Buddy Dive - bad attitude?

[Mossman]

FWIW, I never took that post to be a direct reflection on you. I read it (perhaps incorrectly of course) as going to the extreme to prove their point. I could be wrong though. IF I am right, it is a good example of someone rabidly misinterpreting words on the internet as can happen with every word that is posted.

As the author of post 112, I can sincerely say that I was generalizing about credibility when I made the comment about not wanting a board full of liars as a rationalization for why someone's credibility might be judged, as the poster whom I was responding to didn't seem to know why anyone would ever question credibility on ScubaBoard and I was in a particularly didactic mood at the time.

I don't believe I ever called Sue a liar. I believe that her friend asked for 24 lbs and I believe Irene objected to that. Anything beyond those facts is a matter of interpretation and we've just been doing a lot of interpreting on this thread, that's all.

(Now calling someone a sockpuppet, that is indeed a vicious abhorrent attack. I've been crying my eyes out all morning and would have considered suicide, except that I have a non-refundable dive trip coming up in April.)

 

[designbysue]

I did not see post 112 as accusing anyone of being a liar.

So you do seem to be agreeing that there was reason to question the weight request. It is not something that has to be gotten over. It seems that some posters believe that a dive op should never question a weight request - but it is apparent, now, that you are not one of them. So, your buddy asked for 24# and Irene gave "bad attitude". What does that mean?

I said I could be wrong - didn't I?

Don't get me wrong. I have witnessed less than the friendliest attitude in dealings with BD and many other places. Our first trip to Bonaire, my wife was gearing up for a check-out dive and a DM saw her put on a glove. He could have said, "Mame, gloves are not allowed in the marine park." Instead he said something like, "Lady, if I see you with gloves in the marine park you will lose your diving privileges." I saw it more as a little something lacking in dealing with customers rather than bad attitude. And I focus on this particular event (the weights) because this, to me, seems to be the tone setter for the rest of the trip and the other problems. I do fully agree with you that tanks should be checked before they are loaded on the boats. But I doubt if the dive guide who was so unhelpful had much to do with that decision. Severely light fills are unacceptable and should be reflected in any tips. I tend to doubt if other things like nitrox percentage, mask cleaner, and dive shops questions were really a problem other than how they were handled by the dive op. And I just don't understand how your buddy failed to disarm the initial problem with an explanation of why so much weight was required. I can see how that situation could have gotten out of hand and lead to rude behavior. I just don't see why you all (customers and dive shop) let that snowball at the start of a vacation. I take it (assume) you stuck to your guns and never did provide any reason - just insisted that 24# is what was needed.

I keep trying to state my original intent for the post - Were we the only ones to notice a change in attitude or is it a usual experience for others? I only stated the problems I experienced because I was asked. I don't understand why my buddy was required to disarm anything. (As I have stated a number of times before he did explain his weight needs.) And the "attitude" we experienced were from different members of the staff and at different times throughout the week. There was no "snowball" of experiences. (in fact a few days after the weight issue we were joking about it with Irene by asking her for more weight. She told us he could not have more weight instead she was going to give him an anchor!) Sure if we had been angry all week about the initial confrontation it would have transferred to everything we did. But as others have stated, we did not let it ruin our week. We just were witness to some unusual attitude that we had not seen at BD before.

 

[designbysue]

I don't believe I ever called Sue a liar. I believe that her friend asked for 24 lbs and I believe Irene objected to that. Anything beyond those facts is a matter of interpretation and we've just been doing a lot of interpreting on this thread, that's all.

As I have said - I'm wrong then.

(Now calling someone a sockpuppet, that is indeed a vicious abhorrent attack. I've been crying my eyes out all morning and would have considered suicide, except that I have a non-refundable dive trip coming up in April.)

I hope you have a wonderful time - but please promise us that you will post back here how your experience has been - and I will trust you to be truthful.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Getting back to the topic for a moment ... am I understanding that BD no longer lets you check tanks at the dock ... insisting that you now check them on the way to the dive site?

Does anybody else see a problem with that?

I do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[redacted]

The only problem I see is if their fill op gets sloppy - which apparently it is.

