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[dmaziuk]

Well, the skill was called the "Three Mile Swim", and my scuba instructor said the distance was 1.5 miles in either direction (he circled us the entire distance, in the comfort of a Jon Boat powered by an "ancient", anemic outboard), and the distance seemed (to me and the other "certies") to be at least 1.5 miles in either direction, and the TA's swimming (in snorkeling gear) alongside us seemed to agree with the 1.5 mile one-way distance.

The fastest mile in history is just over 14 minutes, in an 82F pool. Enquiring minds wonder how long the 3 miles took for a bunch of "regular" scuba divers in open water.

 

[rx7diver]

The fastest mile in history is just over 14 minutes, in an 82F pool. Enquiring minds wonder how long the 3 miles took for a bunch of "regular" scuba divers in open water.

It took quite a while--most of the afternoon and into the early evening, in fact. IIRC, our first "skill", upon our early afternoon arrival, was to configure our gear, get dressed (in full, 1/4" two-piece farmer John and shorty, booties, hood, and gloves) and do a formal weight check (in full gear, using a completely full cylinder and completely empty BC).

And then the three-mile swim commenced. Keep in mind, we weren't really swimming (we weren't using our arms); we were kicking (in fins), on the surface, the entire 1.5 mile distance (using full gear, full cylinder, and completely empty BC). At the 1.5 mile mark, we had arrived at a shallow cove, where buddies dropped each other's weight belt and orally inflated each other's BC (SP Stab Jacket), and then floated a brief while, resting, before deflating BC's and heading back.

The return trip took a bit longer since part of it involved a diver assisting (alternately pushing and towing) his/her "incapacitated" buddy, and then switching roles.

Upon return, we were all exhausted. We finished setting up camp while dinner was being prepared (this was primitive camping on a remote bluff overlooking Bull Shoals Lake AR), ate dinner, did dishes, debriefed, did log books, and then crashed.

When I did my open water (in May 1987), the course had already been running for many years. So, these open water checkouts had long been "settled." Usually there were a couple of these "local" open waters each summer. I actually participated in several more of these open waters subsequently, as a TA. IIRC, my last was in 1991, the summer before I finished my doctorate and left central MO for SE MI.

rx7diver

 

[dmaziuk]

It took quite a while--most of the afternoon and into the early evening.

Sounds about right. I'd say at least 2 hours for a strong swimmer without gear (wetsuit is a must for 70F or below), double-to-triple that for gear and drills. No wonder PADI doesn't do that for OW.

 

[rx7diver]

Sounds about right. I'd say at least 2 hours for a strong swimmer without gear (wetsuit is a must for 70F or below), double-to-triple that for gear and drills. No wonder PADI doesn't do that for OW.

One of the old students scanned his copy of the course manual. Here are the instructions for the three-Mile Swim. Looks like there was a time limit (3 hours)--although I wasn't aware of the time limit ever being an issue. And I had completely forgotten about the treading water part.

ETA: Note: No regulator is used for this skill. (Regulator is not mounted.)

rx7diver

 

[boulderjohn]

One of the old students scanned his copy of the course manual. Here are the instructions for the three-Mile Swim. Looks like there was a time limit (3 hours)--although I wasn't aware of the time limit ever being an issue. And I had completely forgotten about the treading water part.

ETA: Note: No regulator is used for this skill. (Regulator is not mounted.)

rx7diver

View attachment 861555

I confess that I have not been following this subplot carefully. I thought the contention was that the three mile swim was required by either NAUI, YMCA, or both. This looks as if it was a requirement added by the school. I have never heard of a 3-mile swim being required by any major agency.

 

[dmaziuk]

Phys. Ed. Dept, too: not just average Arts and Humanities weaklings.

 

[rx7diver]

Phys. Ed. Dept, too: not just average Arts and Humanities weaklings.

Ha! It was a course owned by the Phys Ed Department (College of Education). Almost all of the students taking the course were undergrads who were not PE majors. At the time of my course, there was a PE requirement for undergrad students. So, some undergrads took scuba, some took swimming for conditioning, some took tennis, some took archery, etc. I was a Statistics (College of A&S) PhD student looking for a distraction. My GF at the time, who had taken the course before we met, was a Finance MBA (College of Business) student when she took the course and a Finance PhD student when she suggested the course to me, no doubt tired of me whining about the lack of sailing opportunities in mid-MO. My later GF, who had taken the course before we met, majored in a College of Agriculture discipline.

rx7diver

 

[rx7diver]

... I thought the contention was that the three mile swim was required by either NAUI, YMCA, or both. ...

No, there was no "contention" of anything--at least not by me. In post #549 in this thread I responded to someone who was wondering about training in the old days. I described some of my training in my 1986 for-credit, university course that was designed by the instructor a long time before then, that was still taught, in 1986, using the instructor's long-used approach, an approach that predated the BC (although some of the skills had been "adjusted" when the horse collar BC appeared and then again when the SSJ became available). The instructor awarded a YMCA or NAUI or PADI certification--student's choice--if the student satisfied the requirements for the course (including the open water check-out portion).

rx7diver

 

[boulderjohn]

I responded to someone who was wondering about training in the old days. I described some of my training in my 1986 for-credit, university course

But, of course, people reading your explanation of what training was like in the old days would assume your experience was representative of training in general in the old days, not the work of one instructor in one college program.

 

[rx7diver]

But, of course, people reading your explanation of what training was like in the old days would assume your experience was representative of training in general in the old days, not the work of one instructor in one college program.

Are you so sure about this? For example, I've always assumed that different instructors trained students different ways in the old days. For example, I've always assumed that in the old days SoCal instructors, or PNW instructors, or Great Lakes instructors, or NE instructors, or FL instructors, etc., trained their open water students to dive local conditions, using different approaches than the approach used by one particular mid-MO professor teaching a university scuba course.

But maybe you're correct.

rx7diver