Experienced diver? Maybe not.

[gcbryan]

I don't think anyone is experienced when they are in new to them conditions. Who cares about calling yourself experienced or any other term anyway.

I know I use the term myself but whether it's diving or anything else if it's under new to me conditions I don't get caught up in the "experienced" thing.

If you dive a lot you may be calmer in new conditions while you try to adapt but that's about it.

The interesting thing (to me) if that when we are on our home turf (where ever that is) we forget that other's may consider the conditions trying. I had a friend who I thought was "experienced" as he certainly had a lot of divesho almost "freaked out" on a simple daytime dive here in the PNW. He wasn't used to the depth and particularly wasn't used to not being able to look up and see the surface.

It never occurred to me that this would even be an issue.

 

[SwimJim]

We see this a lot in NC. Divers read about the great diving in NC (and it is) and think they are an experienced diver because they have done a number of 20 minute boat rides on glass slick seas in Coz with a DM holding their hand the whole way or maybe they have dove the “advanced“ Florida wreck the Spiegel Grove (an easy wreck by NC standards) , heck they even went to 100ft- twice. None of this will prepare you for what our conditions often are. We have no DMs leading you around- you are a diver and we do not hold your hand, this is a dive boat not a valet service. Our boat rides are often 2 to 3 hrs each way in 4 to 8 ft seas, with 1-2 hr surface intervals, sea sickness is common. I have seen 1/2 of the boat hanging over the rail....including me on occasion. At the site they are not prepared to jump off into heavy seas, pull themselves down the anchor line in heavy current or guide themselves once at the bottom. Then there is the Carolina Ladder Ride...on a good day (6+ft seas) this is an experience you will never forget. As you watch the stern of the boat dip under the water then almost immediately you see the prop of the 50 ft boat rise above your head, you realize you have to grab hold of this beast and ride it. You move to within inches of the ladder, wait as it zips past you until it stops…..in the few seconds it stops , you must jump on with both feet and hang on because you are about the be propelled straight up as the boat rises again. Nothing in Coz prepares you for doing it for the first time…..and the DM‘s in Roatan wondered why we laughed when they told us it was too rough to go out…..in 4 ft seas..

We do get glass slick days with gin clear water but those are rare compared to 6 ft seas and 20 ft vis.

I have not experienced North Carolina diving Herman, but it sounds like a hoot. I'll have to join you some time. It sounds like a new Years day dive on Lake Michigan I did once. It was a tad cooler here though I'm sure. 25 air temp, 35 water temp. You guys have a lot longer ride to the dive site though. In the end, it's whats on the bottom that counts. LOL

Jim

 

[Nemrod]

I don't think anyone is experienced when they are in new to them conditions. Who cares about calling yourself experienced or any other term anyway.

Well, it does matter when a person says they are experienced and then dive plans are made based on that statement and then a person launches themselves like a Poseidon Missile from the water to everyone's surprise and dismay. Words matter if someone else takes you at your word.

N

 

[firstdive2005]

Hi Paladin954! Your transparency is refreshing. All too often I have been on a boat with a diver looking dialed up and talking cool dive talk and later after an issue has occured the whole truth of dive history comes up. The divers usually appologize and say they where embarassed to say that this site was not something they had done before. They where fortunate to get to say that.
One time diving at Nanaimo this fella was all gung ho about the wall dive we where about to do. He said he had done so much diving around there. Noone said really much about the down wellings and up wellings. He got hit with a down welling that took him for a good ride until he got out, pretty much by accident too. At the surface he was almost to scared to do the next dive.
I found out about these by asking what to expect while diving there the first time I hit the site. I tell ya it was all I could muster in courage to dive for fear of these wellings. But the guys where good about telling me what to do if I found myself caught in one. It happened but not on those dives.
I always listen and ask for the surprises. Dont want to $hit in my drysuit or wetsuit. kev

 

[herman]

I have not experienced North Carolina diving Herman, but it sounds like a hoot. I'll have to join you some time. It sounds like a new Years day dive on Lake Michigan I did once. It was a tad cooler here though I'm sure. 25 air temp, 35 water temp. You guys have a lot longer ride to the dive site though. In the end, it's whats on the bottom that counts. LOL

Jim

Jim, love to have you come down anytime.

