Fundies and no more?

[kidsdream]

I did not take your question negatively at all. I was just stating my current position related to photography, is more of a semi-solo activity in some cases. I have learned so much from this forum.

I assure you, Kidsdream, the intent of the thread was not to criticize or malign those who don't go on, or don't adopt all of the principles. It really was, pure and simple, to find out how many people had taken Fundies and felt that that was all they needed. I'm actually quite surprised at the poll results; what it tells me is that the people who take Fundies and post in the DIR section of SB have almost all gone on to further training. I still suspect, as nadwidny said, that there are a great many people who have taken the class and not done any further training. They're not posting here, though.

 

[b1gcountry]

Well, my fundies class isn't until summer, but if and when I go on to tech training, it will probably not be through GUE.

Tom

 

[Rick Inman]

I planned to be a #1, but ended up a #2.

I took fundies, got provisional, learned where I sucked and left satisfied that I would work on my skills, but never go back across the state for a pass 'cause I didn't care about the card. Absolutely no desire to move farther in my training.

Did that for about a year or so as the only guy in my area diving BP/W, frog kickking, DIR-like (and was made fun of a lot. One instructor even said after a dive, "Dude. You need to go back to basic open water class. You don't even know how to do a proper flutter kick").

Then an IANTD Tech/rebreather instructor came to town (military transfer) and went looking for a tech buddy, and found absolutely no one was doing tech dives in the local area. But he made a few dives with me, and after the third dive said, "OK. Where did you get your skills training?"

"DIR Fundies and from the DIR divers on the coast."

"Good. In that case, you are going to be my new tech buddy."

I scratched my head, and smartly replied, "Huh?"

And then we spent 2 years diving together and training every week until I was full Trimix certified. What a blast!

Before he was transfered and left town, he did another class for 5 of my buddies, and 2 made it to full trimix. He did this so I would have buddies to do the dives with that I was now trained for after he left. The ironic part is, I then set up a Fundies class in my local town and these guys took the fundies class after already having full IANTD trimix certification.

It was the Fundies class that gave me the start toward technical diving, even though, at the time, I didn't know it.

 

[JeffG]

I still suspect, as nadwidny said, that there are a great many people who have taken the class and not done any further training. They're not posting here, though.

All the people that I know that did that rarely post on internet dive discussion forums.

 

[Rainer]

Another interesting thing that I found out was that most of the people I know that did Tech 1 went on to do Tech 2-ish training outside of GUE. However those that did Cave 1 went on to do the rest of their cave training with GUE.

Brian, thoughts on why?

 

[JeffG]

Brian, thoughts on why?

Hazard a guess. Availability of instructors.

For us cold canucks. Cave usually means Mexico. Mexico means Danny.

as far a tech goes. There are lots of local instructors and some are even DIR minded.


(I'm in the group of doing fundies, but all my tech certs are TDI (up to Adv Trimix))

 

[b1gcountry]

Did that for about a year or so as the only guy in my area diving BP/W, frog kickking, DIR-like (and was made fun of a lot. One instructor even said after a dive, "Dude. You need to go back to basic open water class. You don't even know how to do a proper flutter kick").

Yeah.

I'm taking my time doing my DM class through a local independent instructor. He is a good guy, and a very patient instructor, but disagrees on just about every piece of gear I own. He dives vest-style BC, Air Z, $50 snorkel, retractors, etc. We are doing an OW class, which I was helping out with, and he told me to get "appropriate gear". I had already conceded to wearing a snorkel, and diving with a primary on a 4' hose, but he just keeps giving me crap about the backplate and bungeed backup.

I just don't feel comfortable endorsing gear decisions that are not my own to students even if they are just learning.

 

[SparticleBrane]

^ I'd ditch that guy.

 

[Mo2vation]

I still suspect, as nadwidny said, that there are a great many people who have taken the class and not done any further training. They're not posting here, though.

I bet if the poll was outside of the DIR room, where most of the one-and-done probably lurk, you'd get a different response.


---
Ken

 

[Rainer]

Took fundies, and that was it.

Since fundies my cash goes into, you know, actually diving and not more training to learn how to dive.

With the frequency I dive and the access to information that is available, I see no reason for me to take another class, ever.


---
Ken

Um, wouldn't the reason you don't want another class be you don't want to do those type of dives (cave or deco)? Seems silly to say you don't need tech training because you dive a lot or have easy (internet?) access to information. Not wanting to do those dives is one thing, what you wrote I don't get.