OP
DIR Class: The Truth Comes Out
- Thread starter SeaJay
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Thanks for your answer Seajay, I am just truly glad that your "one last time" ended on a positive note. The point to my post was it only takes "one last time" to be the very last. Just because Training agencies don't enforce and sometimes encourage solo diving doesn't mean it's the safest way to dive .
Pug,
As I said I was being harsh. If Seajay's solo dive after his training was his last. What should we say, He did it doing something he loved? or He didn't follow his training....there have been a few cases, one just recently where they just had to dive"one more time" not following their training and never returned. I think it needs to be stressed DIR isn't a part time way of diving it's the whole package.
My tool box is always growing and I have been to the clue bar more than once.
Have a nice day
I hope your enjoyed your diving this weekend
DSAO
Pug,
As I said I was being harsh. If Seajay's solo dive after his training was his last. What should we say, He did it doing something he loved? or He didn't follow his training....there have been a few cases, one just recently where they just had to dive"one more time" not following their training and never returned. I think it needs to be stressed DIR isn't a part time way of diving it's the whole package.
My tool box is always growing and I have been to the clue bar more than once.
Have a nice day
I hope your enjoyed your diving this weekend
DSAO
You need more cachet to be harsh in a thread like this.
Yes, I did... thanks!
Two Saturday morning and then one Saturday evening... with a few more hooked up for the coming week.
ElectricZombie
Contributor
Nice writeup SeaJay...Sounds like you learned a lot and really improved.
I hope that GUE will have a DIRF class around here this summer for me to take.
I hope that GUE will have a DIRF class around here this summer for me to take.
detroit diver
Contributor
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SeaJay,
First of all, as many have said before me-that was an outstanding report, and your words allow us to create mental images to enjoy!
I must relay a Fundy experience that I had. Your writing brought back some powerful memories from my class.
I had a never-ending problem with valve drills. Whatever I did, however I tried, I could not reach my valves long enough to turn them off, or worse, not be able to turn them back on. We're talking many, many months of total frustration. My bouyancy was okay, my trim was okay, but I could not reach my valves.
So I'm floating at about 20 feet or so with my buddy Bill, and AG is about 10 feet in front of me signaling to start my valve drill.
I must tell you that at this point, I'm wearing a drysuit, and the inflator hose is not connected-they want students to feel how the suit should fit without pumping it full of air.
AG gives me the signal (which I've been dreading for months), I reach back, and NOTHING. I can't even get close. I try pulling my tanks up with my left hand, squirming, anything and everything that you can imagine. Nothing. I knew it was coming, but it really felt awful. AG gives me the hold signal. He then swims up and attaches the drysuit inflator, and adds some air while simultaneously dumping air from my wing. I can feel the squeeze on my left arm loosen slightly. Then he signals me to try it again.
I reach back, and, holy smokes, the valve lands squarely on my fingers! I was so shocked that I almost let go! I turned off the valve, turned it on, and then proceeded to do the center and left valves (I'm on doubles). It was the most exhilarating moment! I actually did my valve drills!
This may sound trivial to many of you, but to me this was a real stepping stone. I knew that without this drill mastered, my diving was going to be severely limited in terms of depth, and scope.
Thanks again for the great write-up.
Jack
First of all, as many have said before me-that was an outstanding report, and your words allow us to create mental images to enjoy!
I must relay a Fundy experience that I had. Your writing brought back some powerful memories from my class.
I had a never-ending problem with valve drills. Whatever I did, however I tried, I could not reach my valves long enough to turn them off, or worse, not be able to turn them back on. We're talking many, many months of total frustration. My bouyancy was okay, my trim was okay, but I could not reach my valves.
So I'm floating at about 20 feet or so with my buddy Bill, and AG is about 10 feet in front of me signaling to start my valve drill.
I must tell you that at this point, I'm wearing a drysuit, and the inflator hose is not connected-they want students to feel how the suit should fit without pumping it full of air.
AG gives me the signal (which I've been dreading for months), I reach back, and NOTHING. I can't even get close. I try pulling my tanks up with my left hand, squirming, anything and everything that you can imagine. Nothing. I knew it was coming, but it really felt awful. AG gives me the hold signal. He then swims up and attaches the drysuit inflator, and adds some air while simultaneously dumping air from my wing. I can feel the squeeze on my left arm loosen slightly. Then he signals me to try it again.