 

[rhwestfall]

Yes, ...... but no. The problem is "not as rich of a mix as advertised." So in reality it is a mix with a deeper MOD than what it could be. Also, from my BD experience (somewhat limited to history), the site isn't always pre-determined. So, at the briefing, know the air, know the site, make the plan, dive the plan....

Please help me if I'm missing something..... seriously.

 

[Mike]

Getting back to the topic for a moment ... am I understanding that BD no longer lets you check tanks at the dock ... insisting that you now check them on the way to the dive site?

Does anybody else see a problem with that?

I do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

It's a problem if they don't bring extra tanks or they don't have enough dive masters on board to take all the short fills for themselves. The first time a paying customer gets forced to dive with an under filled tank their 'system' has failed them.

Buddy Dive isn't known for being an expensive dive operation to dive with, I believe it's just the opposite. It's not easy to deliver top quality customer service and under charge for it. What's been described sound more like below average, not even in the realm of top quality service. Isn't the dive community a pretty small thing on an island? Don't the dive masters all pretty much know each other and don't the better ones gravitate to the better dive ops? It doesn't take a genius to read between the lines when a dive op starts getting similar bad reviews over periods of time for the same issues over and over again. Somebody is dropping the ball, and it usually starts at the top.

As I said, in the case of Irene and anyone in the service industry who relies on tips, just vote with your money. In any service business there are employees who always seem to rake in the tips and there are others who don't. Or as the employees who don't get good tips see it "How come I always get the crappy customers?" They all have the same problems, they don't get it who the customers are, who they serve and how to do it. Lots of them would love their jobs if it wasn't for the damn customers showing up all the time.

 

[designbysue]

Getting back to the topic for a moment ... am I understanding that BD no longer lets you check tanks at the dock ... insisting that you now check them on the way to the dive site?

Does anybody else see a problem with that?

I do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I stated in the myriad of previous posts that the worst problem was the low tank pressure (the O2 was the same on the boat or dock) and it could be a safety issue if a diver didn't check his pressure (I know we are supposed to and I have made it a habit, but it does happen that a diver forgets until he is in the water - and new divers especially might not check until into the dive) If one starts at 1700 lbs even a good breather could be have to end his dive early - which is not what we are paying for.

Also stated before, we were told by another dive leader at BD that the problem of low tanks on the boat is caused by the handling of the tanks in loading the boat and the staff not checking to be sure the valves are closed. Knowing that this is the problem and not correcting it is bad, but for the staff to blame the fill station in front of the customers, in my book makes this worse.

A simple solutions: have the boat staff check the valves after putting the tank on the boat. Problem solved and issue avoided!

 

[redacted]

Why would you believe the explanation that the problem is from handling the tanks? Does that really make sense to you? Did you hear any tanks leaking?

An inaudible leak would take days to empty a tank if it were even sustainable. In fact, such a small leak may only lose a couple hundred pounds in a few hours and then shut itself down as tank pressure drops. So a tank sitting in the "ready room" with a very small leak might lose 500 or 1000 psi in a day or more. I have found some light tanks on the dock when shore diving and I place them with the empties, but others may not. It is just not credible to blame this on boat crew handling in the previous hour or two.

In any event, divers for whom short fills become a safety issue need to seriously reassess their diving practices. The biggest issues should be lost bottom time for the diver, lost tips for the boat crew, and ultimately lost business for BD.

I stated in the myriad of previous posts that the worst problem was the low tank pressure (the O2 was the same on the boat or dock) and it could be a safety issue if a diver didn't check his pressure (I know we are supposed to and I have made it a habit, but it does happen that a diver forgets until he is in the water - and new divers especially might not check until into the dive) If one starts at 1700 lbs even a good breather could be have to end his dive early - which is not what we are paying for.

Also stated before, we were told by another dive leader at BD that the problem of low tanks on the boat is caused by the handling of the tanks in loading the boat and the staff not checking to be sure the valves are closed. Knowing that this is the problem and not correcting it is bad, but for the staff to blame the fill station in front of the customers, in my book makes this worse.

A simple solutions: have the boat staff check the valves after putting the tank on the boat. Problem solved and issue avoided!

 

[Mike]

I've never heard of this valve handling ever being an issue in the industry. Anybody else heard it? Sounds like a BS tell the tourist something quick excuse to me.