Dilemma

[Jedi]

I'm recently certified and want to continue to practice my skills. Problem is, my dive buddy of choice (best friend) is "shored" from diving unless he can make a cell phone work underwater (wife is 8 mos pregnant).

I've got three options:
1) Wait and dive in January when he would be first available
2) Diving solo in 20' to practice skills
3) Show up at CSSP on the hope that I can find a stranger sensitive to my plight.

Skill wise, I know I'm not an expert, hence the desire to get some practice and just time underwater. During my class, and I am really trying not to make this sound conceited or like a braggart, but the feedback that I got from everyone in authority was that I could dive with them anytime as I took to scuba like a fish to water.

Solo is risky even in a pool, but I don't have access to one more than 5 feet deep.

Is this a common issue among divers? I want to dive so bad and do the things that I got certified to do, but I don't like being forced to sit at home twiddling my thumbs waiting on someone else.

And this is not something personal, but I don't know anyone well enough to trust with my life. I wouldn't be surprised if the knife cuts the other way as well as to how willing somone else would feel about trusting me.

As you can see....it's a dilemma.

 

[Uncle Pug]

It is a very common dilemma... no doubt one that a fair percentage of the divers who certified through the same shop you did will experience at one time or another... perhaps even some from your class.

Check with your local dive shop and see if there are any other buddyless divers from recent classes. If it is someone else very new you can both practice safe diving together at a shallow site.

While you are there tell them you are going to take them up on the offer to let you dive with them anytime.

 

[scubablue67]

Jedi,
I'm at CSSP 2 or 3 Sundays a month. If I'm not with a class I'd be glad to dive with you. Our shop has folks join us all the time to get wet or stay current. Another option is to take a Peak Performance Buoyancy class to really hone your skills. The class can be briefed at the lake and is pretty cheap.

 

[Texass]

TruckDiver and I meet at CSSP just about every Saturday morning, except when he slums in Cozumel. There are a lot of board members who frequently dive the local quarries.

8-9am by the covered tables on the West bank. I drive a silver Malibu, TD has a red Cherokee. We may not be sensitive, but we don't bite that hard.

 

[RICHinNC]

why not a pool...i know it aint cool.....but you said practice skills...they can be done in a pool

 

[Jedi]

On the pool, I don't have access to one that is more than 4 or 5 feet deep. I just can't effectively practice hovering in that shallow of water.

Thanks for the PM's, this is evidently not that big of an issue. Maybe I should just chnage my screenname to Remora.

 

[TwoBitTxn]

As I am sure you have figured out by now, Let the board know that you are going or when you want to go to CSSP and someone will probably be there.

TwoBit

 

[baitedstorm]

Jedi,
I'm at CSSP 2 or 3 Sundays a month. If I'm not with a class I'd be glad to dive with you. Our shop has folks join us all the time to get wet or stay current. Another option is to take a Peak Performance Buoyancy class to really hone your skills. The class can be briefed at the lake and is pretty cheap.

WooHooo! ScubaBoard at It's finest!!!!! Talk about networking, gotta love this place! :dazzler1:

 

[TruckDiver]

.

And this is not something personal, but I don't know anyone well enough to trust with my life. I wouldn't be surprised if the knife cuts the other way as well as to how willing somone else would feel about trusting me.

As you can see....it's a dilemma.

True statement, I guess you'd just have to come out, take a look at how we dive and make your own decision about trust. This is something all of us have had to do when do the first time we dove with someone. It'll happen over and over again as you dive with different folks in different places.
I don't know if I'd call finding folks I'm comfortable diving with a skill, but it sure does make the experience alot more enjoyable!

 

[Firefyter]

There are lots of us in the same boat as you. I usually have to find some of the folks here out at CSSP in order to get to dive, since my wife and I rarely have time off together. I haven't had the pleasure of diving with Truckdriver, but if you get the chance to dive with Texass, I can almost guarantee you'll learn something. He's a good guy, with skill and ease in the water. I've dove with Texass, sealskin98, Scubajana, ScubaTexan, and rkr3000, all out at CSSP. sealskin was the only one I knew before I got there, and we had never dove together. I'm honored to be in the same puddle of water as these folks, and look forward to the next time I get to do it. Take the chance and meet some of these folks out there, it will definitely be worth your trip.