Do You Consider Solo Diving to be Recreational or Technical?

[gmanstan]

I dont really consider "Solo Diving" tech diving for most applications its not in an overhead environment or a deco or tri/mixed gas situation at depths that exceed 130 ft. As mentioned above its applicable for photographers/video work, not to mention a lot of "hunting" as well.I've been on several Lobster hunting trip where the norm is 20 -30 people exit the boat go there own ways and return one by one.A prime example of "Non-Tech" solo diving.
I see even SDI's solo diver course seems to stress most skills/practices that an AOW/Master Diver should have anyway. The basic skills of dive planning,emergency skills,stress & rescue skills ect. But maybe with an emphasis on really learning them & making them 2nd nature as there's no one else to look to if any situation arises.

 

[waterpirate]

Many so called "Tech Divers" are are all decked out @ rec sites like cove 2 in Seattle, Shaw's Cove etc. They may look way cool to themselves, but is it necessary?

Gear up for the dive at hand was what I was trained for.

A single steel 80 and a good dive site-this weekend on the North Coast of CA- should be a good way to prepare for the upcoming holiday week.

While this statement is true, some of us do not dive without a minimum of redundant gas to back up that 80. As we get older we realise that a "blow and go" while sanctioned by the book is not a good idea.
Eric

 

[NAM001]

i call it recreational diving using a more advanced (technical) skill and gear set to replace the buddy.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Many so called "Tech Divers" are are all decked out @ rec sites like cove 2 in Seattle, Shaw's Cove etc. They may look way cool to themselves, but is it necessary?

Well, it depends. One of my favorite deep dives ... the MT6 ... sits at about 205 fsw straight out in front of Salty's restaurant. You can get there easily from Cove 2 on a scooter.

Mostly, though, for the tech diver, Cove 2 is a convenient training site ... a perfect place to go work on skills. Quite a few of my tech training classes started out there. And yes, there are a bunch of people decked out in doubles doing basic recreational dives there too. So what? It's the configuration they prefer to dive. As long as they're not imposing their preferences on others, why should it matter?

I don't think "cool" has anything to do with it. I hear that same comment about my choice to dive sidemount when ... in reality ... I do it for the only reason that has any real validity ... because I want to. I passed the point in life where "cool" had any meaning decades ago.

What it really boils down to is people make their own choices for their own reasons ... and just because they make different ones than we do doesn't mean they're any more or less right than we are. See the picture below ... none of those guys thinks he's any cooler than the others ... they're all friends who just have different motivations for why they got into diving ... and they chose their equipment configurations accordingly. For the dive they're setting out to do in that picture, any of those rigs will get the job done ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Tigerman]

I dont consider my solo diving technical, as its within normal recreational limits, with the exception I do not have a buddy.
However I also do realize that there is some things that is worse to go wrong when alone and that I as such need to be a bit better prepared, which is of major importance when you dont have anyone around to help you with anything from falling in the shore breaking your leg to get stuck in something on the dive..

 

[NAM001]

my barber looses 300 per year, the grocer loses 6k per year, my boss looses tens of thousands in retraining costs of my replacement. my neighbor has to find womeone to watch thier dogs when they vacation. the airlines loose ................ if thier family has no objection to him /her diving then they willfully take the chance along with the diver. there is no activity that you do that does not have some degree of impact on some one. i find this arguement as moot as the environmentalists that would differ with your opinion as you will no longer be polluting the air because of transportation. The consequence is too far removed from the imediate behavior.

I read thru all the threads on this post and one important thing seemed to have been over looked...A diver's responsibility to others...By others I mean, children, wives and other people who may be dependent on them...When you took on those responsibilities you placed them or should have [If you truly love them] before yourselves.....Solo diving, 'rec' or otherwise raises the 'stakes'....Doesn't matter how well trained, how experienced, how well planned or how well equipped a diver is.....I solo dive regularly in any enviorment I want [not interested in anyone's opinion about it ]....I have no children and my wife knew this about me before we were married...She is successfully self-employed....The 'solo' tech or rec. question should be secondary to other responsibilities.....

 

[NAM001]

your post is a reall killer.. i was thinking the same when i saw j2s's post. i am glad i was not the only one who saw the rights and myth's sonnection.

A good post for the "Individual Rights and other myths" thread. I was single 'til age 40--still had parents and freinds. Now with family does that change everything? That's one debate over there. Back to the topic though.

 

[NAM001]

rescue training teaches you how to save your buddy ,, solo skills teach you how to save yourself. i could also word this as rescue training enhances the odds of your buddy making it back to the surface. as solo enhances getting yourself back

 

[NAM001]

i went to a site alone and was surprisd to find i could not enter with out

1.. a buddy
or
2. a solo cert
or
3. a tech cert

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

rescue training teaches you how to save your buddy ,, solo skills teach you how to save yourself. i could also word this as rescue training enhances the odds of your buddy making it back to the surface. as solo enhances getting yourself back

I'm not sure about other agencies ... but with NAUI Rescue training, there is as much emphasis on "self-rescue" as there is on rescuing someone else. By "self-rescue" we mean developing the ability to anticipate and recognize problems as they are developing, so that you can take steps to avoid the accident in the first place. NAUI's term for it is "The Zero-Accident Goal" ... and it's so important that it's the first topic we talk about.

A good Rescue class doesn't just teach you how to save your buddy ... it teaches you how to think about diving in such a way that you can avoid the need to save your buddy ... or have your buddy save you. It is where the typical recreationally-trained diver really starts learning what it means to think ahead, to recognize the onset of stress factors that lead to accidents, and to take action before rescue becomes necessary. This applies to solo as much as it does to buddy diving ... perhaps even more so. A good Rescue class will spend as much time focusing on how to avoid accidents as it will how to react to them ... which is why I encourage all of my students to take a Rescue class, regardless of where their future goals might lead them.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)