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- 99,292
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- Location
- On the Fun Side of Trump's Wall
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Communication is the responsibility of both buddies.
What size tank was your buddy using? You indicate you were on a 130. If his was smaller, then it's a sure-fire indication that he will be first to reach turn pressure ... by how much depends entirely on the mismatch between the two of you with respect to differences in both tank size and air consumption rate. If either is unknown to you, then you should be monitoring not just your air, but your buddy's fairly regularly. You can do this by asking, or simply by positioning yourself to take a peek at your buddy's pressure gauge from time to time.
When diving with someone new to me, I'll often do an air pressure check before the dive, then another about 10 minutes into the dive. By having those two data points, you can get a pretty good idea how your buddy's air consumption compares to yours ... and therefore a rough idea how much gas you should expect to have remaining when your buddy reaches turn pressure (assuming they have either a smaller tank, greater consumption rate, or both). As you approach your expected value, give your buddy the pressure check signal ... sometimes divers, particularly newer or task-loaded divers ... simply neglect to check as often as they should. So don't assume ... ask.
Bolting to the surface is an indication that he faced a problem he wasn't prepared to resolve underwater. This isn't an uncommon instinct for a newer diver facing his first real failure outside the controlled environs of a class ... most of us aren't nearly as good at problem solving as we perceive ourselves to be. Given no one was hurt, I'd take it as a learning opportunity ... for both of you.
Equipment choices have nothing to do with it ... in your part of the world, lots of people learn to dive using long hoses and BP/W ... it's not a "technical" rig at all, it just happens to work well in the environment you dive in. The diver still will need to learn how to manage their gear and their dive properly ... just as they would in any other configuration.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
What size tank was your buddy using? You indicate you were on a 130. If his was smaller, then it's a sure-fire indication that he will be first to reach turn pressure ... by how much depends entirely on the mismatch between the two of you with respect to differences in both tank size and air consumption rate. If either is unknown to you, then you should be monitoring not just your air, but your buddy's fairly regularly. You can do this by asking, or simply by positioning yourself to take a peek at your buddy's pressure gauge from time to time.
When diving with someone new to me, I'll often do an air pressure check before the dive, then another about 10 minutes into the dive. By having those two data points, you can get a pretty good idea how your buddy's air consumption compares to yours ... and therefore a rough idea how much gas you should expect to have remaining when your buddy reaches turn pressure (assuming they have either a smaller tank, greater consumption rate, or both). As you approach your expected value, give your buddy the pressure check signal ... sometimes divers, particularly newer or task-loaded divers ... simply neglect to check as often as they should. So don't assume ... ask.
Bolting to the surface is an indication that he faced a problem he wasn't prepared to resolve underwater. This isn't an uncommon instinct for a newer diver facing his first real failure outside the controlled environs of a class ... most of us aren't nearly as good at problem solving as we perceive ourselves to be. Given no one was hurt, I'd take it as a learning opportunity ... for both of you.
Equipment choices have nothing to do with it ... in your part of the world, lots of people learn to dive using long hoses and BP/W ... it's not a "technical" rig at all, it just happens to work well in the environment you dive in. The diver still will need to learn how to manage their gear and their dive properly ... just as they would in any other configuration.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)