Disheartened Diver Needing Advice!

[richerso]

Anya, pay no attention to Time! Hang out here long enough . . . . . and you'll get to meet him in person at some point. He's a nice guy. He just has a wierd sense of humor. . . . . . He's an excellent dive buddy though. Especially if there's mud involved.

 

[richerso]

Hey! I just remembered. About 2 years ago I was down in Belize and my mask was leaking like crazy. It just had crazy leaks in it. I was clearing about once per minute. I kept tightening the straps a little bit at a time in an attempt to stop the leaks. At someone pointed out, this just caused the mask to bite into my skin and didn't really fix anything.

Finally, on about day three and in a fit of frustration, I pulled my mask off, completely loosened the strap to it's absolute largest head size, placed it on my face and then gently snugged it up. Presto! All of my mask leaks disappeared instantly! I know this doesn't directly answer your questions but you might find the advice useful at some point during your adventurous dive avocation.

 

[Web Monkey]

Masks: By the end of my first class, my Deep See Vantage was cutting into the space above my lip so badly I looked like I'd had botched surgery! Three patient staff stuck every mask under the sun on my face, but everything seems to hang down too far below the nose, digging into my upper lip area (children's masks don't, but are generally too small).

I'd be willing to bet you have the strap racheted down too tightly or you aren't equalizing it, or both.

The mask strap only need to be tight enough to keep the mask from falling off your face on land. Once you're in the water, the water pressure will keep it sealed nicely.

Fins: My Scuba Pro Twin Speed fins felt wonderfully powerful on day one, but when I got home, I noticed a funny red mark on each foot. This morning, those marks were full blown bruises (I'm Scots / Irish, so I bruise if you look at me too hard), and made swimming painful. I'd been wearing boots, and nothing felt too tight, so I'm at an utter loss.

If you were wearing open heel fins with booties and are getting bruises, something isn't the right size. It's the shop's responsibility to exchange the equipment and give you the right size boots/fins, since I'd be willing to bet they fit you with it in the first place.

Everything should fit and nothing should hurt.

You're paying retail in an LDS and they should make everything right.

Terry

 

[Foo]

Try to find someone who will let you try their Force Fins. The design is such that the large leg muscles are doing most the work and you will feel no strain on your ankles. They also are shorter than most other fins, therefore they are easy for most women to maneuver. I love mine, but don't buy any until you get to try them out- maybe another LDS will rent them since yours doesn't rent gear (?- found that interesting, btw.)

I liked Twobit's suggestion about experimenting with different kicks, also. Timeliner's suggestion is heartfelt and time-honored, but he is usually the only one who actually employs his suggestions...