DIR controversy?

[MXGratefulDiver]

I think people who denigrate you for any reason feel insecure about themselves.

I think you're right ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Cacia]

Redhead oh, no.

 

[grazie42]

lol

 

[Thalassamania]

if you need a particular fin to get across the surf zone safely then that's the right one for the job.

<G> It’s not a question of need, it’s one of like.

It sounds like you've got different conditions where you may care a lot more about that surf entry than you do about the ability to back-kick.
Same basically goes for river diving. I wouldn't do that, personally. Obviously you're going to need to optimize for thrust on those, and not for your back-kick

On the Northern California coast handling the surf in an optimum fashion is as important an not silting up the cave in Florida. Same goes for rivers

That kind of diving seems like edge cases to me.

Of marginal interest to anyone but me. I know of few other river divers (I just like to look for old, old bottles). I have no need to find the one exception that invalidates the mantra. Just trying to keep everybody’s (including my own) mind open.

So, what you've found are the edges of where DIR diving isn't the answer to everything.

At this stage in my diving career it is at the edges that I fine tune, the core is fairly set and it would take a major epiphany to make much change. Nothing is the answer to everything and I surely have the answers to just a few things. Well ... more often I have a long list of what did not work rather than the answer to the question of, "what does work?"
I mean no disrespect to the whippersnappers and the grasshoppers out there, they are what push things forward, but on the other hand, I’ve got fins with at leat two orders of magnitude more diving experience than most divers (though I expect that the divers have learned more than the fins have<G>). I am a bit fanatical about the gear I use and it sometimes takes me ten to twenty pool sessions before I willing to take a new item out into the ocean.

BTW: I grock dynamic instability as a concept. How exactly does this relate to the foam vs. shell drysuit question and what's the story with underwear selection?

 

[djanni]

... and so you take the actions of a couple of strangers and apply them to an entire class of people ... based on what?

If we applied that logic to other aspects of life, we'd be going around hating everybody ... because no matter what you do or how you choose to do it, you will be sharing your choices with a few jerky people.

Why not try judging people based on how they treat you ... rather than on how someone else did?

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Those were personal experiences which coupled with statements by people here on the board have created the impressions I have. I would like to point out that it's only a handful of people who always speak out in defense of DIR and a somewhat higher number who constantly promote bp/w. Of that group only a small percentage fit the type individual I refer to.

I haven't judged you or anyone else. Maybe you should read my posts again. I do speak up (speak out) when I see people imposing their beliefs and/or ideologies on other people. Especially people who are new to diving. I'm pretty sure I've never commented negatively about anything you've ever posted. Not doing so doesn't mean I thought you were right in all cases. It's because you are usually thoughtful, respectful and not prone to being evangelical. You are not one who talks down to people.

Note however, that you passed judgement on me in your comments above.

I don't think you'll ever find a word I've written that speaks against a bp/w or DIR. Yet you'll find several where I challange people to support or clearify what they are telling someone else. Know, what? They rarely clearify it but they often accuse me of something.

 

[lamont]

BTW: I grock dynamic instability as a concept. How exactly does this relate to the foam vs. shell drysuit question and what's the story with underwear selection?

neoprene drysuits compress at depth just like neoprene wetsuits, so you get dynamic instability from that as you lose buoyancy as you descend. same thing goes for thick fleece vs. thinsulate. probably doesn't matter as much at the 200g/55F level, but when you start talking about insulation that you need for 45F or colder water the thinsulate you need at those temperature should be less buoyant and less compressable than the comparable amount of fleece that you would need. thinsulate is also better at retaining body heat when flooded or wet (for example, this weekend i found i had a crotch leak in 48 degree water on a 60 minute dive -- didn't really notice during the dive though).

 

[*Floater*]

in my diving, i agree with JJ. diving with the same stuff all the time makes me
enormously confortable in the water. i don't have any need to change stuff.

when would you change stuff?

I have a pair of force fins I haven't tried yet. The reason I haven't sold them either is because they are small and light and seem like a they would be a good idea if I need to travel light. The XL jets are on the big and heavy side. Also, I'm just curious to try them out and I think sometimes it's good to try different gear just to see how it compares to your current gear. If not, then I'd still be diving my split fins.

 

[bjpell]

This thread is in the wrong spot. People who find “ScubaBoard” and are considering diving, are hopefully reading this section. This thread should have been moved at post #1 to the appropriate location.

Nothing but negative talk and weenie size comparing going on here with all this quoting what others say and firing it back at em.:huh: This thread is full of frustrated, upset, scuba boarders. Why? Because they aren’t doing what we all wish we were doing right now. DIVING!eyebrow

I vote to have this thread moved....

 

[TheRedHead]

Jeff told me that diving with Force Fins would make me look like a dork and that would violate Rule #6. But you can do the kicks in them...

 

[JeffG]

Jeff told me that diving with Force Fins would make me look like a dork and that would violate Rule #6. But you can do the kicks in them...

Makes a diver look like Donald Duck