DIRF, A Sobering Experience

[TCDiver1]

sheck33 once bubbled...



lovely discussion huh

Yeah, you & i have a habit of doing that from time to time don't we?

 

[detroit diver]

FYI, you don't need a minimum of 25 dives. I know of a couple of people that joined the local DIRF class in the range of 6-10 dives. And the instructors were glad to be able to start from scratch.

Although not required, I would HIGHLY suggest a backplate and wings. Contact the instructors or folks setting up the class and see if you can borrow some to try for the weekend. We had at least 3 sets of "loaners" for students last month here in Detroit. I would think that most divers setting up a class like this would have extra "stuff".

 

[large_diver]

gedunk,

Agreed -- GUE has no right to claim exclusivity on safety. I think if the GUE folks (and their followers) spent more time talking about why their system is safe and didn't waste time and energy bashing others......their message would be accepted by a lot more people.

Sheck -- regardless of how many drivers there are out there, I think it is a relevant analogy. One reason is that the number of drivers who have "advanced" training is miniscule as a percentage of the total driving population....so it is an extreme example of a relatively complex activity that can lead to injury/death that people take for granted when it comes to skill development. If someone started a DIR driving course offering instruction in such basic skills as proper use of momentum, engine braking, situational awareness, etc., and said that most drivers have not optimized their skills, most folks with any driving experience would laugh and say it is unnecessary, and "I've been diving for years without an accident, who are you to tell me what 'doing it right' is? Are you saying I'm doing it wrong?"....very similar to the spirited conversations we all have around here ;-)

 

[O-ring]

I think we would all look funny with extra steering wheels bungied around our necks. I would also hate to spend the money to get bellows pockets put on all my khakis with shock cord loops inside to hold my maps, backup car keys (left side), and gas cards. Would I have to tow a second, redundant car behind me in case my primary car failed?

How would gas switches work? What is the optimum octane mix for 55 mph on the highway?

 

[Lost Yooper]

gedunk once bubbled...

I liked LY's starting post for this thread but took it for what it is and what i think he ment it to be. His opinion and what he has worked out for himself.

That's all I ever intended by starting this thread. Things tend to snowball out of control once in a while.

You know, I almost regret writing that post because I did so within hours of finishing the class. I was quite unhappy with myself immediately after the class, but I also wrote that post with a bit of tongue and cheek. The tweaking of the various skills, and mastering them to the best of my ability thus far, didn't take as long as I thought it would when I wrote that.

I would urge anyone who reads that first post not to be discouraged by it. I was a bit PO'ed with myself, but I realize now that forgetting the few bad habits that were instilled into me by various agancies was rather easy to do. Many people have quit diving, teaching, or divemastering after taking a Fundementals class, and I think they are ill advised to do so (most of the time). Although I can relate to their feelings, recognizing the bad habits, and knowing how to unlearn them, is the key. The desire to be the best and safest diver possible is entirely up to the individual.

Mike

 

[ScubaDan]

:lol:

 

[sheck33]

large_diver once bubbled...

Sheck -- regardless of how many drivers there are out there, I think it is a relevant analogy. One reason is that the number of drivers who have "advanced" training is miniscule as a percentage of the total driving population....so it is an extreme example of a relatively complex activity that can lead to injury/death that people take for granted when it comes to skill development. If someone started a DIR driving course offering instruction in such basic skills as proper use of momentum, engine braking, situational awareness, etc., and said that most drivers have not optimized their skills, most folks with any driving experience would laugh and say it is unnecessary, and "I've been diving for years without an accident, who are you to tell me what 'doing it right' is? Are you saying I'm doing it wrong?"....very similar to the spirited conversations we all have around here ;-)

Dear Largediver,

Why is it that so many divers (drivers then too possibly) are so stuck in their ways? Forget about the few DIR folks that are arrogant and screw it up for us all but even when a more efficient way is merely suggested by a DIR diver it is very often not recieved too well. Again the acronym DIR is poorly chosen.
Very often the frustration i see is the fact that after divers see the DIR setup and trying it out they are frustrated because they spent a lot of money on gear the LDS sold them.
Dont kill the messenger that brings unwanted news.

i have never told any diver that they were suicidal and were going to die diving the gear they had. Although the couple i mentioned in an earlier post tempted me, they actually WERE on a suicide mission.

if you can do it better that doesnt mean you were doing it wrong before, ahhhhh the acronym.....

