either after completing Open Water. Based on value to the student, I try to steer my students to the Advanced Open Water course. Instead of paying for two different courses they get more instruction for one cost. Also, I've never been anywhere where the dive op wanted an Adventure Card, but I have seen them require the Advanced Card. So I gave a real world answer based on value to my student and what makes the most sense. In fact very rarely do I throw out the Adventure Diver instead of the Advanced Open water. I do agree with Jim that you should build on the skills the student already has and the real point was that Rescue Diver is a valuable course. So if you are in the PADI system....

Let's not get into a discussion over the course titles since we don't name them anyway.

 

[scoobydrew]

Thanks scoobydrew. Read last article in your blog regarding lionfish. Very informative. On a side note, my checkout dives were completed with Nancy at Divetech (way back) and I was just at Cobalt Coast in Feb. and dove with Divetech.

I agree that there is no substitute for experience. I was (maybe still am) certified to teach driver education which involved taking a course while in college which included teaching in the classroom and taking students out on the road. I'd had a lot of driving experience prior. In ½ day I became certified to teach motorcycle safety and riding a motorcycle. My motorcycle experience prior was one day riding a friends motorcycle. What would you want me to teach your child?

Since I don't want to get shut out of some cool dive in the future just because it's below 60 ft. I guess I'll get the AOW and say I've bettered myself.

Thanks for your comment on my blog, it's new but more coming soon. You did your check out dives with Nancy? wow, she still owns Divetech, last year we celebrated the company's 20th birthday.

The AOW cert does not need to be a box ticking exercise but sometimes for divers who go to the wrong place it can be just that at best. If you are going to go for it then do some research in to the dive centre or even better (IMO), the instructor who will teach the course. Ideally you should be able to talk to the instructor beforehand and discuss course options to see how it can be delivered in such a way as to provide you with an educational experience.

Good luck, feel free to pm me if you have questions etc

 

[Bigd2722]

Some places in the world will not let you on dives that are deeper than 60 feet if you are only OW certified.

The argument against this is someone could be OW certified with 1000+ dives in a variety of conditions and be disallowed to join the dive whereas a freshly minted AOW diver with 9 dives under his belt is good to go.

The reality in my opinion having been through these dive centres in the past is that most know that the certification level is not a true reflection of ability but they do use it as leverage to sell their courses. Either way, if you're heading somewhere to do something be sure to check minimum requirement.

True story. Tried to dive Key Biscayne Wall with some friends. I guy had over 1,000 dives and 1 guy had less than 25 dives but had the AOW cert. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to go until 1,000 diver got his AOW the following year