Denial is a scary thing Dr bill, but lets bang themoff one at a time:
your post:
....DeepScuba
In response to yours, do you know anything about the type of diving I do? Do you know anything about my experience level, physical condition, the dive profiles I did to 45 ft or 70 ft, etc?
DS Response: So what?? I know the two profile you posted....so what?
I didn't think so. While your comments would certainly make good sense in many cases, I don't find them applicable in my case for the following reasons.
1. Given the fact that the reg functioned fine at the surface AFTER my problem dive, and the possibility that it was not the regulator that malfunctioned, I had no qualms about diving the profile I did to a max depth of 45 ft. Most of that profile was at 20 ft in both directions. I had absolutely no concerns about an ascent from those depths. None.
DS Response: So you DON"T know yet what is the problem, you say you've learned your lesson, and THEN YOU DO THE SAME THING before you find out what was really wrong.
Brilliant!
2. Diving the 70- ft second dive with my pony bottle, given my air consumption, was likewise no problem. A 13-cu ft pony would give me PLENTY of time to make a safe ascent with safety stop. Had all three of the regs on my primary first stage gone out AND the reg on my pony bottle too, I might have been up sh*t's creek. I don't play lotto because of the odds, but felt perffectly safe on that one. And of course I put the pony bottle on for that dive... why wouldn't I? I certainly wouldn't llie about it!
DS Response: Read my last response, AND my last post.
3. I probably stopped smoking anything before you were born.
DS Response: So WHAT!!! Are we now going to compare other irrelevant things in the future?? I don't care if you have 42 years experience, you obviously can still be wrong, and still make mistakes...Brilliant!
4. The need for redundancy is QUITE different at 50 ft vs 150 ft IMHO. One, I almost never go to 150 ft in the first place with or without a pony bottle, with or without a buddy. I know my capabilities and a 50 ft dive while "borderline" is one I could recover from. This does not suggest redundancy isn't a good thing at almost any depth, but the need for it is quite different under different dive scenarios.
DS Response: The need for redundancy while solo diving is ALWAYS required. Brilliant
5. Although you may not agree with it, my pony is strapped to my main tank. I used to carry it slung but for the kind of diving I do (something you didn't ask about) it is in the way when slung. I practice deploying it on at least one dive every day.
DS Response: Slinging it is the best way, you of course can do it any way you want, just DO IT. Just wear the damn thing!
6. Finally, I agree that it is probably a tank problem and I had my LDS re-inspect the tank last night. Of course if it is a tank problem, diving with the reg wouldn't matter, would it.
DS Response: SO continuing with your silly unlearned mistakes, all the while NOT KNOWING YET FOR SURE, what it is.....Brilliant!
Yes my frined, 42 years has certainly ingrained some well earned errs in your diving, so why would I attempt to fix what is obviously in err??? I won't, its your life.
Like I've said, you SAY you learned something through this, evidently not enough in my opinion.
You have become quite complacent, and if this didn't scare you for more than 1 day into making things safer for yourself, then not much will.
This ain't 1969 anymore. And you certainly don't have to "understand" a "specific" diver to understand how diving should be done, period.
If you don't want sound advice, then don't take it, but please stop with the childish excuses for your short comings.
I'd have more respect for someone that just said, "I was dumb, I've learned, and I will be a better diver tomorrow".
What more could you want but that?
Bottom line in all this: Wear your stupid pony while soloing, Meat-head :wacko:
Regards.