 

[large_diver]

Why is it that so many divers (drivers then too possibly) are so stuck in their ways?

Good question -- human nature? We're all just a bunch of lemmings anyway.....in most cases sticking to the beaten path.....;-)

 

[roakey]

psionicdfw once bubbled...
I am new to this board so excuse my criticisms or dismiss them entirely...

Reading this thread makes my head hurt. Diving is supposed to be fun...

You’re right, diving is supposed to be fun. What the DIRF class does is to teach you the “lost art of diving” to make it even MORE fun. Because SO much has been lost over the years of accelerated dive classes and divers going from OW students to instructors in six months, the class IS hard. But I have two distinct ways I dive, one is for fun and one is for practice. I spent last weekend down in Santa Rosa, New Mexico practicing. It’s hard, but then when I get in the water for fun, I have even more fun than I had before I stumbled upon DIR because the skills I’ve worked on have become automatic (or are becoming automatic). DIRF teaches you nothing that doing lots and lots of dives with lots and lots of different equipment would teach you, it’ll just speed up the process incredibly. And it’s the speeding up that’s the hard part, not the diving. This is why the class is hard.

Note that no where is the claim made that non-DIR diving is dangerous, but the claim IS made that DIR diving is SAFER. A simple understanding of Hick’s law and the non-standard that’s passed off as the “golden triangle” of octo-placement is one clear example.

It comes down to the vast majority of divers (including many instructors) “don’t know what they don’t know.” It used to be that folks would come back from a cave class going “ohmygawd, I don’t believe what I didn’t know!” DIRF opens the door to recreational divers as well as budding technical divers to have that epiphany without having to take a full cave class. The lost art of diving has been kept alive in the technical community and now GUE is sharing that with the recreational community, the only organization I know that’s actively doing so.

I spent 15 minutes talking DIR with a DM and an instructor down at Blue Hole this weekend and after five minutes they were both slapping their foreheads going “Gawd, this makes SO much sense!” It’s not their fault they didn’t know about it, their instructors didn’t have a clue either.

They didn’t know what they didn’t know, neither did their instructors, and probably those instructor’s instructors, etc.

So much has been lost over the last 25 years as simple, robust, hydrodynamic equipment has given way to the spectacular fashion accessories that the equipment manufacturer’s marketing departments have dreamed up. THAT I feel is the genesis of the problems we’re seeing now.

Lastly, some comment was made that most of the “DIR equipment” existed before DIR. You’re right. DIR really didn’t invent anything. What it did was pull together existing equipment and methodologies into one cohesive system.

Roak

 

[TCDiver1]

Lost Yooper once bubbled...


That's all I ever intended by starting this thread. Things tend to snowball out of control once in a while.

Mike

I'm glad i didn't put words in your mouth. I wasn't trying to.

This whole GUE/DIR debate is quite good IMO. It's a generally good way to get the word out on what it is all about. I've been diving and teaching diving for quite awhile and the first time i ever heard the term DIR was on this board.

Since that time i have been asking divers & students alike if they know what DIR is. In our area, west of you, i would say less than 10% have even heard of GUE/DIR and of that 10% less than 1% have a clue as to what is all about. I include myself in the 10% but probably not in the 1%.

All the debate has me considering a DIRF class in the future. Maybe then i'll see the light.

Until then i'll stick by the guns i can hit the target with. My experience with the Padi educational system has served me well over the years. I believe it can serve anyone well if taught properly and taken seriously by the student.