LiteHedded
Contributor
Oh and my instructor was Sonya tittle
Can you pass fundies at all on your first try?
- Thread starter jgoodstein
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
lamont
Contributor
We've taken someone in about 9 months from being an OW diver thrilled to actually dive with someone that could frog kick, and fixing enough and getting them through a tech pass in fundies the first time, and through tech1 and passing the first time. Its a ton of work, and that required a large investment in simply diving constantly on the part of the diver (150+ dives or so in that time) and quite a bit of native talent. It can be done.
I can state pretty definitely, however, that a new diver that isn't getting mentored isn't going to hit the bar.
Scott L
Contributor
You guys in spring country have it made. Know much of Fraser Purdon? Congrats on the quick matriculation !
tddfleming
Contributor
Lamont:
When you take someone under your wing and help them out, such as the diver mentioned above, what do you get out of it? This is not meant to be a smart butt comment, I just really want to know. Do you accept payment, free fills, friendship, dive buddy, just because, what drives you to do this, esp, if no payment is involved?
I am doing my primer this weekend, knowing full well, I am no where near ready for fundies. Fundies is just a goal for me to get to at some point, fingers crossed, for next year. What could one, a new diver, offer someone to mentor them?
LiteHedded
Contributor
I do know frase. I'm cc'd in the email list for that tech 1 class
First time around I earned a rec pass in doubles. Apparently I came close to tech pass standards but didn’t quite earn one until several months later.
I stepped into Fundies with about 280 pre class dives, 80 with GUE divers (but not much personal skill mentoring), 180 in DIR equipment, 30 in doubles, and had taken a DIR primer (with quite a bit of post class practice).
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/dir/326408-gue-fundies-what-amazing-class.html
In retrospect I went way overboard with prep which ended up forming many bad habits to be unlearned. The GUE primer seems a much more efficient route.
Quite a few friends have done little prep, but have still earned the recreational pass.
I stepped into Fundies with about 280 pre class dives, 80 with GUE divers (but not much personal skill mentoring), 180 in DIR equipment, 30 in doubles, and had taken a DIR primer (with quite a bit of post class practice).
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/dir/326408-gue-fundies-what-amazing-class.html
In retrospect I went way overboard with prep which ended up forming many bad habits to be unlearned. The GUE primer seems a much more efficient route.
Quite a few friends have done little prep, but have still earned the recreational pass.
ligersandtions
Contributor
I got a rec pass on the first try in my Fundies class....a few months later, it was upgraded to a tech pass. That said, I had good mentors and strong buddies in the class, which worked very much to my advantage.
I don't suspect a lot of people who haven't already been diving the system pre-Fundies would come out with a pass....and certainly not a tech pass.
Keep in mind, however, that not earning a pass does not mean you have to take the class a second time. Most of the time, if someone is shy of the standards, they receive a "provisional", which means that they have some things to clean up, and then can schedule another dive with their instructor to try to bump that up to a pass. Very few people truly fail Fundies.
I don't suspect a lot of people who haven't already been diving the system pre-Fundies would come out with a pass....and certainly not a tech pass.
Keep in mind, however, that not earning a pass does not mean you have to take the class a second time. Most of the time, if someone is shy of the standards, they receive a "provisional", which means that they have some things to clean up, and then can schedule another dive with their instructor to try to bump that up to a pass. Very few people truly fail Fundies.
People in the Northeast tend to (somewhat reasonably) just sign up and take Fundies without substantial mentoring. Passes are not at all uncommon. Tech endorsements on a first shot are pretty rare, though.
I really feel pretty strongly that your criterion for taking the class should be more, "Do I have enough buoyancy control to watch the demonstrations?" than "Can I burn through a valve drill in 15 seconds within a 3 foot/20 degree window?" The latter is what you need to pass, not enroll in, Tech1. Yet people over-drill when they should just sign up.
Now what they should sign up for (Primer vs. Fundies) is a question that depends on current skills, and has been answered in many another thread.
I really feel pretty strongly that your criterion for taking the class should be more, "Do I have enough buoyancy control to watch the demonstrations?" than "Can I burn through a valve drill in 15 seconds within a 3 foot/20 degree window?" The latter is what you need to pass, not enroll in, Tech1. Yet people over-drill when they should just sign up.
Now what they should sign up for (Primer vs. Fundies) is a question that depends on current skills, and has been answered in many another thread.
lamont
Contributor
I'm just sick and twisted...
ligersandtions
Contributor
That might be true....but I imagine he also does it because it helps the local community grow, which in turn gives more well-trained, fun buddies to dive with. I know that's what we're always going for down in socal when we invite new divers to come out and dive with us.
Similar threads
