So, I had my two days of confined water training this weekend, and firstly I have to say what an absolute blast it was. Once I got past some slight nerves and anxiety the first 5 minutes, I didn't want to come up. I cannot wait to get certified in open water this summer. Seeing as ya'll like to discuss and talk about things here, I figured I'd join in and review my experience.
First, I'll start with the equipment, because it's the first thing you touch and have to deal with. I'm a big guy, tall and large. Before I signed up for classes I went into the shop and asked if they had equipment to comfortably fit me. The guy said "Yeah, for sure, not a problem. We've certified bigger guys!". That eased my anxiety, right until the first day of classes I show up to the shop and the guy tosses me a bunch of gear that doesn't really fit. They went back and looked for a different one and finally found one that I could make work, but I wouldn't call it a good fit, all buckled up it felt like having someone sit on my chest. No big deal, I've dealt with ill fitting equipment my whole life, I can get through this.
At the pool, instructors told us to assemble our kits, not a problem. Whipped it all together, tossed it in the pool, and leaks... Everything was leaking. Tank O-ring was leaking, 2nd stage secondary was leaking, LPI hose fitting was leaking on the BCD. Notified the instructor, he say's he'll grab some backups. I rig up the backup tank and octo, and wouldn't you know it, the new tank and octo leak worse than the first ones! Okay, no big deal, I ask for the old ones back and I'll monitor my air a bit more often. After about 10mins the primary secondary started fluttering and was way harder to breathe from than my backup secondary, so I switched to my backup for the remainder of the classes. I think this whole situation just encouraged me to never rent gear ever.
The pool had anywhere between 10-20 people in it, and it was a 25m pool, not olympic. Everyone was bumping into everyone, people descending on people in the deep end. There was 1 instructor per 4 students, but it didn't feel like it for the amount of people in the pool. Every skill we ran through was briefly displayed before we had to display the skill. The 30minute mini dive was closer to 3 laps around the pool before the instructor thumbed us up. My partner and I weren't screwing around, so were made sure we did our drills together and made sure we didn't gloss past em.
The instructors were very kind and encouraging, I do not fault them for class size, I feel they handled it to the best of their capabilities. The equipment also wasn't their fault. They made sure the class was fun and light hearted while being serious about safety as best they could.
My biggest observation, people are panicky animals when even slightly uncomfortable. Swimming and diving isn't the most popular where I am from, so I can see a lot of people not being even remotely close to being underwater, but I underestimated. I saw people rip their regs out of their mouth (assuming cause they coughed on some water) and bolt to the surface. I saw people claw and grab at other peoples gear when they seemingly had no reason to be panicked. Two people could not complete the full mask flood / clear, and one guy panicked so bad he wound up kicking the instructor. Was any of that comfortable, no, but I never once felt like I was in danger or in a pickle I couldn't get myself out of. As long as I kept the reg in my mouth and breathed, I was going to be fine. Knowing that helped me from ever panicking.
Overall, it was a blast. I had a ton of fun just in the pool, and I can't wait to actually get certified and start exploring. I feel like my instructors did the very best they could with what they had, and they probably didn't expect such a large volume of people on that weekend. As for the gear, I am deceptively bigger than I look, so I forgive them for assuming they had gear that'd be comfortable. I do not expect them to buy a brand new bcd and wetsuit just for me, I'll work with what they have then buy my own. I understand the safety of properly fitting gear, I wouldn't have bothered getting wet if I didn't think the equipment was at least safe. Hopefully that kit gets serviced a little more often.
It's really been a great experience with this place, and I hope my post didn't come off as all negative. The place has communicated excellent, they took a lot of time to explain to me fitment of mask and fins and helped me pick out a pair that fit me well, and at a price point I could afford. Two instructors I was talking to after the lessons gave me their phone #s and told me to call whenever if I have questions about anything. Everyone has been beyond friendly.
First, I'll start with the equipment, because it's the first thing you touch and have to deal with. I'm a big guy, tall and large. Before I signed up for classes I went into the shop and asked if they had equipment to comfortably fit me. The guy said "Yeah, for sure, not a problem. We've certified bigger guys!". That eased my anxiety, right until the first day of classes I show up to the shop and the guy tosses me a bunch of gear that doesn't really fit. They went back and looked for a different one and finally found one that I could make work, but I wouldn't call it a good fit, all buckled up it felt like having someone sit on my chest. No big deal, I've dealt with ill fitting equipment my whole life, I can get through this.
At the pool, instructors told us to assemble our kits, not a problem. Whipped it all together, tossed it in the pool, and leaks... Everything was leaking. Tank O-ring was leaking, 2nd stage secondary was leaking, LPI hose fitting was leaking on the BCD. Notified the instructor, he say's he'll grab some backups. I rig up the backup tank and octo, and wouldn't you know it, the new tank and octo leak worse than the first ones! Okay, no big deal, I ask for the old ones back and I'll monitor my air a bit more often. After about 10mins the primary secondary started fluttering and was way harder to breathe from than my backup secondary, so I switched to my backup for the remainder of the classes. I think this whole situation just encouraged me to never rent gear ever.
The pool had anywhere between 10-20 people in it, and it was a 25m pool, not olympic. Everyone was bumping into everyone, people descending on people in the deep end. There was 1 instructor per 4 students, but it didn't feel like it for the amount of people in the pool. Every skill we ran through was briefly displayed before we had to display the skill. The 30minute mini dive was closer to 3 laps around the pool before the instructor thumbed us up. My partner and I weren't screwing around, so were made sure we did our drills together and made sure we didn't gloss past em.
The instructors were very kind and encouraging, I do not fault them for class size, I feel they handled it to the best of their capabilities. The equipment also wasn't their fault. They made sure the class was fun and light hearted while being serious about safety as best they could.
My biggest observation, people are panicky animals when even slightly uncomfortable. Swimming and diving isn't the most popular where I am from, so I can see a lot of people not being even remotely close to being underwater, but I underestimated. I saw people rip their regs out of their mouth (assuming cause they coughed on some water) and bolt to the surface. I saw people claw and grab at other peoples gear when they seemingly had no reason to be panicked. Two people could not complete the full mask flood / clear, and one guy panicked so bad he wound up kicking the instructor. Was any of that comfortable, no, but I never once felt like I was in danger or in a pickle I couldn't get myself out of. As long as I kept the reg in my mouth and breathed, I was going to be fine. Knowing that helped me from ever panicking.
Overall, it was a blast. I had a ton of fun just in the pool, and I can't wait to actually get certified and start exploring. I feel like my instructors did the very best they could with what they had, and they probably didn't expect such a large volume of people on that weekend. As for the gear, I am deceptively bigger than I look, so I forgive them for assuming they had gear that'd be comfortable. I do not expect them to buy a brand new bcd and wetsuit just for me, I'll work with what they have then buy my own. I understand the safety of properly fitting gear, I wouldn't have bothered getting wet if I didn't think the equipment was at least safe. Hopefully that kit gets serviced a little more often.
It's really been a great experience with this place, and I hope my post didn't come off as all negative. The place has communicated excellent, they took a lot of time to explain to me fitment of mask and fins and helped me pick out a pair that fit me well, and at a price point I could afford. Two instructors I was talking to after the lessons gave me their phone #s and told me to call whenever if I have questions about anything. Everyone has been beyond friendly.
