Georgia diver collapses dead - Juno Beach, Florida

[Johnoly]

....So I’m trying to take into account lugging the gear from the car to the water on my back since I’ll be alone......

My 6cuft pony and small reg in the picture weighs ~4lb. But the nice thing about it is,,,,I can take 4lbs of lead off my weight belt. So the pony reduces how much lead you need (and carry from the car). Plus you now have an excellent 2nd source of air supply since you'll be diving alone.

 

[PBcatfish]

You've probably seen in most sports that participants will do repetitive drills over and over so it's just an "instinct" reaction when needed.

A pony bottle is the same way. You'll never pre-plan to need it, but when you do, it's the same reaction drill at 15ft as it is at 90ft. I carry a 6cuft pony on every dive from 15ft at Blue Heron Bridge to the deep 120ft Jupiter ledge. I practice pulling it from it's holder all the time. I have 2000+ dives with a 6cuft pony. Every dive, every time, or I don't dive. P.S. I've never had a head on collision in my car, guess what I wear every time??

I have a slightly different perspective on pony bottles. I consider a 6cf to be OK for shallow open water work, like a 30' dive, or maybe 60' tops. Deeper than that, I like something a little bigger. I want enough gas in the bottle to allow me to do a normal assent, with a 3-minute safety stop & maybe also allow for a minute or two of unplanned emergency deco if I was down deep. With my personal gas consumption rates, leaving 90-100', stopping for 2 minutes of deco & a 3-minute safety stop, I'm going to want to have more like 10cf available on the way up. In the BHB example you cited, I'd be fine using one of those dinky little 3cf spare air units.

I normally carry my pony clipped on the front of my BC, like a small stage bottle. I like having it where I can see it easily.

...but that's just my way of doing it.

I do see the value in your always using a single standard rig that you have practiced with many times to develop muscle memory & standard response moves. My mix & match depending on the specific application approach, provides both strengths & drawbacks. The risk/benefit balance between the two options is debatable in my opinion.

 

[cerich]

My 6cuft pony and small reg in the picture weighs ~4lb. But the nice thing about it is,,,,I can take 4lbs of lead off my weight belt. So the pony reduces how much lead you need (and carry from the car). Plus you now have an excellent 2nd source of air supply since you'll be diving alone.

Excellent may be overstated considering the small volume as respiratory rate of most divers when they need it. Better than nothing, sure

 

[chillyinCanada]

If you're only carrying enough extra to manage to get yourself to the durface in an emergency because bent is better than dead, how does thst make sense if you are shore diving alone? There's no boat to board before you fall over , no one to put you on oxygen, or call the ambulance.

 

[tursiops]

I was given advice to get an al40 if I plan on doing any tech diving which makes sense as it can be a stage bottle at that point.

A 40 is useful as a deco bottle, not really as a stage...an 80 is better for that.

 

[Bob DBF]

I am trying to keep things minimalist though so have considered just doing a 19cf pony.

Choose the bottle you will take with you every time. If it turns out the 40, or fill in the blank, to be a pita and you leave it in the car, a 13 that you take with you every time will do you more good in an emergency. There are two concepts in play, enough air to ascend normally in all conditions, or enough to help in an emergency ascent.


Bob

 

[aviator8]

A 40 is useful as a deco bottle, not really as a stage...an 80 is better for that.

Sorry wrong term, havent gone tech yet.

 

[aviator8]

Choose the bottle you will take with you every time. If it turns out the 40, or fill in the blank, to be a pita and you leave it in the car, a 13 that you take with you every time will do you more good in an emergency. There are two concepts in play, enough air to ascend normally in all conditions, or enough to help in an emergency ascent.

Good point. for me its not an extra breath on a CESA. I want enough to do a normal ascent from 60-90ft which is where I am comfortable diving with my buddy., or to hand off to my buddy to do the same. So 13-19cf is a good light and small form factor. Once I start getting to 30-40cf I may as well just do sidemount, which I want to do at some point, just not there yet. 30-40cf in water isn't bad on weight, it just means I take about 2lbs off one side.

 

[Johnoly]

. how does thst make sense ....

Just like @PBcatfish mentioned " unplanned deco " and @aviator8 doing ' tech diving ', they are doing Advanced dives that require different gear setups. I'm cave1 certified but I'd never run 800 back with my 6cuft.

@Bob DBF said it perfectly " Choose the bottle you will take with you every time " , even flying to vacations. I carry my 6 cuft on every dive. It's my emergency surface plan for My-Type-of-Diving. But a person buys a pony setup and then leaves it at home because they are just doing " Easy Dives ", then don't wear your seatbelt in the car either for that short trip to the store. The size of the pony will vary on conditions, it's carrying one always that shouldn't change.

 

[markmud]

Choose the bottle you will take with you every time. If it turns out the 40, or fill in the blank, to be a pita and you leave it in the car, a 13 that you take with you every time will do you more good in an emergency. There are two concepts in play, enough air to ascend normally in all conditions, or enough to help in an emergency ascent.


Bob

Hi Bob,

Thanks for responding in such a concise way. I was not going to post on this thread until I read your post. You are totally correct.
To iterate:

1. The pony in your car, nice and safe, will not help you in a true emergency. If 13cf will get you to the surface 98% of the time, then that is a good thing. Ah Ha! Yeah, but what about that 2% when it is not? You might have to CESA that last 10 or 20 feet to the surface. Better than a CESA from 100 fsw. The PITA in your garage will not help you at all.
   
2. Sizing a pony for all normal ascents in all conditions is ridiculous. Take the 30 or 40 if you are diving in poor visibility, current, or where other issues like vessel traffic above may preclude you from performing a direct ascent to the surface. Don't use tech standards for a benign dive to 60- 70 fsw in perfectly benign conditions with equipment that is properly serviced and reliable. The odds of having a complete and catastrophic failure of your primary system is about nil.

Any experienced diver who practices pony bottle ascents and then has an appreciably elevated breathing rate in a real situation should take up another sport. Pony bottle ascents are a peace of cake; real or otherwise. Practice, practice, practice.

BobDBF:
"Choose the bottle you will take with you every time."

Johnoly:
"It's my emergency surface plan for My-Type-of-Diving."
"...even flying to vacations."

Thanks Bob and Johnoly,
m