Dive types for a well-rounded diver?

[muteki]

I just got into diving (certified for 5 months, 41 dives) and have been lucky enough to do different types of diving. I'm curious to see what people think makes a well-rounded diver, because I think even 150 open water dives to 18 meters in warm, calm water probably doesn't require as much of a learning curve as some. I went from easy "Mickey Mouse" diving (thank the Galapagos dive masters for that term) in the GBR, to guided wrecks at 25m+, to currents and drift dives of the Galapagos, and that last one was a big learning experience!

So, what kind of diving challenged you the most?

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Do some cold water diving with thick wetsuit or drysuit.
That will add quite a learning curve to your diving life.
If you add on top of that a surf beach entry and exit then you'll get even more learning curve.

 

[TMHeimer]

Most challenging:
--wicked currents to escape from.
--5-6 foot (2m) waves sandy beach ocean entry.
--130' on Deep course in 35F (+2C) water in 7 mil wetsuit, and inflating my sausage down there, reeling it in --while ascending, coldest safety stop of my life, etc.

I guess you should just take it slow when diving in new situations. I guess that if you only did one type of diving you really wouldn't need to experience other types, but it couldn't hurt.

 

[bowlofpetunias]

Not sure a steep learning curve is the best option for most new divers. Building skills in the beginning should be the focus IMHO extending skills should be done with care. Too easy to get "in over your head" (pun intended) and wind up in deep trouble before *you realize it.

The best way to become a well rounded diver IMHO is through ongoing training, practice and exposure to ever increasing challenges that just extend your skill set. NO huge leaps into dangerous trust me dives! It seems to me that too many DM's, Instructors and Dive Guides dismiss diving in other locations than their own as somehow less inclined to build dive skills.

*Note you in this case is a general term and not indicating a specific individual or the OP.

 

[fjpatrum]

I haven't done anything I found to be particularly challenging. In my 35 or so dives I've done night, drift, surge, night surge, current, surf entry, boat entry, dock entry (walk in to calm waters), "deep" (~27m, 90 feet), low viz, good viz, cold, warm, fresh, salt, and a couple of other things. I've had exactly two "lead" dives, in my first 3 dives out of OW, for the night Manta dive in Kona, HI. Not much of a dive to sit on the bottom and let the manta rays rub their bellies on your head, but a "lead" dive, nonetheless. (And absolutely fantastic... highly recommended.) All my other dives have been planned and coordinated with my dive buddy of the day.

I've found the only time I have "trouble" is when I get off the couch after too long a period of no exercise (not just no diving) and try to do something with a "strong" (1-2 knots, probably) current. The same current is a non-issue if I've been keeping a regular exercise regime.

My biggest equipment issues have been the result of adding more than one new thing at a time. My biggest buddy issues have been different speeds but I've never lost a buddy or been lost by one. (I'm still new, though, so it could still happen).

I'm still new so I'm religious about checking my gas and I've never come close to being OOA though I have deliberately sucked a tank down to about 300 psi/20 bar in benign conditions at a shallow depth.

I am of the opinion that the best divers are those who try new and different environments. I also think they have the best stories. I'm working on having good stories.

 

[jord1990]

I would say that to become a well rounded diver. You should dive every chance you get. No matter what the conditions are. (if you are certified or up for it ofcourse) As for challenging, if I don't dive in challenging circumstances I give myself a challenge. (still working on backfinning......) The most challenging I have had so far was in Malta at my tenth dive.

I was hanging midwater at 13 meters. The instructor/my buddy that I was with kept going up and down with someone that didn't clear his ears, while he sank to 19 meters. After a minute my mask started flooding and kept flooding no matter how many times I cleared it. I looked around again and no buddy to be seen. Waited for another minute still clearing my mask. After the minute I'm heading for the safety stop and bump into her. Turned she was in my blindspot above me.

I know still feel then when **** hits the fan I'll keep my cool and fall back on training. And yeah at the time it felt like a hell of a challenge, but I think succeeded challenges give you more confidence.

