fundies in the north east?

[Rainer]

When I contacted Ed about taking Fundies, he invited me out with a bunch of DIR divers to do a few dives. Was a great benefit. Allowed him the chance to get to know me better, and me a chance to get to know him. At the time, I was just starting to dive doubles. He suggested just taking the class in a single, and that he'd then take the time to get me up to speed in doubles. As it worked out, I was able to get in enough doubles dives before the class (~40) that I decided to do it in doubles (tech pass). I would not suggest doing it in doubles unless you are comfortable in them. He's a great instructor. As for costs, PM me if you'd like. Bob Sherwood is another option if you're in the NY area.

 

[rjack321]

Sherwood is based on NY, but isn't there very often. I think Ed is more consistently available.

 

[Rainer]

Ed is definitely more consistently available, but Bob still teaches 3-4 Fundies classes each year locally.

 

[jefffalcone]

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm in Boston, so Bob and Ed are probably about equidistant for me. I'm going to give Ed a call today and find out when his next class is.

 

[Rainer]

I'm in Cambridge. Ed is definitely closer.

 

[carolrose]

If you're not quite ready for fundies, Ed Hayes does two buoyancy classes that you can take and get a little exposure to some of the basics, and then you can decide for yourself if you're up for fundies. It's not a GUE program, but since he's a GUE instuctor, I'd guess that a lot of the building blocks will be the same. He rents you the gear for the class (you use a BP/W) and you can dive it between classes as well. I just started buoyancy I last night, and I have no doubt that it will be good for my diving.

 

[jefffalcone]

Thanks caroln. My bouyancy control is pretty good, so I think I can probably manage fundies. When I dive wet my bouyancy is spot on. I just started diving dry (only about 10 dives) but I'm getting used to it. I think with about 10 more I'll have it down. I was taught to use the suit by a padi guy who taught using the suit only for bouyancy control. Once I realized that was bad advice, it has come much more easily.

 

[medic001918]

They guy's at the shop recommend the Bouyancy 1 class prior to fundies. Scuba Shack is known to have one of the best bouyancy classes around. The class consists of six sessions. The first and last are in the classroom, with four pool sessions. They video all of the classes so you can really see how you look in the water. Countless people I've spoken with who have been diving for years found the class very beneficial. They also said that if you're going to take fundies, you can skip the second bouyancy class since most of what they cover there will be done in fundies. The first one is rather important though. It could be them hyping their class to fill it, or it might be a legitamate benefit. I'm guessing from all the people I've spoken with that it's a great class. The wife and I will be in the November class with plans to actually take fundies next year sometime.

Shane

 

[jefffalcone]

Anyone who's taken fundies want to weigh in on this bouyancy class? My understanding is that if you can hover w/o finning or sculling with your hands, then your bouyancy control is good. Every dive I spend some time practicing this, and I've gotten pretty good at it. The only bouyancy issue I have is that I'm still have to fiddle with mydrysuit valve a little more than is really necessary. It's not second nature to me quite yet, but I think all I need is about 10 more dry dives to get this dialed in.

Shane, How much does that class cost?

 

[Rainer]

My two teammates had both taken Ed's buoyancy classes (both classes). They both said it helped a lot. Why not just call Ed up, see if he'd be willing to get in the water with you (at Brownstone Quarry) and give you some feedback about what to do next. His buoyancy class isn't very costly (around $200 I think).