CCR Cave course duration

[rjack321]

For someone starting cave diving from scratch on CCR... what's the minimum number of instruction days and in-water hours required for CCR cave? (obviously the max is well, a long time)

I know my CCR cave crossover was 3 days, but I was already full cave have with hundreds of cave dives over two decades. IIRC the required in water minutes was 240+

 

[Dr. Doug Ebersole]

By IANTD standards, the MINIMUMS are 10 dives and 600 minutes of in-water time. When I teach CCR cave the course is a week and we always exceed those numbers.

 

[tbone1004]

TDI CCR Cavern-2 days/5 dives
TDI CCR Intro-2 days/4 dives
TDI CCR Full-4 days?/6 dives-Edit: somehow I missed that line in the standards. I was scratching my head because it seemed far too short.

Preferred plan for me If I was going Saturday-Sunday then Saturday is gear configuration, land drills/OW line work. Sunday/Mon/Tues/Wed is basically intro stuff learning lights out/air sharing/etc, all the fundamental stuff. Give Thurs as a recovery day to let everything set in and make any modifications to gear/land drills. Certify as "intro" and let them go do a fun dive if they want and reset, then Fri/Sat/Sun for full cave.

I don't think you should do that though personally, but that wasn't the question. Controversial, but I do think at least one full day should be done on open circuit to let them feel the tick-tock and give you some full dives to get a SAC rate since I think SAC swims are horsesh!t. Let them do a full dive and base their SAC rate on the whole dive not some 200ft calculated swim.

 

[Whitrzac]

My cavern/intro combo was 4 days, full cave was an additional 4 after that.

 

[rjack321]

Thanks @Dr. Doug Ebersole

Follow-up question... Is Eagle's Nest considered a suitable CCR Cave course site assuming the students already have trimix? Who negotiated that with FL Fish and Wildlife??

I asked about CCR cave - there is no cavern, intro, full, stage, etc which is why I asked.

 

[Whitrzac]

Thanks @Dr. Doug Ebersole

Follow-up question... Is Eagle's Nest considered a suitable CCR Cave course site assuming the students already have trimix? Who negotiated that with FL Fish and Wildlife??

I asked about CCR cave - there is no cavern, intro, full, stage, etc which is why I asked.

TDI has CCR cavern/intro cave classes.

All of my cave/tech training has been on CCR.

 

[rjack321]

TDI has CCR cavern/intro cave classes.

All of my cave/tech training has been on CCR.

Huh?
How or why would anyone do CCR cavern? What do you bring for BO a 40 and call it good? Assuming 130ft max total distance from the surface - or maybe that limit doesnt apply for CCR Cavern?

 

[Whitrzac]

Huh?
How or why would anyone do CCR cavern? What do you bring for BO a 40 and call it good? Assuming 130ft max total distance from the surface - or maybe that limit doesnt apply for CCR Cavern?

Its for those that havent/dont want to do OC cave stuff.

 

[tbone1004]

Thanks @Dr. Doug Ebersole

Follow-up question... Is Eagle's Nest considered a suitable CCR Cave course site assuming the students already have trimix? Who negotiated that with FL Fish and Wildlife??

I asked about CCR cave - there is no cavern, intro, full, stage, etc which is why I asked.

It is not with any agency that I am aware and not with NAUI. CCR Cave has to abide by the same depth limits as OC cave and while you can conduct trimix in the Nest with full cave divers, the reverse does not apply.

 

[rjack321]

It is not with any agency that I am aware and not with NAUI. CCR Cave has to abide by the same depth limits as OC cave and while you can conduct trimix in the Nest with full cave divers, the reverse does not apply.

Well at least some instructors are supposedly doing 6 day zero to hero cave CCR and either course dives or dives immediately afterwards in Eagle's - which seems to be a standards violation if not in practice than definitely in spirit.

If you're offered such "training" as a student, typically with copious amounts of flattery by the instructor, it's because your instructor is bored and would rather break standards than build your experience in a progressive manner. You've been shortchanged.

This is why we can't have nice things. Police your own, FL people.