Diving with Uncle Pug

[ERP]

I got the chance to go diving with Uncle Pug on Wednesday, we did two dives up at Mukilteo (Puget Sound).

I'm a new diver a whopping 11 dives to my name now, and I was a little nervous about diving with an experienced diver that I'd only ever met here on Scubaboard. It turns out that Uncle Pug is a great guy, easy going, I learned a lot, and really enjoyed the dives.

We met up at the divesite, and I got to see my first DIR rig up close. I was surprised just how streamlined the whole thing was, I have to admit, I'm very tempted by the harness and backplate setup (But then I'm a sucker for minimalism). Going over safety procedures prior to the dive pretty much sold me on the long hose primary aswell.

The first dive was just a tour of the area since the only time I'd been there previously I didn't get to take a look around. Vis was probably 10-15ft @<35ft and perhaps as high as 25ft below that, and the water was a toasty 54F at depth.

I got to demonstrate just how bad my buddy skills are early on the first dive by getting seperated twice in the space of about 5 minutes, after reuniting on the surface after the second seperation we had a short conversation (Uncle Pug was remarkably understanding) about staying together, and I managed to complete the rest of the dive without incident.
The scenery was the usual Puget Sound fair, Huge Starfish and anenomies, crabs etc etc, I just love this stuff . We followed a trail of crab shells hoping to find an octopus, but we didn't end up getting lucky on this count.

During the surface interval, after pouring some nice hot water down my wetsuit, we discussed trim, buoyancy control and my waving arms, Uncle Pug gave me some pointers to work on for the second dive.

I spent the dive trying to remember to keep my arms into my body, and keeping my hand off the BC inflator. At the end of the dive I might not have been able to hover 6 inches off the bottom head down like Uncle Pug, but I think I made some serious strides forwards towards half decent buoyancy control. My air consumption also improved significantly on the second dive.

Anyway just wanted to say thanks Uncle Pug. Hopefully we can dive again sometime.

 

[TCDiver1]

Okay Pug, how much did this wonderful review cost you?:tease:

 

[Scubamedicjoe]

personally this is the number one promblem with hum going to step on toes is buoyancy control and for this with help most divers can and will exceed in this area with somone to help them and get them in the right direction thanks all I got to say !!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Scuba Princess]

Uncle Pug,

Can I come dive too??? Some of those tips may be good for me too!!!

 

[chepar]

I have read various people post their experiences of diving with UP, and I have been very impressed with UP's willingness - and, well, affability in diving with other people - no matter what their experience level is. Sometimes it's just a little intimidating for a newbie to even think about diving with an old pro.

It appears that every person that has posted about diving with UP indicates that they had a great time and they learned something about becoming a better diver. As a new diver myself, I believe that the best way to improve your skills is to dive with people that are skillful themselves - I really like to hear about divers that are more than willing to go out with the beginners.

 

[Dee]

chepar once bubbled...
....I really like to hear about divers that are more than willing to go out with the beginners.

I think there are more of us than you hear about. Personally I'm always willing to dive with beginners. The hard part is I'm not always sure what they expect. Do they just want a good buddy to dive with? Do they just want to watch me and do as I do? (That's always scarey!) Do they want me to give them tips on how to improve some things? Do they want me to critique their skills and help them with each one? I've done all these things when asked. Some divers are very receptive to unsolicited suggestions when I see something they need to improve on...like arm movements and kicking styles, for instence. Other are greatly offended.

Mentoring beginners is a great joy for me but I'd like to know what is expected of me so I can be as helpful as possible.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

Just make the list you just gave into a little questionnaire, nothing wrong with that! Go over it during your dive plan even though it sounds a little unusual. I've found it's easiest to just ask new divers up front, "Are we just diving or do you want tips if I see something you could improve?" Then I ask what kind of tips they want. Basically I tell them, don't ask if the wetsuit makes your butt look big if you don't want the honest answer. My mother says I'm brutally honest at times but at least I'm honest

I love diving with new divers, that's why I'm becoming an instructor. I too hate to be in the dark about what people expect from me. Life has taught me it's a whole lot easier to ask and get it over with!
Ber

 

[O-ring]

...I heard he caned someone once for stirring up the bottom...he must be getting soft these days..

 

[raviepoo]

ERP once bubbled...
It turns out that Uncle Pug is a great guy, easy going,

That's all well and good, but does he have a cute butt?

 

[Zept]

raviepoo said...


That's all well and good, but does he have a cute butt?

:rofL:

Excellent question, I think we should be told...