Bad dive on the USS Spiegel Grove

[mislav]

Thanks for sharing this, PF!

I've only recently had a very similar experience myself. Although I had handled the situation a bit better - had somewhat different conditions - I came to the same conclusion as you did:

I did view this dive as a good learning experience.

I wouldn't be calling any dive when I learn something new - a bad dive. I liked it even though there was nothing to see on my dive.

@ JimLap: Thanks for a great analysis - I'm also guilty of making some of the mistakes you've mentioned! Dive and learn...

 

[500 PSI]

Pilot Fish, you sound like an experienced diver. I have done the Spiegel and Duane and will do them again. I find that some dives are diamonds others are stones! I think we all have a bad dive or maybe two. You must love this sport as I do, and the messages posted tend to educate me. There is always something to learn about this sport even if its your 500th dive. Hopefully the many future dives you will do can make up one poor one! Thanks for the post.

 

[TheRedHead]

Pilot Fish, I think Jim Lap gave you some good advice: pull yourself on the granny line to the wreck line while breathing your regulator. Leave the snorkel in your bag. I would also suggest taking a wreck class so you can be prepared in case you do get blown off a wreck and need to shoot a bag and make a drifting ascent with safety stop. On a deep wreck dive, I would take a DSMB and spool, reel, jon line, 2 lights and more gas than an AL 80. At least you had decent viz which is not always the case with wrecks like the Thunderbolt in Marathon. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

 

[Diveral]

Put enough dives on your gear and we are all going to have bad days. Currents come and go and can be tricky. The important thing is to come up alive and to learn from your experience. You performed well on a tough dive. There are a few things you learned about currents during this dive that you can apply next time you face them.

Here is a post about my worst day of diving in a while. http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=151651. I had a current switch directions and intensity on me on my first dive and came close to an OOA and then got lost on a different wreck on my second dive. It was still a great day of diving and I learned some valuable lessons.

AL

 

[MikeFerrara]

Pilot Fish

Your dive here is a good example of what I tried to explain to you in the other thread about recreational divers often oporating close to their limits than "technical divers". I don't want to hijack the thread but I wanted to point that out.

You said your computer was blinking...what was your planned turn pressure? Did you plan to modify it if there was more current that expected? What was you planned ascent pressure? What was your plan for a case where you might have to ascend away from the line?

buddy checks?...Lots of times its hard to get in the water at exactly the same time as your buddy. In rough seas (2 ft isn't what I'd call rough), getting in the water and to the mooring sometimes takes a little out of you so we'll drop just below the surface (to wherever things calm down some), get settled, do a quick s-drill to make sure that everything is in order after being beat up on the way to the mooring and then descend.

 

[pilot fish]

Good post Pilot fish - thanks for sharing your experiences. Can I ask - what do you mean your computer was blinking? Were you heading into Deco?

My puter is air intergrated - Oceanic DataMax ProPlus I. It was calculating my air consumption and telling me air was my overriding concern and that I needed to end the dive then and go to a safety stop -I set my end time at 500psi. I had planned to hit the ascent line with 1000 psi.

 

[pilot fish]

And, the classicemphasis added

Please, some one, save us from new instructors with these attitudes.
I hope his instructor training beats this stuff out of him, or I'm thinking it's time to invest in a barometric trauma center... :nurse:

Yeah, I thought that too but I'm a big boy and my mistakes were mine. I guess I must have put my guard down a bit when they gave us the "very little current and 80 ft vis" info on the boat.

I do remember what I was taught in OW class, SAFETY IS YOUR CONCERN. I made some surface mistakes but I learned from it. Don't splash till your buddy is REALLY ready etc.

 

[pilot fish]

As others have said, the SG can be a really tough dive. The first time I attempted it the current was so bad we didn't even make it down the line. I almost died pulling myself up the line along side the boat. Second time aborted due to current. Third time never made it out due to a hurricane. Fourth time, YES, smooth as glass and no current to be had at all! Go figure! I think you did pretty darn good. You kept your cool and made it back safely. Perhaps your buddy was being a "not so great buddy" this dive because he was also having trouble in the current. I don't think everyone here understands what ripping current can do to a dive plan and a buddy team. Mother Nature always wins regardless of your fitness level. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks Scubadoo. Since I had done this dive 3 times before I think I thought I'd be OK, Pulling myself along the wreck line winded me because I did not fully inflate my BC and was hurrying too much. Why? The DM yelled over to me to stop finning and just use my upper body on the granny/wreck line and go nice and slow. Another thing I learned. I caught my breath after about a half minute at the mooring ball and did the dive.

My dive buddy was calming me realx and saying take your time and we'll wait till you get your breath etc. That also helped.

 

[pilot fish]

Pilot Fish

Your dive here is a good example of what I tried to explain to you in the other thread about recreational divers often oporating close to their limits than "technical divers". I don't want to hijack the thread but I wanted to point that out.

You said your computer was blinking...what was your planned turn pressure? Did you plan to modify it if there was more current that expected? What was you planned ascent pressure? What was your plan for a case where you might have to ascend away from the line?

buddy checks?...Lots of times its hard to get in the water at exactly the same time as your buddy. In rough seas (2 ft isn't what I'd call rough), getting in the water and to the mooring sometimes takes a little out of you so we'll drop just below the surface (to wherever things calm down some), get settled, do a quick s-drill to make sure that everything is in order after being beat up on the way to the mooring and then descend.

We agreed to hit the ascent line at 1000 psi, as suggestedd by DM. If one of us washed off the wreck the other would leave the wreck and join up -that was my idea. He had no safety sausage so I made him buy one the day before. I told him this was not the dive you wanted to do without one. I carry one all the time, along with mirror and whistle.

 

[RobbieTheHun]

[/QUOTE]Had only 4 or 5 hours sleep the night before.[/QUOTE]

That was mistake Number 1. Preparing yourself for a dive on "Top Dog", or any other wreck for that matter, starts with an ample amount of rest the night before. As has been mentioned, conditions on this wreck are extremely dynamic and having a sharp, well rested mind is an invaluable asset in this type of dive.

Number 2. Where was your dive plan? I know you have heard this a million times but it's always worth repeating "Plan your dive and dive your plan". Planning for heavy current on this wreck should always be a contingency that should be factored into to your plan and discussing this plan with a new buddy can give you valuable insight into the type of diver in whom you are about to trust your life. Don't dive with a person you are uncomfortable with, period!

I've had my fair share of "moments" on this wreck, it's always a surprise, and that's what makes it such a cool wreck to dive so hopefully the advise rendered by myself and my peers in response to your post will help enhance your future dives.

All the best.

RTH