Doing it for the challenge

[ScubaFeenD]

Sometimes I am not able to make it out to a dive site that isnt a local quarry. I dont not like the local quarry I dive in, but sometimes its isnt very challenging and doesnt allow for personal skill growth necessarily.

So, what I really want to know, is what kind of activities do other technical divers here suggest to help grow my personal skillset. For instance, being able to ascend while sharing air while shooting a bag while maskless. Some suggestions were made in another thread about knowing when you have had enough experience to move up a level of training, but I am looking for novel way to check my control, ability to handle multiple tasks at once, and still perform. Creativity and novelty is greatly appreciated, because I am hoping that while extremely challenging, some of your suggestions will also be a lot of fun.

Oh, and please dont hold back, i want this to be as challenging as possible.

 

[Rainer]

Go diving in the ocean. Do it a lot. Try new sites. Dive with new buddies.

WAY better experience than a bunch of "scenario" dives in the quarry.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

... yeah ... what Rainier said ...

Practicing skills over and over in the same environment only makes you good in that environment. Try getting out to some different environments ... and the ocean will throw different looks at you, depending on site, tides, time of year, and weather. You'll get a much broader education that way ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[rjack321]

In addition to the ocean (or at least a different lake/quarry)...

Pre-arranged scenarios are pretty boring as they end up being self-limited by your own boundaries. It takes actual skill, an understanding of learning theory, a proper IDC, etc to throw worthwhile scenarios at your buddy and vice versa. While it sounds so simple "then the instructor took off my mask" doing this to learn with your buddies doesn't work because you don't get the big picture yet. For instance, I bet you didn't realize that being the maskless diver is easy and they aren't the one being challenged in a maskless ascent situation.

So rather than trying to come up with contrived but worthwhile challenges, let mother nature challenge you by going to new places and doing new dives.

 

[DevonDiver]

I find that photography helps to improve awareness, buoyancy and control. Getting a good photo, without kicking up silt, controlling breathing, being 'fluid' (to not scare critters away) and acting in a controlled, steady manner.... The extra task loading of a camera can easily detract from your overal dive awareness.... learn to achieve specific tasks underwater, whilst still retaining a clear awareness of your depth, time, air and team/buddy.

Every dive for me is a training dive (even when I am teaching). I aim to perfect every aspect of my diving. Controlling ascents and stops, with excellent horizontal trim and cm perfect buoyancy. Safety stops are a great time to practice. Same goes for propulsion... never can get enough practice with frog kicks and modified flutter.

Dive with more experienced divers, who can role-model the skills you wish to emulate. Pick different aspects to study on each dive... copy them. Make them work for you. Study any photos or video taken of you diving... critique them.

Take responsibility for the dives (regardless of the experience of your buddy). Plan them effectively, including SAC and gas. Take on tasks like DSMB deployment, every occasion you get.

Dive with a slung pony. Practise removing and replacing it underwater. Practise handing it off, or putting it on the bottom...and using your breathing to ensure that doesn't effect your buoyancy.

Try to complete a dive using only one hand, from start to finish.. See how that effects your capacity. It can be very challenging! Literally attempt to dive 'with one arm tied behind your back' (well, maybe not literally tied). Add to the complexity of the dive and equipment and see if you can still achieve this.

Equipment removal and replacement. It's a good 'stressor'. Do it with and without a mask. Do it on the bottom and off the bottom (hovering).

List your items of equipment on waterproof paper, or laminated, as flash cards. Get your buddy to show you random cards during your dive, to test your reaction to kit failures. Deal with them as if that equipment suddenly failed when you are shown the card. List EVERY bit of kit you rely on, utilise or carry for redundancy on a dive....

Just a start....

 

[ScubaFeenD]

Go diving in the ocean. Do it a lot. Try new sites. Dive with new buddies.

WAY better experience than a bunch of "scenario" dives in the quarry.

... yeah ... what Rainier said ...

Practicing skills over and over in the same environment only makes you good in that environment. Try getting out to some different environments ... and the ocean will throw different looks at you, depending on site, tides, time of year, and weather. You'll get a much broader education that way ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

In addition to the ocean (or at least a different lake/quarry)...

Pre-arranged scenarios are pretty boring as they end up being self-limited by your own boundaries. It takes actual skill, an understanding of learning theory, a proper IDC, etc to throw worthwhile scenarios at your buddy and vice versa. While it sounds so simple "then the instructor took off my mask" doing this to learn with your buddies doesn't work because you don't get the big picture yet. For instance, I bet you didn't realize that being the maskless diver is easy and they aren't the one being challenged in a maskless ascent situation.

