Taath
Contributor
All,
I wanted to take a few moments to share my recent experience with Protec Tulum.
Earlier this month I completed my full cave course with Protec in Tulum. Initially, I was scheduled to take the course as the only student and I would have two instructors (one of which was working to complete his full cave instructor qualifications). About a week before the trip I found out that the plan had changed a bit and I was actually going to be with another student and Kim Davidsson would be teaching the course.
For the purposes of this review, I am going to cover two topics: Kim as an instructor and Protec Tulum overall as a dive operation.
I had met Kim once on a prior trip, however, I did not know much about him. Being curious, I did some research; his bio, list of qualifications, and experience working on various exploration projects in the Riviera Maya, as well as abroad, were impressive. I felt like I would be in good hands and set off on the trip.
For the trip I had arranged to stay at Protec’s “Basecamp” which is a no frills, very affordable, extremely convenient option for lodging. I won’t go in to too much detail on Basecamp, but it is worth mentioning a few details. First, the accommodations are very basic, however, they are clean and comfortable. The room was small, but well organized with the right amount of storage for clothes and drysuit undergarments. Basecamp has a small kitchen available for all those staying there, it’s very convenient for making lunches for a day full of cave diving. Overall, the accommodations were very economically priced and suited my needs perfect. Not to mention the added convenience of walking downstairs and being in the classroom!
Now, to talk about the course. Before I even arrived Kim had sent a tentative schedule for each day. This was a very nice touch as it allowed me to focus my studies on the stuff we would be covering the next day. Most days we started in the classroom and discussed the theory for that day’s focus. I really enjoyed the theory work, largely due to Kim’s style as an instructor. Kim is awesome about explaining not only the way he does it, but more importantly, the why. Kim also was great about explaining that there are other ways that are taught and helping us to prepare for what we may see in the real world as cave divers. The theory portion of the class was very interactive and allowed for great discussions amongst Kim, the other student, and myself.
After theory it was time to load up and go do some diving. When we would arrive at the site Kim provided us with a thorough and detailed site briefing. Typically we would also do some land drills to reinforce what we discussed and then it was time to gear up and hit the water.
When it came to the actual diving components of the course, Kim did an outstanding job of balancing being the instructor and letting us work through things on our own. He would listen intently as we conducted our pre-dive checks and gear matches; if we missed something he would not jump in right away, but rather wait until we said we were all done, this was great because it gave us a chance to catch our own mistakes as a team.
During the dives, Kim was strict, but fair on procedures and techniques. When myself and my teammate were doing a good job of staying in the right positions and maintaining awareness of each other’s location, all was good. However, when we made errors we were met with real world consequences. Not paying attention to your team mate’s position? Now you get to do a search for a lost diver. Forgot to clip off your long hose after a valve failure drill? Now it’s entangled in the line. Personally, I found this to be a great way to learn, as my mistakes resulted in consequences that I then had to work through.
At the end of each dive we would complete a throughout debrief and review GoPro video that Kim took on the dive. This allowed for us to not only hear how things went but also to see exactly what he was talking about. This added touch was great for providing feedback and allowing us to fix mistakes that we otherwise may not have fully understood.
Overall, the course was phenomenal. Kim is a great instructor. He provides clear explanations when discussing theory and highlights the all important detail of WHY we do something the way we do. He is detailed, thorough, and organized in his approach to teaching the course and providing a roadmap for the student to progress on and meet their long-term goals.
As for Protec Tulum, this is most definitely a top tier dive operation. The facility runs like a well-oiled machine. They have a great indoor storage room with lockers for each diver. Inside the lockers are power strips for charging lights and whatnot. There is plenty of room for hanging wetsuits and drysuits as well as an indoor rinse tank.
At the end of each day we would bring our tanks back into the shop and place them in the row for the gas we wanted, Nitrox or Air. Each morning we found our tanks in a set location, they were always filled appropriately and with the appropriate gas. We were diving Nitrox and throughout the week the gas was extremely consistent. In the tank area they provided several pressure gauges, nitrox and CO2 analyzers, and tape/pens for marking your cylinders.
There is not much more I could ask for from a dive operation. Protec Tulum is genuinely top notch and a place I will be visiting many more times in the future.
TLDR version: Kim Davidsson is a great instructor. Protec Tulum rocks!
