Disturbing trend in diving?

[boulderjohn]

Scuba is never a competition and is therefore never a sport. It’s a hobby. Like hiking for example.

We have had this discussion on ScubaBoard many, many times. The English language has had many different uses for the word "sport" over the centuries. Read the magazine Sports Afield, and you will learn that shooting ducks is a sport. Gambling is often referred to as a sport--betting on horse races used to be called "the sport of kings."

What all those past threads have boiled down to is matching each poster's personal definition of "sport" to diving. Each opinion is therefore correct.

 

[JuLe]

Scuba is never a competition and is therefore never a sport. It’s a hobby. Like hiking for example.

I beg to disagree. We just recently had the national championship competition in scuba here in Finland. The competition was in a swimming pool and consisted of different tasks the teams (2 divers = buddy team) had to do underwater. Tasks were about bouancy control, problem solving and so on. These were judged, points awarded and so on. It was mostly for good fun, but there definately was also a very real competitive aspect to the whole thing.

 

[Scuba-74]

It used to be called a sport (NAUI Sport Diver).
Then it became a hobby.
Now it's an experience.

Calling it "a sport" always bugged me. A "sport" implies certain fitness threshold to be met. Visiting any warm water recreational diving destination proves that it's not the case with diving.

 

[Soloist]

Calling it "a sport" always bugged me. A "sport" implies certain fitness threshold to be met. Visiting any warm water recreational diving destination proves that it's not the case with diving.

Agreed. Unfortunately the "competition" starts at the all you can eat buffet and ends at the bar.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Calling it a sport to me depends on how the knowledge is applied.
So, back when we had freedive abalone diving going on around here I would call that more of a sport just based on the physicality if it. That goes for freedive spear fishing too. Those activities required a certain level of physical skill and prowess which even though may or may not be competitive at the moment still represent it to be a sport more than not.
It's "sporting", or maybe taking certain species may not be "sporting", etc.
Conditions can be "sporty".
Then there are spearfishing competitions where it is definitely a sport. There can be personal competitions between buddies or rivalries which could turn it into a sport.
All this could be applied the same to scuba diving.
I think there was also a historical aspect to the title too for marketing purposes, for instance back in the 50's and 60's calling something a sport had a certain appeal to it because that meant if you did it you had physical prowess and a certain swagger by being involved.
It's probably referred to as a sport here locally just based on that history and the way it's applied.
A reef check diver doing surveys probably won't refer to their application as a sport, it would be called scientific diving.
When I used to clean boats that was work diving.
Our urchin diving would be considered work diving and maybe pseudo scientific diving even though we are civilians/amateurs.
Somebody who takes diving seriously and only goes to the tropics to photograph might be a hobby diver, albeit a serious hobby.
A technical diver/cave diver might be called an advanced hobby or exploration diver (if they are exploring).
And a person who only goes in fully guided dives and has their hand held the entire time could be referred to as a person just wanting an experience.

Sport Diver
Work Diver
Scientific Diver
Exploration Diver
Hobby Diver
Try it for the experience Diver

 

[therookie]

people relying completely on the divemasters or guides for their bottom times, NDL status, basic dive profiles

Fascinating thread to read, as so many are here. My 2(ish) psi:

• Is it a thing?
  Definitely, as mentioned a few times here especially in resort-type environments (which is the only environment I have ever dived in). Although maybe less so than one might think - from my own (limited) personal experience with small operators on Roatan most divers have their own computers and are relatively independent of the DM, whose primary job is to be more of a "guide" than anything else - point out interesting stuff, and keep us on schedule so that we can dive our two tanks in the morning and get back in time for lunch and Monkey Lalas... However, I have never dived with one of the bigger operations here that take large amounts of cruise trip excursion divers; that could give a very different perspective on this.
  
  
• Is it a trend?
  From reading the posts of divers with decades of experience it seems that it has been a trend for so long it has basically become part of the landscape.
  