 

[Texfrazer]

We see this a lot in NC. Divers read about the great diving in NC (and it is) and think they are an experienced diver because they have done a number of 20 minute boat rides on glass slick seas in Coz with a DM holding their hand the whole way or maybe they have dove the “advanced“ Florida wreck the Spiegel Grove (an easy wreck by NC standards) , heck they even went to 100ft- twice. None of this will prepare you for what our conditions often are. We have no DMs leading you around- you are a diver and we do not hold your hand, this is a dive boat not a valet service. Our boat rides are often 2 to 3 hrs each way in 4 to 8 ft seas, with 1-2 hr surface intervals, sea sickness is common. I have seen 1/2 of the boat hanging over the rail....including me on occasion. At the site they are not prepared to jump off into heavy seas, pull themselves down the anchor line in heavy current or guide themselves once at the bottom. Then there is the Carolina Ladder Ride...on a good day (6+ft seas) this is an experience you will never forget. As you watch the stern of the boat dip under the water then almost immediately you see the prop of the 50 ft boat rise above your head, you realize you have to grab hold of this beast and ride it. You move to within inches of the ladder, wait as it zips past you until it stops…..in the few seconds it stops , you must jump on with both feet and hang on because you are about the be propelled straight up as the boat rises again. Nothing in Coz prepares you for doing it for the first time…..and the DM‘s in Roatan wondered why we laughed when they told us it was too rough to go out…..in 4 ft seas..

We do get glass slick days with gin clear water but those are rare compared to 6 ft seas and 20 ft vis.

I agree with SwimJim about this sounding like a lot of fun! (though my wife probably wouldn't think so - she's prone to the seasickness )

Funny about Roatan! The guys in the keys always want to call dives with 4 ft seas too.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

One thing you have to first realize about scubaboard or any other board is that you can't always believe what you read, and especially what you read about peoples' profiles and experience levels.
When I see an instructor for example that claims 3000 + dives, yeah maybe those dives are indeed real but what was the dive? are a majority of them shallow open water check out dives and another percentage dives with AOW and rescue students? How many of those dives are independant from class, deep, or adverse condition dives? Not to take away anything from instructors but the ones that pile up dives heavily in the area of OW check out dives doesn't make them all around experienced with all sorts of dives, but they are very experienced with dealing with students and all the duties of training which can be daunting in itself.

I've met up with people from internet boards who claimed to be experienced divers, and when we actually met up and went for a dive, and OMG, absolutely nothing like what they claimed to be.

Live aboards can pile up dives quickly too. I know divers who regularly go on tropical live aboard trips and they come back with sometimes 30 - 40 logged dives from the trip.
Do a couple of those a year and it adds up. But what was the experience or intensity quality of those dives, or were they just pure leisure and fun? What was learned beyond getting to look at beautiful corals and pretty fish. Nothing wrong with either, I would love to get to do that someday, but it's not exactly the north sea!

You might not think that you have a ton of experience in all aspects of diving, but if your using Scubaboard as some sort of reference point and comparing yourself to others on the forum, just remember, anybody can claim whatever they want and be anything they want to be here. I can change my profile from 0-24 dives to 3000+ dives in two seconds. I can put anything I want for experience level and training, it doesn't mean anything. There are even people here that claim to be big commercial divers, but do they have any commercial ratings?

I've read some of your vintage dive stories and think they're great! You've been at it a long time and have had some great experiences. Nobody could make that stuff up.
And also, anybody who can use vintage gear and knows the history and techniques of diving is way ahead in my book.
Some of these poodle jacketers or hog loopers that have been at it for just a few years and supposedly racked up hundreds or a few thousand dives and suddenly know it all, I wouldn't be so sure. Read between the lines.

 

[SkimFisher]

The "same experience" and "experience" are two different things.

 

[AfterDark]

The "same experience" and "experience" are two different things.

Never had two dives alike.

 

[SkimFisher]

Never had two dives alike.

Well, I guess in the sense that Rock A and Rock B might be in different spots or I might not see the same fish each time - no, I suspect no one has. That's not really what I meant though.

There are divers that have a few hundred/thousand dives logged and have never been in more than 60' of water. I wouldn't call them inexperienced by any stretch. But I also wouldn't call them experienced when it comes to other types of diving/diving environments. Maybe what I should have said is that there's "experience" and then there's "well-rounded".