Do you dive Side-Mount or Side Slung??

[MSargeant]

Back the the original post, the real problem is, what are you going to learn in a two day, open water sidemount class? I just don't see the utility of it, other than as a platform to sell gear.

I learned a LOT about streamlining and profile/trim as well as hovering and the various kicks. Really was the most enjoyable course i've done so far.

 

[gearhound]

Back the the original post, the real problem is, what are you going to learn in a two day, open water sidemount class? I just don't see the utility of it, other than as a platform to sell gear.

That is going to depend on the instructor. As pointed out in numerous posts, there are some instructors teaching it after themselves having only taken a 2 day course. Or some Course Directors training people to teach sidemount after only taking a 4 day course. As Bogaerts puts it, "it's the partially sighted leading the blind." They can show the basic set up, but won't know a whole lot about solving any issues. Plus they'll only know about one rig.
When you get to this level of spending (your rig, tanks, extra regs, etc.) research where you're going to get your education.
It's no different than golf. You can spend a ton of money to buy the gear, why not invest in learning how to use it properly. You might be okay on your own on the driving range, but you'll definitely need some coaching to make it to the pros. And all those self taught gurus on the driving range spouting off about how much they know, aren't necessarily doing you any favors.
Just like marketing in golf, I like to use what the pros use. My sidemount gear and set up is what the people exploring the caves are using (Armadillo, Nomad, Razor and Stealth). They've gone through the process of what works in that environment. I'm not listening to advise from a guy that posts videos of himself on Youtube out of trim, with his buddy in the background with his tanks floating up at a 45 degree angle (Not aimed at you billgraham, but there is another on these threads that is doing that). Judging from what I see in the water and on the internet, there's a lot of divers that have forgotten about the "horizontal trim" and "streamlined" portions from their open water class.

 

[turt1e]

I learned a LOT about streamlining and profile/trim as well as hovering and the various kicks. Really was the most enjoyable course i've done so far.

Coudn't all those examples be just as easily learned in a backmount course? I'm sure I'm wrong, but my initial opinion would be that the two main items in open water sidemount that really need to be learned is tank rigging and gas management. All the rest seem to be filler to make it a class.

They can show the basic set up, but won't know a whole lot about solving any issues. Plus they'll only know about one rig.
.

I would think that if an instructor has a good understanding of things like center of balance, fulcrums, and buoyancy and how they apply to tanks and the diver, then they should be able to setup any sidemount BC properly.

 

[MSargeant]

Coudn't all those examples be just as easily learned in a backmount course? I'm sure I'm wrong, but my initial opinion would be that the two main items in open water sidemount that really need to be learned is tank rigging and gas management. All the rest seem to be filler to make it a class.

I'm sure they could. I went down the sidemount route in order to have better bottom times/redundancy. I would have gone twins but my back kills for a few days even after using a single cylinder... Even an Ali in the pool. Up until then i was a fairly crap diver. Very little confidence in my abilities and such. I'm sure what i learned comes from more of the instructor than the actual course but what i learned from him comes as a standard in every course he does. How to rig the cylinders/harness and building familiarity with the differences of the config from backmount comes as standard along with skills etc. In the background there was a very large focus on trim and profile. So i guess i did learn what i did from both.

 

[gearhound]

I would think that if an instructor has a good understanding of things like center of balance, fulcrums, and buoyancy and how they apply to tanks and the diver, then they should be able to setup any sidemount BC properly.

Is that anything like common sense being common?
You would hope that to be true. But after these 2 or 4 day courses, the instructor is still trying to figure stuff out for themselves. How can they trouble shoot someone else? For me, it's like taking driving lessons from a sixteen year old that just received his/her license.

 

[DaleC]

I'm not listening to advise from a guy that posts videos of himself on Youtube out of trim, with his buddy in the background with his tanks floating up at a 45 degree angle (Not aimed at you billgraham, but there is another on these threads that is doing that).

You talkin about me?

 

[rjack321]

http://www.sidemountscubadiving.com/Portals/0/LiveContent/476/Images/Bungee (looping valve).JPG

I run my bungee like that but when routing the bungee, i can comfortably slip the bungee under the SPG hose. (One piece continuous)

I was hoping you had a picture of the tanks, neck bungie, and spgs on.

I won't ever use a continuous bungie again

 

[MSargeant]

I was hoping you had a picture of the tanks, neck bungie, and spgs on.

I won't ever use a continuous bungie again

When i do go diving again (possibly Wednesday) i will get a couple pictures/maybe a vid, until then anything i can find on the net will have to suffice i'm afraid.

 

[nwbrewer]

I was hoping you had a picture of the tanks, neck bungie, and spgs on.

I won't ever use a continuous bungie again

I'm pretty sure what he's describing is the way I route mine, but I clock mine handles out, valves up. I tried lollipoping, didn't care for it. It's a little bit of a trick to see the spg's, but it's not bad. I just pull the tank fwd and down a bit and I can see them fine.

 

[beanojones]

Back the the original post, the real problem is, what are you going to learn in a two day, open water sidemount class? I just don't see the utility of it, other than as a platform to sell gear.

The same question can be asked about basic Open Water dive training in general, and the answer, as always, is that the instructor has to know their stuff cold, has to have experience, and has to be able to organize. (And shut the fsck up and go diving, since talking too much is the usual problem for dive instructors in general.)


Sidemount is adding skills to a platform. Two days is more than adequate to learn the basics of sidemount (in some cases), in the same way it is adequate (in some cases)to learn the basics of diving in general But nothing replaces experience, for divers and instrcutor alike. Well, experience with an open mind.