Thanks,
Tim
I wanted to take a few moments to share my recent experience with Protec Tulum.
Earlier this month I completed my full cave course with Protec in Tulum. Initially, I was scheduled to take the course as the only student and I would have two instructors (one of which was working to complete his full cave instructor qualifications). About a week before the trip I found out that the plan had changed a bit and I was actually going to be with another student and Kim Davidsson would be teaching the course.
For the purposes of this review, I am going to cover two topics: Kim as an instructor and Protec Tulum overall as a dive operation.
I had met Kim once on a prior trip, however, I did not know much about him. Being curious, I did some research; his bio, list of qualifications, and experience working on various exploration projects in the Riviera Maya, as well as abroad, were impressive. I felt like I would be in good hands and set off on the trip.
For the trip I had arranged to stay at Protec’s “Basecamp” which is a no frills, very affordable, extremely convenient option for lodging. I won’t go in to too much detail on Basecamp, but it is worth mentioning a few details. First, the accommodations are very basic, however, they are clean and comfortable. The room was small, but well organized with the right amount of storage for clothes and drysuit undergarments. Basecamp has a small kitchen available for all those staying there, it’s very convenient for making lunches for a day full of cave diving. Overall, the accommodations were very economically priced and suited my needs perfect. Not to mention the added convenience of walking downstairs and being in the classroom!
Now, to talk about the course. Before I even arrived Kim had sent a tentative schedule for each day. This was a very nice touch as it allowed me to focus my studies on the stuff we would be covering the next day. Most days we started in the classroom and discussed the theory for that day’s focus. I really enjoyed the theory work, largely due to Kim’s style as an instructor. Kim is awesome about explaining not only the way he does it, but more importantly, the why. Kim also was great about explaining that there are other ways that are taught and helping us to prepare for what we may see in the real world as cave divers. The theory portion of the class was very interactive and allowed for great discussions amongst Kim, the other student, and myself.
After theory it was time to load up and go do some diving. When we would arrive at the site Kim provided us with a thorough and detailed site briefing. Typically we would also do some land drills to reinforce what we discussed and then it was time to gear up and hit the water.
When it came to the actual diving components of the course, Kim did an outstanding job of balancing being the instructor and letting us work through things on our own. He would listen intently as we conducted our pre-dive checks and gear matches; if we missed something he would not jump in right away, but rather wait until we said we were all done, this was great because it gave us a chance to catch our own mistakes as a team.
During the dives, Kim was strict, but fair on procedures and techniques. When myself and my teammate were doing a good job of staying in the right positions and maintaining awareness of each other’s location, all was good. However, when we made errors we were met with real world consequences. Not paying attention to your team mate’s position? Now you get to do a search for a lost diver. Forgot to clip off your long hose after a valve failure drill? Now it’s entangled in the line. Personally, I found this to be a great way to learn, as my mistakes resulted in consequences that I then had to work through.
At the end of each dive we would complete a throughout debrief and review GoPro video that Kim took on the dive. This allowed for us to not only hear how things went but also to see exactly what he was talking about. This added touch was great for providing feedback and allowing us to fix mistakes that we otherwise may not have fully understood.
Overall, the course was phenomenal. Kim is a great instructor. He provides clear explanations when discussing theory and highlights the all important detail of WHY we do something the way we do. He is detailed, thorough, and organized in his approach to teaching the course and providing a roadmap for the student to progress on and meet their long-term goals.
As for Protec Tulum, this is most definitely a top tier dive operation. The facility runs like a well-oiled machine. They have a great indoor storage room with lockers for each diver. Inside the lockers are power strips for charging lights and whatnot. There is plenty of room for hanging wetsuits and drysuits as well as an indoor rinse tank.
At the end of each day we would bring our tanks back into the shop and place them in the row for the gas we wanted, Nitrox or Air. Each morning we found our tanks in a set location, they were always filled appropriately and with the appropriate gas. We were diving Nitrox and throughout the week the gas was extremely consistent. In the tank area they provided several pressure gauges, nitrox and CO2 analyzers, and tape/pens for marking your cylinders.
There is not much more I could ask for from a dive operation. Protec Tulum is genuinely top notch and a place I will be visiting many more times in the future.
TLDR version: Kim Davidsson is a great instructor. Protec Tulum rocks!
Thanks,
Tim