I reach back, and, holy smokes, the valve lands squarely on my fingers! I was so shocked that I almost let go! I turned off the valve, turned it on, and then proceeded to do the center and left valves (I'm on doubles). It was the most exhilarating moment! I actually did my valve drills!
This may sound trivial to many of you, but to me this was a real stepping stone. I knew that without this drill mastered, my diving was going to be severely limited in terms of depth, and scope.
Thanks again for the great write-up.
Jack
OP
SeaJay
Contributor
Great story, DD.
Sure feels great, doesn't it? At least I was able to get SOMETHING right.
Did you do like I did? I almost let out a yell of triumph when I was able to accomplish something.
I wasn't diving dry, though, so thank goodness... I haven't encountered that problem yet. I can't imagine having to deal with yet another issue.
Very interesting... So suit squeeze was preventing you from reaching your valves? I'm going to have to keep that in mind for when I'm there.
Too cool. What a great thing we have in this board... Sharing experiences and learning from each other... Good stuff!
Sure feels great, doesn't it? At least I was able to get SOMETHING right.
Did you do like I did? I almost let out a yell of triumph when I was able to accomplish something.
I wasn't diving dry, though, so thank goodness... I haven't encountered that problem yet. I can't imagine having to deal with yet another issue.
Very interesting... So suit squeeze was preventing you from reaching your valves? I'm going to have to keep that in mind for when I'm there.
Too cool. What a great thing we have in this board... Sharing experiences and learning from each other... Good stuff!
WJL
Contributor
I remember that day very well, Jack. We got out of the water feeling pretty happy that we got through our valve drills without looking like complete losers, although it was a lot easier for me diving a single tank than it was for you with the doubles.
The next day in class we got a real lesson in valve drills from Andrew. We were at 20 feet getting ready to practice s-drills when Jack's second stage on his primary started to leak air from the connection between the regulator and the hose. He went to his backup, then fiddled with his primary's second stage, giving it a twist to tighten it up. Well, as we learned later that was a mistake. The connection leaks that way if the o-ring is not seated correctly, and tightening the connection just makes the o-ring break completely. Which is exactly what happened. Bubbles everywhere. Jack shut down the valve to his primary, thereby demonstrating the utility of his newly-perfected valve manipulation skills. While he was doing that, I'm thinking our dive is toasted, because now we've only got three functioning second stages between us, and we're not going to be doing any conventional s-drills that way.
Andrew was watching over us, and took the situation in hand in a way I couldn't believe. I watched him shut down the valve to his own primary and isolator, while I'm wondering what's going on. Then he reached back a little further, and calmly removed his primary first stage from the manifold! He then went over to Jack, and replaced Jack's first stage with his. On we went with our dive. I couldn't believe it.
The more I thought about it, the more impressed I was. To be able to do that so easily, and it was easy, he had to have practiced it, oh I don't know, a few hundred times. It's one thing to have perfected your ability to do a "normal" valve drill for doubles. Removing and replacing your first stage regulator, behind your head, under water, is taking valve drills to a whole new level. The level of skill and commitment these guys have, to think through, practice and perfect dealing with issues I never even thought of, is amazing to me.
The next day in class we got a real lesson in valve drills from Andrew. We were at 20 feet getting ready to practice s-drills when Jack's second stage on his primary started to leak air from the connection between the regulator and the hose. He went to his backup, then fiddled with his primary's second stage, giving it a twist to tighten it up. Well, as we learned later that was a mistake. The connection leaks that way if the o-ring is not seated correctly, and tightening the connection just makes the o-ring break completely. Which is exactly what happened. Bubbles everywhere. Jack shut down the valve to his primary, thereby demonstrating the utility of his newly-perfected valve manipulation skills. While he was doing that, I'm thinking our dive is toasted, because now we've only got three functioning second stages between us, and we're not going to be doing any conventional s-drills that way.
Andrew was watching over us, and took the situation in hand in a way I couldn't believe. I watched him shut down the valve to his own primary and isolator, while I'm wondering what's going on. Then he reached back a little further, and calmly removed his primary first stage from the manifold! He then went over to Jack, and replaced Jack's first stage with his. On we went with our dive. I couldn't believe it.
