Claims made about ascending vertical vs horizontal

[TrimixToo]

I seem to have gotten lost on the way to the Pub, and ended up in a deli! But carry on...

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

At the end of the day...... I think that the majority of recreational divers don't really give a ratts ass as to who is vertical vs horizontal at safety stops or any other part of the dive........ as long as there is good, solid buoyancy control and we're all protecting the reef, are safe and having fun.

 

[Blackcrusader]

I agree on the fact that tissue off gassing may be very similar between horizontal and vertical. However horizontal trim is the right position for both descending and ascending so that you can easily break trim slightly either way to use propulsion in order to change position in the water column. It also makes it easier to watch your team and stay close to them. Even offgassing may be a nice (small) byproduct.

LOLZ I was on a dive with a diver that insisted on ascending in horizontal trim, never looking up. I was vertical. I had a great laugh when he ascended into the hull of a boat.

 

[Blackcrusader]

My belief is that the primary reason for horizontal trim during ascent/descent is the ability to manage position in the water column. Visibility and offgassing are secondary (or may even not exist).

Nonsense. You can manage your position in the water column in any position.

 

[Blackcrusader]

I'll never get why being perfectly horizontal while straining to put the back of your head on your ass on ascent or descent is important to folks. Maybe they just think it looks cool. I dunno. The only real advantages I can think of are:


2) Less surface area to catch any current.

You never dived in down or up currents then?

 

[lowwall]

I learned trim from seals and fish on the north coast.

This is why I love my crotch strap and 2 tank bands. Underwater aerobatics is fun, especially when your head isn't getting banged by your tank valve.

Barrel rolls, inside and outside loops, Immelmanns, inverted flight. And aileron rolls to really piss off the no hands purists.

 

[The Chairman]

Divers mocking divers... whodathunk? Why can't we dive and let dive?

The second post in this thread answered the question about the efficacy of off-gassing in either horizontal or vertical attitudes. It just doesn't matter.

Trim does matter for many of us. I dive in horizontal trim most of the time, unless I'm doing a safety stop in open water. Then I'm vertical and constantly rotating and watching for oncoming traffic. The closer to the surface, the faster I spin. Yah, I do a lot of listening too, as I don't want to be hit. Yah x2, I'll have a safety sausage deployed, but you just can't fix stupid, so I watch out for them as well.

 

[pauldw]

Yah, I do a lot of listening too, as I don't want to be hit.

Which brings us to...do ears work better in horizontal or vertical trim?

 

[yallerhon]

I (personally, for me) find it easier to control the majority of my ascent whilst in a horizontal position.

I change to a vertical position in the last 3-4 ish meters to help check for overhead hazards. It has worked well thus far diving in and around jetties, and with boats, jet-skis, swimmers and other divers in the area.

I'm not bothered by what other divers do as long as they're not hurting anyone.

 

[The Chairman]

I (personally, for me) find it easier to control the majority of my ascent whilst in a horizontal position.

I must admit that I often stay horizontal, because many can't. Wha??? Yeah, I'm a show-off at times. It's fun! I've even been known to be horizontal while prone (face up) and swimming within inches of the surface. I have had friends use my silhouette on t-shirts because they like how I look when I dive. Diving should be fun. I love the discipline of always being horizontal and find it as well as pinpoint buoyancy control to be a blast. Yah, mainly because most people haven't figured it all out yet and they are all over the place. I've even dove without the benefit of a bladder. It freaks some people out that I have better control than they do when I dive like that. I've been accused of moving without kicking too. It's all about my trim.

But then I love to be head down while peeking into a hole to see a Pedersen Shrimp or other creature. I still try not to move much. Kicking consumes air. Yah, I can be all over the place when the need is there, but usually I'm horizontal and in good trim because it saves air. I kick less which mean that I not only conserve air, but I don't scare the fishies either. Hint: if you're a gas hog, you need to convert to being horizontal and using a frog kick. Fold those hands together while you're at it. Excess movement consumes more air.

What I never do though, is to mock other divers. I had no skills at one point. I was a catastrophe under water and wish I had video from those first dives. I've been working on my skills for over fifty years now and thousands of dives. I'm also a caver, so being in trim is not optional for much of my diving. I'm not bragging when I say that few people possess my skills. Hell, I used to teach Scuba classes while completely horizontal, and my students were horizontal as hell. They even frog-kick like me. I would pass other classes kneeling in open water, and while I would point that out to my students, I wouldn't let them mock that instructor or students, even in private. We're all divers and as long as they aren't silting out the place, I have no big beef with them doing things differently. Dive and let dive.