Did your OW course prepare you to dive?

[Dormant]

I am planning to return to diving after a long layoff. I thought my OW class as a teenager prepared me enough to do the dives I wanted to do at the time.

 

[scubadada]

I am planning to return to diving after a long layoff. I thought my OW class as a teenager prepared me enough to do the dives I wanted to do at the time.

How about now?

 

[Dormant]

I will let you know after I do the refresher. My dive plans are pretty innocuous.

 

[Gandalf-the-Diver]

Younger folks feel more immortal than older folks.

I got my OW, 11 days before my 59th b-day. I had wanted to get it since I was a teenager in the 70s, when I did a snorkling course; and the class had a scuba instructor take each one of us down to the bottom of the pool, and buddy breath. After my OW, I was keen to dive, with anyone, even other new divers. I felt totally comfortable diving with anyone. I also carried a 13cu pony as a redundant air source, which gave me piece of mind.


I am also shore diving, 2- 4 times a week, at the southern end of Vancouver Island; dry-suit territory.

 

[Chavodel8en]

Yes, I felt my OW prepared my to dive unsupervised. I still had alot to improve, but I wouldnt kill myself.

Immediately after OW, most of my dives were with a dive club sponsored by the shop I certified with, so there was some level of mentoring. However, 2 dives after OW, I went on a trip to Key Largo and did dives with a shop that did not put a DM in the water.

 

[Bigbella]

Did your OW course prepare you to dive?

Yeah, I initially went through the late-lamented YMCA program, which was rigorous and covered quite a bit of material; and our written tests seemed more challenging than those a friend of mine took, at about the same time, through NAUI.

That same Summer, I must have logged close to one hundred dives -- a good number of which, wound up being solo . . .

 

[Ron Robertson]

I am curious about people's perception of their own skills and readiness to dive when they finished their open water course.

At the end of the class did you feel like you had the knowledge, skills and abilities to safely complete a dive with a equally skilled buddy? For this question, lets say you were going to basically repeat your last training dive, but with an equally skilled buddy instead of an instructor. Did you feel like you needed a Dive master or similar person with advanced training in order to get in the water? What would have made a difference in this perception for you (i.e. more or different skills, more training time in the water, just more dives, etc?).

Do you feel that with your current knowledge, skills and abilities you could conduct a dive equivalent to your training dives with an equally skilled buddy?

When I "graduated" from my OW, I was worried about finding buddies. My instructor was upset I believe because he had 5 other divers finishing up their training as on our final day. I had to opt out the first day d/t equalization issues so I was behind a day.

I have poor eyesight and I couldn't see his hand signals or slate in the murky water while the 7 of us were resting on the platform. He shouted underwater and I couldn't understand him. He then ushered me over to look while the newer divers went through the submerged bus. He was friendly when we got out, he was laughing because I pulled him to the shore while he was signaling me the up/down open palm to slow down and I didn't get it (probably because I thought he was angry I was nervous), he was laughing though when we surfaced telling me that I pulled him all the way. He then suggested I find someone to help me in the future and offer them a tip. The frosting was when I we did some dives after being certified that afternoon. The guy I went with was someone who had returned because he didn't get certified previously d/t some issues with his level of anxiety or inability to follow directions (not sure), but when I dove alone with him he disappeared and I thought he hadn't come along yet so I stayed put. My instructor came along about 5 min. later signaled me to surface. He reminded me that I should have surface after 1 min. (I've never forgot that lesson since then!

I hesitated going back their as I didn't think anyone would want to dive with me. He (my instructor) had suggested I give whoever I dove with $5 or $10 when I dove in the future.

My next dive was in a caldera. I thought I could go with a buddy but the instructor took me (might not have been anyone available). Good experience.

The Bahamas, on a cruise. My dive buddy raced ahead and I ended up walking out onto the beach with an older guy who looked like Michael Landon on his cert card. Nice day!

I think that I thought I was ready to dive with a buddy after being certified, but was worried about finding one. Now though the more I dive the more I realize how much I have to learn. I am glad I started diving. I wish I had done it 30 years previous. I wish I had gone more often since my cert in 2012. I am making up for it now. I did enjoy Hawaii last year! Thanks to the community here. I will be coming back often to learn.

 

[azstinger11]

As instructor candidate, this thread is.... enlightening and terrifying lol

 

[kaylee_ann]

When I "graduated" from my OW, I was worried about finding buddies. My instructor was upset I believe because he had 5 other divers finishing up their training as on our final day. I had to opt out the first day d/t equalization issues so I was behind a day.

I have poor eyesight and I couldn't see his hand signals or slate in the murky water while the 7 of us were resting on the platform. He shouted underwater and I couldn't understand him. He then ushered me over to look while the newer divers went through the submerged bus. He was friendly when we got out, he was laughing because I pulled him to the shore while he was signaling me the up/down open palm to slow down and I didn't get it (probably because I thought he was angry I was nervous), he was laughing though when we surfaced telling me that I pulled him all the way. He then suggested I find someone to help me in the future and offer them a tip. The frosting was when I we did some dives after being certified that afternoon. The guy I went with was someone who had returned because he didn't get certified previously d/t some issues with his level of anxiety or inability to follow directions (not sure), but when I dove alone with him he disappeared and I thought he hadn't come along yet so I stayed put. My instructor came along about 5 min. later signaled me to surface. He reminded me that I should have surface after 1 min. (I've never forgot that lesson since then!

I hesitated going back their as I didn't think anyone would want to dive with me. He (my instructor) had suggested I give whoever I dove with $5 or $10 when I dove in the future.

My next dive was in a caldera. I thought I could go with a buddy but the instructor took me (might not have been anyone available). Good experience.

The Bahamas, on a cruise. My dive buddy raced ahead and I ended up walking out onto the beach with an older guy who looked like Michael Landon on his cert card. Nice day!

I think that I thought I was ready to dive with a buddy after being certified, but was worried about finding one. Now though the more I dive the more I realize how much I have to learn. I am glad I started diving. I wish I had done it 30 years previous. I wish I had gone more often since my cert in 2012. I am making up for it now. I did enjoy Hawaii last year! Thanks to the community here. I will be coming back often to learn.

was he saying any dive buddy you have, you should pay them to dive with you? or a divemaster/instructor? if it's the former, and you're just diving, that sounds pretty insulting....

 

[kinoons]

I felt pretty well prepared. Fortunately a good friend of mine was a dive instructor and she only took one or two students at a time so it was just her and I. We worked on lots of things beyond just checking boxes.