DIR... what is it, or who are they???

[The Chairman]

Hey ALl,

I am just a lowly PADI Dive Master, who has never encountered the term "DIR". I have read that some refer to it as a religion, and some hold it in contempt. What do the letters stand for, and how do I go about researching this group?

Pete from Orlando...

 

[Atomox]

http://www.wkpp.org/

http://www.cisatlantic.com/trimix/

 

[Aegir]

DIR = Doing It Right

here is an example of someones DIR kit which invloves breathing your primary regulator with a 5-7 ft hose. The primary is the regulator you give up in an OAE( Out of Air Emergency)

f_view.jpg

r_side.jpg

l_side.jpg

first_s.jpg

Long hose config

check these links out to learn more:
http://www.sfdj.com/fall/mee.html
http://www.gasdiving.co.uk/
http://www.wkpp.org/articles/Gear/newgeorge.html


Hope this helps a little.

 

[The Chairman]

Hey Atomix, Aegir, & all,

Thanks for the references, I will have a look at them. They explain a lot of the biases I have seen on the board, but thats OK. BTW, niether one of you spoke either for them or against them, or was I supposed to read between the lines... (grin).

Pete from Orlando...

 

[Greg G.]

The contempt towards DIR is a direct result of the ones who view it as a fundamentalist type of religion, i.e. a narrow, unflexable, in your face, holier-than-thou approach to dive gear configuration. 99 and 44/100% of those who thumb their nose at DIR (including myself) couldn't care less what gear you use or how it's configured, it's the arrogant attitudes that turn people off. I put it on the same level as the PADI v NAUI v SSI v et al, ad naseum, type of debates. Use what ever gear you like and can afford, configure in a way that works for you, then go have fun.

 

[Iguana Don]

NetDoc,

Read the material, read it thoroughly and then make your decision, pure and simple. It's not for everybody, it takes hard work, dicipline and a different attitude toward diving other than the recreational mentality. DIR is a standardized system in a sport where standardization is not the norm. Don't ask me why people have a contempt for it. If they don't like it, don't dive it. It's not a religon just a different mindset.

ID

 

[Atomox]

To add to ID's comments. Go out and try the configuration. There are lots of opportunities to this in So. Fl. then you will be able to speak (write) from experience.

Brad

 

[The Chairman]

Hey All,

Well, I might try and look at someone who is diving that way... see it first hand, so to speak. However, my diving has been getting away from "needing" a buddy, and more towards self sufficiency for quite some time. Minimalism has it's place for me (like on the Appalachian Trail), but I like to be fully configured when I plunge beneath the waves. It would not take more discipline, as much as it would be to change my entire philosophy of diving... leave NOTHING to chance OR your buddy. Be Prepared for your dive to come up at the very end.

Pete from Orlando...

 

[WetDane]

Hey Pete,

I follow your confusion, I happen to be raised without DIR but soon found myself down the street from what I think is one of the largest DIR shops on the west coast.

If you want to know why people look down on it - get on the GUE maillist - I swear you will be getting off in a week, oh, and don't even mention that you are a PADI diver there... This list truly makes you wonder why these people even talk to each other.

On the other hand, these are the people who dove on Brittanic in '99, in the middle of a shipping lane... Lane was close for 7 hours per day while they were doing it - 40 minutes on the bottom, 6 hour deco and then get you *** out of there...
I think this could have been accomplished without DIR as well, but these guys were comfortable this way.

The cool thing bout DIR is that it is a standard that allows you to always configure your gear the way your buddy does it, the bad thing is you MUST configure your gear the way your buddy does it, but on the other hand, that's the way all other DIR divers do it too...

My opinion -
DIR has some great points, but it also has become a marketing thing for a couple of companies, but I have to tell you that you will have to pry my cannister light from my cold dead fingers before I give it up for one of the little things they sell in the dive shops these days, I bring the head light of a car to the party, most people I know bring a little candle in a ziplock bag...

I think a good way to approach things is to look for he Hogarthian stuff, which the DIR setup is based on, at that point you are still talking common sense and not a lot of religious fanaticism - and I think even DIR divers just want to be safe.

Well, I think I have typed enough for one afternoon, gotta go check tides.
Terkel

 

[ericfine50]

Hi guys,

The DIR style of diving is good when it comes to standardization. I know where my buddy's back up lights are and when a huge problem occures, you don't have to think - just react.

When it comes to the amount of gear that someone dives with, DIR divers don't go down with just a reg and BC, they take what they need and leave what they don't behind. If you think about it, all they are doing is asking themselves "Do I or my buddy really need this?". You can still be self sufficent, but you also have a buddy that can help in the situations where it is needed.

Quest... is can be a good mailing list. There is a lot of good information, but you do have to wade through a lot of BS. Don't let that turn you off the this style of diving. If you have questions about regs, wings, drysuits - check the archives first and see if the answer is there.


Eric