mccabejc
Contributor
This weekend I did the Basic Freediver clinic with Performance Freediving (www.performancefreediving.com), and for those who were considering taking it I'd HIGHLY recommend it. Frank O did a great report on his experiences a few years ago (http://www.inkbox.net/performancefreediving/), and I don't have a lot to add to his excellent report.
But I will anyway...
I decided to take a freediving class while I was in the ADP class, and I was wrestling with some of the underwater breath-hold skills. For example, we had to do a "Skin DNR" (skindiving ditch and recover), where you swim to the bottom, remove your mask and fins, leave them on the bottom, swim to the surface, then swim back down to the bottom, put your mask and fins on, clear your mask, and swim to the surface. We also had to do some long underwater breath-hold swims, then pick up a 10 lb weight belt and swim to the surface. And then there was the weight belt recovery in the ocean, where you swim down to 25 ft or so while wearing a 7mm wetsuit (arrgghhh...), put on the weight belt, and swim to the surface. It took me a LOT of practice outside of class to finally get those skills down, but I never felt like I had this breath hold thing figured out.
And then I took a trip to Oahu, and one day decided to forget the scuba tanks and just do some skindiving at a gorgeous location near Waimea Bay. It was a wonderful experience not having to worry about all the gear, and after that I was determined to learn how to do it correctly.
So I enrolled in the Basic Freediver clinic which took place in Malibu this weekend. The clinic is actually a Basic + Intermediate clinic over 4 consecutive days, and the Basic students just take the first two days. Total cost was $345 for the two day class. The plan was to have a combination classroom and pool session on Saturday, then classroom session Sunday AM and take the ferry to Catalina for an OW session at the Casino on Sunday PM. Well, that (along with a lot of other things) changed at the last minute. By the way, if you do take this class, be prepared for things not going so smoothly when it comes to logistics and administration. But they more than make up for it in the course content and teaching. Anyway, the OW portion for the Basic students became a pool session instead. Guess I have something to look forward to if I take the Intermediate class later.
I was coming into the class having reached a wall in my "static apnea" (holding breath while floating face down on the surface) and "dynamic apnea" (holding breath while swimming underwater). My static was typically around 1:30. My dynamic could never get past 00:45 seconds, after many hours practicing in the pool.
Well, on my first pool session on the first day I easily did 3:00 minutes static, which was double what I had been getting in the past. For me it was incredible. And it was all due to the basic breathing skills they teach. That will probably give me a dynamic of about 1:30, which is what I was hoping for.
But more importantly they teach enough background so that you really understand what you're doing and how to improve. There is also a huge emphasis on safety. They cover a lot of medical aspects, physics, and physiology. And much of our first day pool session covered safety and buddy rescue skills, such as how to handle a buddy who blacks out or is experiencing a near-blackout.
Our instructor was Martin Stepanek (http://www.avex.cz/martin_stepanek/news.php), who holds many world records for various freediving disciplines, including an 8:06 static apnea. Yikes. Not only is he a world class freediver, but an absolutely excellent instructor. In a couple of weeks he's heading for the Cayman's to break some more world records.
Anyway, I'm considering taking the Intermediate portion at a later date, after I get some practice with the skills I've learned so far. Although I'm pretty satisfied with where I'm at after the Basic class, so we'll see...
If you have any interest in skindiving/freediving, this is a class you really should take.
But I will anyway...
I decided to take a freediving class while I was in the ADP class, and I was wrestling with some of the underwater breath-hold skills. For example, we had to do a "Skin DNR" (skindiving ditch and recover), where you swim to the bottom, remove your mask and fins, leave them on the bottom, swim to the surface, then swim back down to the bottom, put your mask and fins on, clear your mask, and swim to the surface. We also had to do some long underwater breath-hold swims, then pick up a 10 lb weight belt and swim to the surface. And then there was the weight belt recovery in the ocean, where you swim down to 25 ft or so while wearing a 7mm wetsuit (arrgghhh...), put on the weight belt, and swim to the surface. It took me a LOT of practice outside of class to finally get those skills down, but I never felt like I had this breath hold thing figured out.
And then I took a trip to Oahu, and one day decided to forget the scuba tanks and just do some skindiving at a gorgeous location near Waimea Bay. It was a wonderful experience not having to worry about all the gear, and after that I was determined to learn how to do it correctly.
So I enrolled in the Basic Freediver clinic which took place in Malibu this weekend. The clinic is actually a Basic + Intermediate clinic over 4 consecutive days, and the Basic students just take the first two days. Total cost was $345 for the two day class. The plan was to have a combination classroom and pool session on Saturday, then classroom session Sunday AM and take the ferry to Catalina for an OW session at the Casino on Sunday PM. Well, that (along with a lot of other things) changed at the last minute. By the way, if you do take this class, be prepared for things not going so smoothly when it comes to logistics and administration. But they more than make up for it in the course content and teaching. Anyway, the OW portion for the Basic students became a pool session instead. Guess I have something to look forward to if I take the Intermediate class later.
I was coming into the class having reached a wall in my "static apnea" (holding breath while floating face down on the surface) and "dynamic apnea" (holding breath while swimming underwater). My static was typically around 1:30. My dynamic could never get past 00:45 seconds, after many hours practicing in the pool.
Well, on my first pool session on the first day I easily did 3:00 minutes static, which was double what I had been getting in the past. For me it was incredible. And it was all due to the basic breathing skills they teach. That will probably give me a dynamic of about 1:30, which is what I was hoping for.
But more importantly they teach enough background so that you really understand what you're doing and how to improve. There is also a huge emphasis on safety. They cover a lot of medical aspects, physics, and physiology. And much of our first day pool session covered safety and buddy rescue skills, such as how to handle a buddy who blacks out or is experiencing a near-blackout.
Our instructor was Martin Stepanek (http://www.avex.cz/martin_stepanek/news.php), who holds many world records for various freediving disciplines, including an 8:06 static apnea. Yikes. Not only is he a world class freediver, but an absolutely excellent instructor. In a couple of weeks he's heading for the Cayman's to break some more world records.
Anyway, I'm considering taking the Intermediate portion at a later date, after I get some practice with the skills I've learned so far. Although I'm pretty satisfied with where I'm at after the Basic class, so we'll see...
If you have any interest in skindiving/freediving, this is a class you really should take.
