Cave diving popularity

[Efka76]

Thanks to all dedicated divers and supporting personnel all Thai boys and trainer were successfully rescued. During the last few days many people saw on the news and read in mass media about cave and perils related to cave diving.

Do you think that cave diving will become more popular after this event and more people will enroll in cave certification process or not?

 

[boulderjohn]

I would say no, but not so much for the reason in your poll.

I think anyone who has followed this story knows that what happened there was not typical of cave diving. I think it will not impact people much in either direction because of that reason. It will not dissuade people who were considering doing it already, and it not encourage people who were not.

 

[arew+4]

There may be a small spike, but it won't be sustained. The pool of certified divers with all of the required pre requisite exp are unlikely to be swayed into it, and the adrenaline junkie types that would be drawn to it will likely balk at all of the required training.

 

[Nirvana]

I believe the incident will attract some people to cave diving. Even though the diving involved in the rescue operation was by no means representative of what most cave divers will ever get to do, I believe that the reports made people appreciate the challenges involved and the possibility of overcoming them through the application of proper techniques.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I believe the incident may attract people to dry caving more than cave diving. My understanding is the Thai cave is mostly dry--it was when the boys went in. Some caves are filled with divable water, but the dry or mostly dry ones are more common, more accessible, and require less, if any, training. For instance, Mammoth Cave in Kentucky gets more than half a million visitors a year. It would be interesting to see if tourist-friendly caves attract more visitors. I believe the Mexican cenotes may see an uptick in interest in those guided open-water/cavern dives, but that doesn't fit the options in your poll.

More generally, though, I think most people have a healthy fear of caves, let alone cave diving.

 

[ibj40]

I think, if anything, we might see an increase in the interest in diving the cenotes of the Yucatan.

Dived properly, that experience is an incredible opportunity to view that environment, and get a feel for what it takes.

On almost all of our cenote dives, while not only being lead by a dive professional in full cave gear, we have also seen cave-qualified divers going beyond the periphery that open water divers are restricted to, as well as those in training to acquire those skills.

 

[bshort4]

After doing my first cenote cavern dives this past April and enjoying the beautiful wonders of Dos Ojos and The Pit I actually considered getting a cave diving cert---for like ten seconds. The dedication, expense and time involved for this cert are far beyond by desire to enjoy that kind of diving. Big kudos to those who have gone the extra mile to be able to do this type of diving and guide me in my more tame cavern dives. And bigger kudos to those who used their skills and knowledge to bring those boys out from that cave and bring a happy conclusion to a very bad situation--hats off to all of them from many different countries--salute!

 

[Storker]

I think anyone who has followed this story knows that what happened there was not typical of cave diving.

Depends on where you're located. I have the impression that this type of cave diving (sump diving in near zero vis) is the common type of cave diving in e.g. the UK

 

[The Chairman]

I have no idea if this will have any effect on the numbers seeking cave diving training. I think it's important for all divers to at least consider Cavern training. Why? It's a great treatise on trim, buoyancy, situational awareness, planning and more. It provides what a lot of divers missed in their OW class. You'll probably figure out if you have the desire, stamina, moxy and funds to become full cave certified.

 

[Johnoly]

I think it's like shark diving............Some say, I'd never do that, it's crazy........and others like us say " That really looks interesting, I'll ask around".

Echo'ing @The Chairman 's comments. My cave1 class taught me so many new skills. And that was well after a thousand dives in the ocean and thought I knew enough. Cave1 starts with "Your going to die,,and we're going to teach you not too ". S-Drills, Bubble Checks, 10ft knots in line, OK'ing the line, 1/3's, H-valve, Roll-offs, helmets, & so many more.

Panic is the number one killer in diving,,,cave1 shows & teaches you not to panic.