An Attempt at Understanding DIR

[Jasonmh]

OK so does DIR say you should dive the same rig for all diving? Reef diving in Cozumel, wreck diving in the Great Lakes, Deep diving, cold wtr, warm wtr: all the same? So same set up, minus stage bottles if not needed?

No, not the exact same rig for all diving. Certainly there will be a need for items specific to the dive you are doing. Maybe a reel, drysuit, etc. for wreck divinging in the great lakes, but not for a reef dive in Coz. But the same basic gear platform is used, meaning BP&W, bungied backup, long (ish) hose for primary, etc.

 

[TSandM]

GUE's approach is the same basic equipment platform for all diving. It used to be that a shorter hose was acceptable for open water, but they've pretty much changed that, and a 7' hose is preferred now (routes better for some people, anyway, than a 5' hose).

That said, I have a lightweight plate and very small wing for tropical diving, and sometimes don't take a can light, so my rig is very unobtrusive when doing simple, warm water diving. The image of all DIR divers in doubles all the time is not the reality!

 

[JeffG]

If what I asked is correct:

Its not.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I don't know you, but you sound super pretentious in the above post. I'm sure you are probably better than what you just posted, so I would go back and think about what you just said, and how many potential additions you just soured. You can get butt hurt all you want, but just being whiny about it is not going to fix anything. You are right, the only long threads in the "DIR" sub-forum are the ones arguing about "DIR". Why don't you leadership types...lead. Conspire with Lamont (he seems friendly enough) and make it a better forum, create more stickies, set up events, and educate people. If someone is conducting guerrilla warfare against you, then win the support of the people (so to speak). Instead of sounding like you got your drysuit underwear stuck in your butt crack, become a Mao or a Che in your community. The fact that your community is small and people complain about it on here means that your community as a macro level entity is doing something wrong. If you would like any creative suggestions on how to conduct an effective counter-insurgency campaign I would even be willing to assist.

You're fairly new to SB, and haven't seen the history.

Let's say somebody comes into your house and starts criticizing how you arrange your furniture, how you raise your kids, how you handle your finances. They don't even try to understand WHY you do those things ... they just criticize because it's not how they do it.

You try to explain it, and they completely ignore the logic and focus on minutiae and completely irrelevent assumptions.

Finally they get tired of the discussion and leave.

A week later somebody else comes into your home and does the same thing.

A week after that, it happens again.

This goes on for several years.

How ... diplomatic ... would you be after, oh say, 50 or 60 of these conversations.

A lot of us put a LOT of effort into answering these questions as diplomatically and helpfully as we can. Most times our answers are completely ignored ... because they don't correspond to the preconceived notions of the people who started the conversation ... who are almost always egged on by non-DIR people who repeatedly display the EXACT SAME BEHAVIOR that they rail against the DIR folks for.

Gets a bit tiring after a while ... almost anyone who's human will eventually reach a point where all they want to tell you is just "GO AWAY".

Can you blame them?

Stick around for a while ... this whole conversation will repeat itself in a week or two.

It's like Groundhog Day ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[b1gcountry]

I don't know you, but you sound super pretentious in the above post. I'm sure you are probably better than what you just posted, so I would go back and think about what you just said, and how many potential additions you just soured. You can get butt hurt all you want, but just being whiny about it is not going to fix anything. You are right, the only long threads in the "DIR" sub-forum are the ones arguing about "DIR". Why don't you leadership types...lead. Conspire with Lamont (he seems friendly enough) and make it a better forum, create more stickies, set up events, and educate people. If someone is conducting guerrilla warfare against you, then win the support of the people (so to speak). Instead of sounding like you got your drysuit underwear stuck in your butt crack, become a Mao or a Che in your community. The fact that your community is small and people complain about it on here means that your community as a macro level entity is doing something wrong. If you would like any creative suggestions on how to conduct an effective counter-insurgency campaign I would even be willing to assist.

It would be nice, but unfortunately, there are really only a limited number of topics on DIR and they have pretty much been covered to death already. We're for the most part too geographically spread out to have and real 'meet me at...' threads. So for the most part, the only thing that most regulars here have is:

1. Upcoming classes, and class reviews

2. Some new agency/course/standard that come down the line

3. Dive reports, which I would personally like to see more of, but probably see a bigger audience elsewhere

and...

4. Discussing the same old topics with new people. Which is the majority of the discussions here.

 

[b1gcountry]

A lot of us put a LOT of effort into answering these questions as diplomatically and helpfully as we can. Most times our answers are completely ignored ... because they don't correspond to the preconceived notions of the people who started the conversation ... who are almost always egged on by non-DIR people who repeatedly display the EXACT SAME BEHAVIOR that they rail against the DIR folks for.

Nicely said.

 

[joker31]

First off I am not taking shots at DIR... I have questions about it thats all...

Jasonmh - Thanks for the reply!

RTodd - You said that a lot of people bash DIR. I think a lot has to do with the name. After reading this thread and others, I know that this is not true, but the name implys if you are "Doing it Right" then I must be "Doing it Wrong".....***I KNOW THATS NOT WHAT IT MEANS SO DON'T BEAT ME UP*** That's probably what gets most nonDIR divers upset.

Sloth - as a nonDIR diver that is exactly what DIR sounds like to me (the shoe analogy). Same Boyance Compensator, same reg setup for all your diving..... One pair of shoes to run in, work in, dance in..... I dive different gear when I am: training OW students, rec diving on my own time, tech diving. I am not bashing what you do, hell I don't know the training/concept behind it, thats what it looks like from the outside looking in. And thats why I ask!

My questions and those of many others are not always hateful. There is genuine curiosity as to what you guys are doing. I know that there are some mudslingers out there, I've read their posts. But no all of us are...

 

[ae3753]

Sloth - as a nonDIR diver that is exactly what DIR sounds like to me (the shoe analogy). Same Boyance Compensator, same reg setup for all your diving..... One pair of shoes to run in, work in, dance in..... I dive different gear when I am: training OW students, rec diving on my own time, tech diving. I am not bashing what you do, hell I don't know the training/concept behind it, thats what it looks like from the outside looking in. And thats why I ask!

One of the reasons why the shoe analogy does not work is that shoes are not modular.

It's not the same wing, same regs, and same tanks for all diving. However, the base components of long hose, bp/wing, and paddle fins are the same.

Our training is based on building blocks and consistency. Skills learned at one level are built upon at the next level and consistent protocols and equipment throughout.

Ultimately, we want the management of equipment and individual skills to be automated (muscle memory). Then, our heads are free able focus on more important things - the actual dive.

Let's take OOA. At the recreational level, our requirements are donation from a working regulator, maintaining neutral buoyancy, and flexibility to manage team and environment. At the technical level, these requirements are the same.

As the result, why shouldn't the procedures and equipment be consistent?

 

[Kingpatzer]

a 7' hose is preferred now (routes better for some people, anyway, than a 5' hose).

That said, I have a lightweight plate and very small wing for tropical diving, and sometimes don't take a can light, so my rig is very unobtrusive when doing simple, warm water diving . . .

So where would you route the 7' hose?

When i'm warm salt water diving my steel plate and 4 pounds in my trim pockets are all that I need. I don't have weight pockets on the harness, so wouldn't the hose just kind of flop around?

 

[Rainer]

You can tuck the hose (easiest). Or you can put a sheath with shears/knife on the right side and route under that (my preference). Some put a pocket on the harness there. Really, not rocket science.