Jord

 

[Lorenzoid]

I'll ask what is the advantage of being a "well rounded diver"? It seems to me that a diver who dives the same type of dive all the time might be a better diver than someone who has dabbled in many different types of dives. I'd be willing to bet that a cave diver who has never been in salt water is a better diver than me. (Not to turn this into a "cave-diver-as-apex-diver" thread.) It can be fun and no doubt very educational to get a variety of types of dives under one's belt, but I'm just not sure if "well rounded diver" is that useful a goal for most of us.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'll ask what is the advantage of being a "well rounded diver"? It seems to me that a diver who dives the same type of dive all the time might be a better diver than someone who has dabbled in many different types of dives. I'd be willing to bet that a cave diver who has never been in salt water is a better diver than me. (Not to turn this into a "cave-diver-as-apex-diver" thread.) It can be fun and no doubt very educational to get a variety of types of dives under one's belt, but I'm just not sure if "well rounded diver" is that useful a goal for most of us.

Not necessarily ... put a cave diver who's never used a drysuit into a drysuit and you've got someone who's going to struggle with certain basic skills all over again until he can make the necessary adjustments. This is pretty much true of anyone diving a major piece of gear for the first time, or diving in a new environment for the first time. Some skills are transferrable, others need some form of adaptation ... and adaptation only comes from bottom time using the gear, or in the environment you're adapting to.

A "well-rounded diver" also isn't someone who's taken a lot of classes ... classes are an artificial environment. They don't teach you new skills ... they teach you how to learn them. The real classroom is the water, and you develop the skills by doing them. The more you do them, the better you get at them.

I maintain that a well-rounded diver is someone who's dived enough and experienced enough to "know what they don't know" ... meaning that they comprehend how much they have yet to learn.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[victorzamora]

I maintain that a well-rounded diver is someone who's dived enough and experienced enough to "know what they don't know" ... meaning that they comprehend how much they have yet to learn.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I agree with most of what you said. However, I disagree with this statement explicitly. A diver "who's dived enough and experienced enough to "know what they don't know" ... meaning that they comprehend how much they have yet to learn" but has only dove in aquarium conditions shallower than 40ft with a guide is not well rounded at all. Mature? Yes. Safe? Yes. But a very 1-dimensional diver.

I think that your average Full Cave diver is as good of an easy generalization as it gets. Few Full Cave divers haven't dove in salt off of a boat. Most Full Cave divers have some deco training. A Full Cave diver may not be the best to dive the Doria, but I'd take a gamble on buddying with a full cave diver over most any other diver if choosing blindly.

However, a truly well rounded diver needs experience with CCR, SCR, BM, and SM. In a cave, in open water, in a wreck, and under ice, in a variety of temperatures, current strengths, and visibility levels over a range of depths. Training should be done with GUE as much as more free agencies. Dives should be performed with scooters and stages. Also, dives should be done from shore in Bonaire to the PNW....and off of boats from a giant live aboard to a panga or zodiac.

I think the easiest way to achieve a semblance of well roundness is to do tech training in BM doubles and cave in sm through stage....in a dry suit. Recreational dives off of a boat in both SM and BM.

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---------- Post added November 6th, 2013 at 12:34 PM ----------

I'll ask what is the advantage of being a "well rounded diver"? It seems to me that a diver who dives the same type of dive all the time might be a better diver than someone who has dabbled in many different types of dives. I'd be willing to bet that a cave diver who has never been in salt water is a better diver than me. (Not to turn this into a "cave-diver-as-apex-diver" thread.) It can be fun and no doubt very educational to get a variety of types of dives under one's belt, but I'm just not sure if "well rounded diver" is that useful a goal for most of us.

I think that being a well rounded diver could open a lot of doors in terms of diveble sites. Also, diving that is too focused may drive someone to tunnel vision, complacency, or boredom.

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[RJP]

To me, the main purpose/benefit of being "well-rounded" is to find out what kinds of things you like. There are also types of training that, even if you don't pursue that type of diving, will have benefits that transfer. For example, the main reason I pursued cave training was to become a better wreck diver.

I do think there is benefit to having broader experience overall, however. Being "well rounded" gives you a breadth of experience to draw upon if dive conditions change, unexpected current, worse than expected vis, etc. I do agree that someone who had only ever dabbled in a bunch of different stuff won't be good at any of it. But - assuming both were skilled/competent - I'd rather dive an off-shore wreck as buddies with a guy who had 100 wreck dives and 300 far-flung dives all over the world versus a guy with 400 cave dives and nothing else. While the cave guy might be technically proficient - maybe more so - he's also far more likely to encounter something he's never dealt with before on a wreck.