Bit the bullet--PADI DM it is.

[Campana]

I appreciate your sympathy, I really do. I will call PADI, in fact I thought about calling them today to check status, but I waited too late in the day.

On reporting my instructor, I can't really do that. I know that on the surface it really sounds like I should, but I will try to explain why I cant.

First, it's a small town shop, and the only one near me and the only one I really know. I have done all my training there, and overall, the training was good. I take a lot of trips with the owners, a husband and wife, and the husband is the instructor in question. I enjoy the trips and don't want to harm my relationship with them. I also enjoy assisting this instructor, I trust him in the water, and he is very conscientious about the OW student's paperwork, I have noticed that it goes in immediately. Also, the shop doesn't make enough money to support their family, they both have "day jobs" to support their family and the shop, they do it, I guess, because they love diving. For this reason, I cut him a lot of slack. He has difficulty with large projects, and seems to procrastinate, obviously. It just got out of hand. I know he feels bad, and I don't think he'll repeat the problems on any other DM classes, if and when he ever teaches them. If he does, I will volunteer to do the paperwork; I'm good at it, and will insure it gets done.

So overall, I have to say I just can't complain to PADI. If and when the shop goes out of business, I have discussed DM'ing for another shop that I really like, but it's 60 miles away. They basically offered me an "audition" and I'm confidant I can "pass" it. I work hard as a DM, and bust my chops to help the students. I take pride in fixing any equipment malfunction, in minutes, on the scene, or have spares to save the dives. I get called for nearly every class for this instructor and the other, seldom used, instructor at the class.

I chalk it up to "live and learn". I won't take anymore classes from this guy, but I will be diving with him, and he is a good friend. I overlook his faults because of our friendship, just as he does for me.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Congratulations on choosing to get your DM Scottri!

Wow Drew, PADI waits until DM to turn off your air and poke you with sticks? We do that with our NAUI OW students at the university! And you don't want to know what we do to them after we blindfold them and send them to the deep end

Hey Net Doc, NAUI puts that mask/snorkel retrieval in all of their classes, you'll do fine, don't let those OW divers show you up! Our pool at the university is 14 feet deep, you only have to have an 8 foot deep pool to meet requirements. I highly recommend practicing in a pool that's deeper than your "test pool" because you will find the shallower water for the test will make the exercise extremely easy if you've mastered it in deeper water.

Ber

 

[SubMariner]

Ok Dave.. I understand where you are coming from. {nod}

Meanwhile, a reminder: PADI HQ is in California.... on WEST COAST time, which is 3 hours BEHIND the East coast. So when you think it's too late to call, it's not.

Take care, eh?!

~SubMariner~

 

[sunshinefishy]

Although I think it would be interesting to see the wetsuit exhange! LOL :mean:

One of the last rites of passage is the equipment exchange exercise. You exchange gear (except exposure suits) with another diver while buddy breathing sharing a single regulator.

 

[Heads Up]

I officially started my DM course this evening and got the worst bit out of the way - the SWIM TESTS! I am not a strong swimmer but what helped me was having 5 other DMCs in the pool at the same time. Before I knew it, it was all over and I was dead chuffed!

Long haul starts from here but I now know I can do it.

 

[The Chairman]

but my remembrance of the PADI DM program is way intense... many did not make it on the first go. NOW, my experience with the NAUI swim tests is; "You've got to be kidding!"... I am not even CLOSE!!! What a difference between the two agencies.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

I couldn't pass the NAUI DM swim test the first time (missed by 2 minutes!) Asked my instructor to show me it could be done and she swam 450 yards plus the 25 yard (resting stroke) in 8 MINUTES and didn't even look like she was trying! I had to start working out on a treadmill as well as in the pool to get enough stamina to make the swim. Oh, did I tell you my instructor likes to compete in triathlons! Then there was the 900 yard snorkel swim! She starts yelling for me to "kick it out the rest of the way" so I start swimming as hard as I can not realizing I had 100 more yards to go! (Count your own laps as you go!) I didn't think she was EVER going to tell me I could stop but I kept swimming as hard as I could! I made it though, I was only about 12 seconds under the allotted time (18 minutes) but I made it! We do the 25 yards underwater on a regular basis so that and the 20 minute survival swim (treading, I float like a rock!) were no big deal.

Don't worry, you'll get it!

Ber

 

[TwoBitTxn]

TexasMike and I will be starting our DM training very soon. The instructor is multi agency so we have our options on cards. I am probably going to go PADI I don't know about Mike. I can't afford more than one card to keep up.

Best wishes to you Scott.

Tom

 

[Scottri]

Thanks for all the input! So far it's been a great experience, the instructor has been teaching for years and is very good at it. In just one week I've learned a lot. Boy, I'm glad I shopped around for instructors. The one I chose has been teaching for 20 years and has a lot of commercial diving experience so his approach is very much on the practical rather than the "procedure" side.

The only problem so far is another DM candidate that has just enough experience to get into the program and not a lot of personal experience. I waited for 4 years and I'm glad I did. All of the recreational diving experience has really made the difference for me. Assisting the instructor is easier because I can anticapate his needs better thus making the instructional aspects easier for both of us. My fellow classmate is so new that I end up helping him as much as the OW students and I'm sometimes put in the position of having to correct him in front of the class which undermines his credibility.

Scott

 

[TexasMike]

Originally posted by Tom Vyles
TexasMike and I will be starting our DM training very soon. The instructor is multi agency so we have our options on cards. I am probably going to go PADI I don't know about Mike. I can't afford more than one card to keep up.

Most likely I'll do PADI as well.

One neat thing about Ron Carlo (the instructor that Tom refers too) is that with all of his classes, he takes the best parts of the standards from the different agencies he is qualifed to teach for to develop his teaching outline. What this means is that upon successful completion, the student has met the requirements of all the organizations and can choose which one to get the card from. Ron is also not an easy instructor, you really have to know and demonstrate your stuff to pass him. But I consider that a good thing.


One question that I haven't seen covered yet in our DMC discussions is about migrating to another shop. Working with/for the shop that you get your DM training is a given, but how do you go about migrating to other shops? Also, what if you are DM'ed in PADI, but the shop you want to work with/for is a different agency?