DIR and Smoking (Split from DIR Fin thread)

[H2Andy]

it's still CO-containing smoke that's getting inhaled.

lol... better not walk around in a big city then

(dang it... all this talk about smoke is making me crave a cigarette... i
last smoked one year, six months, and seventeen days ago)

 

[jonnythan]

lol... better not walk around in a big city then

Many cities and states have laws banning smoking in restaurants, public buildings, etc. It's not so hard to avoid smoke these days.

What a silly argument you're making anyway. If you're trying to say that cigar smoking is not smkoing because you don't inhale through the mouth, then you're crazy. If you're just trying to be a pain.. well, that's understandable

 

[H2Andy]

Many cities and states have laws banning smoking in restaurants,
public buildings, etc. It's not so hard to avoid smoke these days.

hehehe... i meant the CO and worse in internal combustion engine exhaust

and yes, there is a marked difference between smoking 20+ cigarettes a day
and having a cigar at a cigar bar or whatever, which is what i assume these
"instructors" are doing

heck, if i wasn't an addict, i'd probably enjoy a cigar or two myself every now
and then, and i wouldn't worry about the effects it had on my diving, if any

(but that is why i am not DIR . . . i am not *that* much into purist diving...
which has its place, and i applaud it ... it's just not for me)

 

[Azza]

so since you don't inhale cigars, maybe that's ok?

just a guess

Thats what I am getting at Andy. See I smoke a cigar every now and then, but I would like to take dirf to see what all the fuss is about, however if I am a cigar smoker, then I can't.
I realise that nicotine does affect the heart but with cigars one doesnt get anywhere near as amount of nicotine as a cigerette smoker gets, and if its been a decent surface interval (like with me maybe a few weeks) then it shouldnt affect ones diving...

 

[jonnythan]

hehehe... i meant the CO and worse in internal combustion engine exhaust

and yes, there is a marked difference between smoking 20+ cigarettes a day
and having a cigar at a cigar bar or whatever, which is what i assume these
"instructors" are doing

Well, to take your comment seriously, obviously air pollution in our cities is a problem. However, breathing while at home isn't really a choice one can make.. lighting up a cigar or cigarette however is, and doing things willfully that may increase your chances of complications on dives is not doing it right.

As for the occasional cigar, those aren't usually an addictive habit and I doubt if any GUE instructors are having several a day and in between dives. I doubt if the occasional cigar has any measurable impact on anything relating to diving.

 

[jonnythan]

Azza, I know that some cigarette smokers have taken DIRF.. they just haven't lit up during the class. I think it's probably less of an issue for DIRF than, say, a deco class.

 

[headhunter]

And no one is inhaling the completely unfiltered smoke coming off the end of the thing?

It's still smoking. How much GUE instructors care I'm not sure, but it's still CO-containing smoke that's getting inhaled.

At this point, even "non-smokers" that are in the vicinity of smokers have now become smokers.

I'm only guessing, but believe that GUE's rule of not smoking would include anything that you do to yourself. I'm guessing that this would include the second hand smoke that you inhale from your own cigar.

On the otherhand, I don't imagine that it would be a problem for someone to smoke a cigar on a special occasion. (I'm only thinking about a few a year and not before you know you're going to be diving.) I'd think that kind of moderation would probably qualify you as a non-smoker. I like an occasional cigar, but haven't actually smoked one for about 2 years, so I consider myself a non-smoker. If I have one every year or 2, I figure that this is doing less to my lungs than living in the L.A. area.

I believe that GUE's philosophy is more concerned with members making healthy lifestyle choices in general than finding out if someone smokes a cigar once in a blue moon. This would most likely also involve proper diet and excercise in addition to not smoking. If you don't smoke, but are extremely obese and do absolutely nothing for exercise, I'm sure that this would also weed you out. You most likely won't be able to pass the fitness test or get the OK from a doctor upon filling out your medical forums.

In my opinion, it's all about making reasonable choices based on the activity that you are choosing to undertake.

Christian

 

[jonnythan]

Ding ding ding..

 

[California Diver]

ive seen plenty of dudes that are gue trained smoking... its really none of their business if you smoke or not but my guess would be some of the more hardcore instructors would not like you smoking while hanging out around the class. plus smoking next to o2 bottles probably isnt the best decision anyway.

 

[Dan Gibson]

That probably indicates they lied on their class application.

It is their business while you are in their class. It's their butt on the line should something happen to you during the class.

I know that at least one student has been caught and failed a cave class because of this lie. This student tried to conceal a nicotine patch with a bandaid during the class and got nailed.

ive seen plenty of dudes that are gue trained smoking... its really none of their business if you smoke or not but my guess would be some of the more hardcore instructors would not like you smoking while hanging out around the class. plus smoking next to o2 bottles probably isnt the best decision anyway.