So rather than trying to come up with contrived but worthwhile challenges, let mother nature challenge you by going to new places and doing new dives.

I dont deny the fact that real dives have always taught me something (either in the water or in dive planning, etc). However, I am not always able to get to an ocean, river, or great lake dive, and must instead "settle" for dives in my local quarry. I have found that many challenges I have been presented with there during training have exponentially increased my abilities in the ocean and on dives in general, so I am just looking for ways to switch it up, keep it fresh, and keep me on my toes while mother nature isnt messing with me.

So keeping in mind that this isnt a focus of my diving, but just something to keep me from being complacent on dives where there is a much lower challenge and higher comfort, do you guys have any challenge type ideas?

Just a note, I try to get away from the quarry as often as possible, because i sure as heck didnt get into diving to dive a quarry. I have been up and down the east coast all year and have gotten a lot of experience in many different environments, and will have even more next year since I have a head start.

 

[rjack321]

If the owners let you, make up an obstacle course out of hula hoops suspended off the bottom.

Although if there's no place else for you to dive and you are diving merely for gimicks I'm consider taking up a different sport and cross training until you can do some "non-boring" diving either in the ocean or someplace else. mountain biking or something else compatible with your area.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I dont deny the fact that real dives have always taught me something (either in the water or in dive planning, etc). However, I am not always able to get to an ocean, river, or great lake dive, and must instead "settle" for dives in my local quarry. I have found that many challenges I have been presented with there during training have exponentially increased my abilities in the ocean and on dives in general, so I am just looking for ways to switch it up, keep it fresh, and keep me on my toes while mother nature isnt messing with me.

So keeping in mind that this isnt a focus of my diving, but just something to keep me from being complacent on dives where there is a much lower challenge and higher comfort, do you guys have any challenge type ideas?

Just a note, I try to get away from the quarry as often as possible, because i sure as heck didnt get into diving to dive a quarry. I have been up and down the east coast all year and have gotten a lot of experience in many different environments, and will have even more next year since I have a head start.

Try the mid-water dive I offer my AOW students. Most find it rather challenging.

The idea is to do the entire dive at a specific depth ... I use 20 feet ... where you cannot see the bottom, so you have no visual reference. What I do is give them a series of "courses" they have to navigate while holding their buoyancy at the specified depth. For example, a triangular course timed at 3 minutes per side. You start at a buoy line and the objective is to end the dive back at the buoy line. One diver gets the compass, the other gets the depth gauge/bottom timer. So they have to work together ... one sets the direction while the other monitors depth and time and communicates to the naviguessor when he's deviating from depth or when it's time to turn to the next leg of the course.

In order to do the course successfully you have to work on buoyancy control, buddy positioning and communication, and navigation ... all at the same time.

Try it ... you might enjoy the challenge ...

Another challenge might be a game of "pass the bottle". Each of you bring a deco bottle on the dive. Hover at 20 feet and pass them back and forth while maintaining position. The objective is to maintain 20 feet while handing them off in such a way that you each go through a sequence of having 0, 1, or 2 bottles at a time.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[ScubaFeenD]

For instance, I bet you didn't realize that being the maskless diver is easy and they aren't the one being challenged in a maskless ascent situation.

I have done a bit of training with no masks during ascents and dives, and I have found that getting over the stress of being maskless is the big task for the mask losing diver. The other diver really has the task to lead the team the rest of the way to the surface and has a whole other level of stress to work with.

Although if there's no place else for you to dive and you are diving merely for gimicks I'm consider taking up a different sport and cross training until you can do some "non-boring" diving either in the ocean or someplace else. mountain biking or something else compatible with your area.

Im sorry you feel this way. You are clearly a very well accomplished and experienced diver (based on your many posts), so I hope you arent offended if I dont take this advice from you . I have, however, decided to start training for marathons to increase my fitness for diving, which allows me to stay focussed on diving even when I cant be diving.


Thanks NWGratefulDiver and DevonDiver for your great ideas. I will put them to good use and try to add variation to them for practice.

 

[rjack321]

Im sorry you feel this way. You are clearly a very well accomplished and experienced diver (based on your many posts), so I hope you arent offended if I dont take this advice from you . I have, however, decided to start training for marathons to increase my fitness for diving, which allows me to stay focussed on diving even when I cant be diving.

Carry one mate! Its a fine DIR tradition to train ad naseum for the local mudhole