  
• Is it disturbing?
  There are lots of things about the hobby/sport (whichever you choose to call it) of scuba that leave me "flabbergasted". Cave diving is an example. For me that is a bridge too far, a level of risk that I would never feel comfortable accepting, no matter how much excellent, high-quality training I were to receive for it. Same for wreck penetration. Nope nope nope. Diving solo also comes to mind... But does it disturb me to read so many references to cave , wreck and solo diving in SB threads? Also nope. Those of you that do it are comfortable with the risk you are taking, have received training (or otherwise acquired experience) that makes you more than capable of it, and that's good enough for me not to be disturbed by it.
  
  I view relying completely on the divemaster for my safety in terms of depth, time, NDL status, etc also as a bridge too far - a level of risk that I would never feel comfortable accepting. But if that's how others choose to dive, whether on occasion for specific reasons of their own or as their usual practice, I will adopt the principle so often cited on ScubaBoard (and stated earlier in this thread) - "Dive and let dive" - and not let it disturb me.|
  
  Participating in the rescue of someone doing any of these "high-risk" (in my estimation) dives I mention would be disturbing, for sure. But I have become part of a community of people that dive in ways that I would not, so I view it as something that just comes with the territory. And motivates me to work toward getting training that would put me in a better position to participate more effectively in the rescue.

 

[Scuba-74]

There are lots of things about the hobby/sport (whichever you choose to call it) of scuba that leave me "flabbergasted". Cave diving is an example. For me that is a bridge too far, a level of risk that I would never feel comfortable accepting, no matter how much excellent, high-quality training I were to receive for it. Same for wreck penetration. Nope nope nope. Diving solo also comes to mind...

This is a very relatable perspective of a recently certified diver. I remember taking my OWD course at a resort in the Dominican Republic in 2004. I had a very knowledgeable and nice instructor from Germany. When we were done with the open water dives, I've said to him that it must be really nice to be in this line of work, be able to dive so much and be paid for it. His response left me somewhat shocked. He said that tropical diving was nothing but a job for him, and what he really enjoyed was... ice diving. I didn't understand it back then.

Many years later, I completely understand the draw of less conventional, more specialized, and more demanding types of diving. I'm doing everything that you mentioned except the caves, and enjoying it more than a run-of-the-mill warm water dive. Haven't done ice diving yet, but have enjoyed a few winter dives in the US Northeast. There is a good chance that in a few years you'd laugh at how the things you enjoy once seemed so risky and dangerous.

 

[therookie]

This is a very relatable perspective of a recently certified diver. I remember taking my OWD course at a resort in the Dominican Republic in 2004. I had a very knowledgeable and nice instructor from Germany. When we were done with the open water dives, I've said to him that it must be really nice to be in this line of work, be able to dive so much and be paid for it. His response left me somewhat shocked. He said that tropical diving was nothing but a job for him, and what he really enjoyed was... ice diving. I didn't understand it back then.

Many years later, I completely understand the draw of less conventional, more specialized, and more demanding types of diving. I'm doing everything that you mentioned except the caves, and enjoying it more than a run-of-the-mill warm water dive. Haven't done ice diving yet, but have enjoyed a few winter dives in the US Northeast. There is a good chance that in a few years you'd laugh at how the things you enjoy once seemed so risky and dangerous.

Very possible. I felt similarly about scuba period for many, many years …

 

[Divin'Papaw]

I beg to disagree. We just recently had the national championship competition in scuba here in Finland. The competition was in a swimming pool and consisted of different tasks the teams (2 divers = buddy team) had to do underwater. Tasks were about bouancy control, problem solving and so on. These were judged, points awarded and so on. It was mostly for good fun, but there definately was also a very real competitive aspect to the whole thing.

Well there you go. That would be a sport!!

 

[therookie]

Also, with my post I didn’t mean to imply that cave/wreck/solo divers pose the same risk to the community as a whole as do those that are habitually totally leaving their safety to a DM. Not at all. And I feel bad for DMs in that situation…