I have done that type of training in the military, but it has little use in scuba. In recreational scuba diving you can call a dive when conditions are bad, military divers don't get that choice which is why they are trained that way. Buoyancy is more important to learn than drown proofing for a recreational diver, just an opinion.
Does more advanced training include training in skills like "Drownproofing"
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The title of your topic is a question, but on your first post you did suggest it's a valuable skill.
People have told you what sort of things are taught and why and asked you why you think it's a valuable skill to be added. You haven't been able to justify your opinion.
As others have said, there are better and more important things to learn.
OP
seeker242
Contributor
Ok, Ill try one more time. THE QUESTION IS COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY IRRELEVANT TO WHAT I WAS ASKING!
The problem here is I don't need to justify my opinion on the matter because I DON'T EVEN HAVE AN OPINION ON THE MATTER TO BEGIN WITH! Holy freaking moly batman! LOL
Me pondering the possibility that this may be good skill to have is not an opinion. Here is what an opinion looks like "THIS IS A VALUABLE SKILL AND THIS SHOULD BE TAUGHT TO SCUBA DIVERS!" That's what an opinion looks like, Ha! But if people want to be pedantic and pretend I said that, well, go ahead, knock yourself out, LOL
Basking Ridge Diver
Contributor
It is a statement from you - "THIS IS A VALUABLE SKILL AND THIS SHOULD BE TAUGHT TO SCUBA DIVERS!"...
An opinion begins with - I think... I believe... What do you think about this, it seems like...
You posted this in a scuba diving forum, so you must think it has some benefit for scuba divers.
Okay, I'll play along.
"Seems like this would be a valuable skill to learn." Why? As a life skill for everyone?
Last edited:
rolhardt
Registered
WHY NOT!
Wow! What a thread. The OP states that this drownproofing skill looks like it would be a valuable skill to have but he never claims it is necessarily valuable because he is a scuba diver. He also asks if it is taught in advanced training. Is it possible that he wants to learn this skill and is only wondering if he might learn it later in his scuba training or if he must find a different place to learn it?
He got some good, solid answers to start the thread and even Devon Diver says that this skill could be "indirectly" beneficial. Unfortunately, a very experienced instructor and Senior Moderator, no less, began the trouble. His two posts are argumentative and only tangential to the original post. He downright contradicts himself in his second post by saying, "it is NOT a useful skill to have in anysituation where a person might drown on the surface." He continues in the last paragraph, "The only time drownproofing is a useful skill is when you are lost in a very large body of water with no possibility of swimming to help..." He had a perfect opportunity to teach a new diver but, instead, decided to continue to badger the op with a flawed theory and useless example. It is a sad commentary on his teaching style. It is also a sad commentary on his ability to moderate these forums.
I was going to hold my tongue here until another moderator, Hawkwood, jumped in to fan the flames on this thread again with the badgering and table-turning. Had you bothered to read the entire thread, Hawkwood, you would have known that one poster, rx7diver, indicated that he was, indeed, taught drownproofing in his OW course. What kind of people do we have moderating this board? They should be the level-headed voices of reason but in this case they act as the instigators. They should both be ashamed of themselves.
I think that drownproofing is a great skill to have in the back pocket of anyone who spends time on and around very large and unpredictable bodies of water. I would seek instruction at a swimming class rather than a scuba course. Good Luck.
Now, go ahead guys and moderate me right out of here!
Wow! What a thread. The OP states that this drownproofing skill looks like it would be a valuable skill to have but he never claims it is necessarily valuable because he is a scuba diver. He also asks if it is taught in advanced training. Is it possible that he wants to learn this skill and is only wondering if he might learn it later in his scuba training or if he must find a different place to learn it?
He got some good, solid answers to start the thread and even Devon Diver says that this skill could be "indirectly" beneficial. Unfortunately, a very experienced instructor and Senior Moderator, no less, began the trouble. His two posts are argumentative and only tangential to the original post. He downright contradicts himself in his second post by saying, "it is NOT a useful skill to have in anysituation where a person might drown on the surface." He continues in the last paragraph, "The only time drownproofing is a useful skill is when you are lost in a very large body of water with no possibility of swimming to help..." He had a perfect opportunity to teach a new diver but, instead, decided to continue to badger the op with a flawed theory and useless example. It is a sad commentary on his teaching style. It is also a sad commentary on his ability to moderate these forums.
I was going to hold my tongue here until another moderator, Hawkwood, jumped in to fan the flames on this thread again with the badgering and table-turning. Had you bothered to read the entire thread, Hawkwood, you would have known that one poster, rx7diver, indicated that he was, indeed, taught drownproofing in his OW course. What kind of people do we have moderating this board? They should be the level-headed voices of reason but in this case they act as the instigators. They should both be ashamed of themselves.
I think that drownproofing is a great skill to have in the back pocket of anyone who spends time on and around very large and unpredictable bodies of water. I would seek instruction at a swimming class rather than a scuba course. Good Luck.
Now, go ahead guys and moderate me right out of here!
OP
seeker242
Contributor
It is a statement from you - "THIS IS A VALUABLE SKILL AND THIS SHOULD BE TAUGHT TO SCUBA DIVERS!"...
An opinion begins with - I think... I believe... What do you think about this, it seems like...
I think it just a differing opinions over semantics, rather than anything actually important.
Got it. From Bob's quoted line I wasn't sure if you were talking about swimming, drownproofing, floating, or what.
---------- Post added October 16th, 2015 at 12:25 PM ----------
There is no reasonable scenario. What it gets you, though, is being more comfortable in the water, better understanding/feel for your SAC and trim, better kick proficiency, and likely some exposure to apnea/freediving that isn't hurting either.
---------- Post added October 16th, 2015 at 12:32 PM ----------
If I were spending considerable time on and around large and unpredictable bodies of water, I'd carry a 6' SMB and a snorkel in my back pocket -- a pound of prevention worth an ounce of lead and all that. (Or was it the other way around?)
Of course I'm very biased since a) I already know how to swim and b) disaster recovery planning is part of my job description.
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Perhaps all divers should all have reasonable swimming skills. I know this is unpopular, but I will try it again. Of course, most divers would have on gear, unless they ditched it all. Maybe, under the correct circumstances, one would ditch their weight and still have a buoyant BC, wetsuit, etc. Very complicated. If you're going to teach drownproofing, teach it in OW, particularly to the borderline and non-swimmers you've let into your class.
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