breathholding

[johndiver999]

As one who has suffered shallow water blackout in a swim team underwater swimming competition in my teen years, I could not agree more. Training in free diving techniques is extremely important. Look at the book, but also take a course.

Now, about buddy free diving. Be sure that the buddy has the capability to rescue you. You and your buddy need to be at equal skill levels.

SeaRat

I'm not sure that last statement is necessarily true or practical. It is important to dive with an attentive and trained buddy and taking a course is a very smart thing to do.

However, if both divers meet the above referenced criteria, it probably matter little if one diver can dive to 150 while the other can only dive 50 ft. The reason for this is because almost all back outs occur at the surface and a very huge proportion of blacks outs or loss of motor control occur at the surface or within a few feet of the surface. I don't recall the statistics, but it is like 99.9% of all accidents occur in this zone.

So if you have a trained and attentive buddy, s/he can provide a very significant safety benefit, even if they are not particularly accomplished.

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I'm not sure that last statement is necessarily true or practical. It is important to dive with an attentive and trained buddy and taking a course is a very smart thing to do.

However, if both divers meet the above referenced criteria, it probably matter little if one diver can dive to 150 while the other can only dive 50 ft. The reason for this is because almost all back outs occur at the surface and a very huge proportion of blacks outs or loss of motor control occur at the surface or within a few feet of the surface. I don't recall the statistics, but it is like 99.9% of all accidents occur in this zone.

So if you have a trained and attentive buddy, s/he can provide a very significant safety benefit, even if they are not particularly accomplished.

I’m not sure I agree here, as I went to Molokini out of Maui with my wife. She can snorkel, and we were on a charter snorkeling tour. I was 73 years old at the time, and could easily dive to 50 feet. My wife could not dive below the surface. So while I did take 3 breath-hold dives to 25-30 feet, I really limited myself knowing I was actually down there solo. Yes, a “trained and attentive buddy can provide a significant safety benefit,” but that person has to have free diving AND lifesaving training. My wife did not, and I was very happy that she actually overcame her fears and completed two snorkel swims in deep water there, and later two more from shore. However, I did restrict myself to no breath-hold dives from shore with her being the only person available in case I got into trouble. I consider breath-hold diving more hazardous than scuba diving, and solo breath-hold diving much more hazardous.

SeaRat