The more I thought about it, the more impressed I was. To be able to do that so easily, and it was easy, he had to have practiced it, oh I don't know, a few hundred times. It's one thing to have perfected your ability to do a "normal" valve drill for doubles. Removing and replacing your first stage regulator, behind your head, under water, is taking valve drills to a whole new level. The level of skill and commitment these guys have, to think through, practice and perfect dealing with issues I never even thought of, is amazing to me.
...to Rec2Tek for my harshness a few posts back.
OP
SeaJay
Contributor
...Thereby demonstrating why DIR encourages the use of doubles over singles.
Of course, DIR does not, despite popular concensus on the Internet, demand that you use doubles. You can still dive singles and be DIR. However, GUE, and hence DIR, recommends the use of doubles... Especially in overhead environments, including any sort of penetration or in deco diving.
I saw an interesting rig while I was there that I'd heard about before, but never seen in person. The contraption is called a "Y" valve.
This valve was for single tank diving, but had two separate posts on it. In effect, it was a pair of valves manifolded together and miniaturized, but with one stem for a single tank.
The idea was to use one of the valves for your primary, and one of the valves for your secondary air source. Thus, if you had a freeflowing second stage (whichever one) or if you had a hose or connection failure, you could effectively shut down one or the other and prevent the loss of all of your air.
I'm not sure how it would work if you had a situation where the failing regulator was on the same post as the one hooked up to your BC's inflator hose. I imagine that the chances of that happening are only half of the chances of having a failure to begin with, which is slim, but does happen.
However, we were taught how to handle even that situation too. Firstly, at that time you're likely to abort the dive anyway... Meaning that you'd be on your way up anyway. If that's the case, then of course you'd be dumping air anyway... Not adding it. Also, since they teach such excellent buoyancy, you'd likely already be completely neutral, so it wouldn't be a big deal.
Even more interesting is this: Assuming that you had a reg failure that's connected to the same post as your inflator valve, you'd shut it off and use the other regulator, of course. Then if you did need to add air, you'd simply use the oral inflator on the end of your inflator hose. Simple. Of course, we were taught that one, too.
The point is that there was yet another situation addressed which non-GUE agencies do not address. They encourage doubles, but if you prefer to still dive a single, then there was a correct way to do that too.
Of course, the real safety factor was that your buddy carries a real, usable secondary air source anyway.
Simply awesome. Makes you wonder about "normal" gear, doesn't it?
Of course, DIR does not, despite popular concensus on the Internet, demand that you use doubles. You can still dive singles and be DIR. However, GUE, and hence DIR, recommends the use of doubles... Especially in overhead environments, including any sort of penetration or in deco diving.
I saw an interesting rig while I was there that I'd heard about before, but never seen in person. The contraption is called a "Y" valve.
This valve was for single tank diving, but had two separate posts on it. In effect, it was a pair of valves manifolded together and miniaturized, but with one stem for a single tank.
The idea was to use one of the valves for your primary, and one of the valves for your secondary air source. Thus, if you had a freeflowing second stage (whichever one) or if you had a hose or connection failure, you could effectively shut down one or the other and prevent the loss of all of your air.
I'm not sure how it would work if you had a situation where the failing regulator was on the same post as the one hooked up to your BC's inflator hose. I imagine that the chances of that happening are only half of the chances of having a failure to begin with, which is slim, but does happen.
However, we were taught how to handle even that situation too. Firstly, at that time you're likely to abort the dive anyway... Meaning that you'd be on your way up anyway. If that's the case, then of course you'd be dumping air anyway... Not adding it. Also, since they teach such excellent buoyancy, you'd likely already be completely neutral, so it wouldn't be a big deal.
Even more interesting is this: Assuming that you had a reg failure that's connected to the same post as your inflator valve, you'd shut it off and use the other regulator, of course. Then if you did need to add air, you'd simply use the oral inflator on the end of your inflator hose. Simple. Of course, we were taught that one, too.
The point is that there was yet another situation addressed which non-GUE agencies do not address. They encourage doubles, but if you prefer to still dive a single, then there was a correct way to do that too.
Of course, the real safety factor was that your buddy carries a real, usable secondary air source anyway.
Simply awesome. Makes you wonder about "normal" gear, doesn't it?
MSP Rescue Diver
Contributor
Jack - was the purpose of this exercise to show you the how difficult it would be to operate underwater when all your equipment is not working properly, or did it show you your suit didn't fit you properly?
I can understand how happy you would feel when everything was corrected and you were able to complete your drill.
Marc
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