GUE - Highest certification level question

[b1gcountry]

I could probably contact someone at GUE, but this is easier, and it might inform others as well.

I just completed TDI Trimix. I am GUE fundies certified. When I submit my dives for my GUE renewal, I need 25 at my highest certification level. Would those be Fundies level dives, or would those be TDI Trimix level dives. Does GUE recognize a diver's ability to dive at a depth they are certified to by another agency, or do they frown upon that?

I'm wondering if I need to strip out my mix dives for when I'm sending in my re-cert.

Tom

 

[gxsr_sarge]

Great question that will I'm sure promote a lively discussion.

I think I would be concerned about showing them the Trimix dives if you WERE NOT certified by TDI. Also, I think you would be OK as long as those Trimix dives are within the limits of your TDI certification. If not, GUE could arguably say that you were an unsafe diver (i.e., diving beyond your training). And GUE abhors unsafe divers. Coincidentally enough, yesterday a dive buddy of mine told me that he read on some forum where GUE stripped someone of their cert for this same reason - for doing multistage deco caves dives when the diver was only Cave 1 certified (i.e., diving beyond their training).

I briefly looked for anything that had to do with "suspension" or "revocation" of a certification in the GUE Standards but only found something as it pertained to instructor status.

 

[TSandM]

That's a good question, Tom, and I don't know the answer to it. I had wondered the same thing, as I have 20 cave dives done after my TDI cert but before my GUE Cave 1 -- but luckily, I already have way more than the number I need for recertification SINCE the class, so I stopped worrying about it.

I'll be curious if anybody knows. If you end up asking GUE, will you post the answer here, please?

 

[Blackwood]

My guess is they're looking for dives at your highest GUE certification level.

In this case, I see no reason to strip out mix dives provided they were 'in accordance' with your fundies training.

 

[gxsr_sarge]

My guess is they're looking for dives at your highest GUE certification level.

In this case, I see no reason to strip out mix dives provided they were 'in accordance' with your fundies training.

Problem is Trimix (aside from 30/30 up to 100' - but who does that anyways) is not within Fundies training.

I also found this:

GUE Standards Section 1.10.3: Penalties and Remedial Actions:

GUE Quality Control Board is empowered to render the following decisions:
1. Private censure
2. Public censure
3. Prescribed educational rehabilitation
4. Defined probationary period
5. Defined suspension
6. Revocation of membership and/or teaching privileges

 

[PfcAJ]

GUE Standards and Procedures from 2008

1.8.5 Diver Re-Qualification

All GUE diver-qualification cards expire three years after the date of issue. A diver can be re-qualified six months before or six months after the expiration of their qualification period by having his/her individual dive experience reviewed by either a qualified GUE instructor or by GUE Headquarters. To maintain GUE qualification, GUE divers must a) complete and log at least twenty-five dives at the level of their qualification within a three-year period, and b) must provide evidence of such by producing their logbook or by mailing in or faxing copies of their logbook pages to a relevant GUE representative (see above). Upon review, divers can be issued a new qualification card for a nominal fee.

As long as you're diving to (at least) the Fundamentals level (in your case), you're golden. Now, if a Cave 2 diver only did a handful of cave 2 dives, he/she would not qualify for recertification.

 

[Blackwood]

Problem is Trimix (aside from 30/30 up to 100' - but who does that anyways) is not within Fundies training.

I don't see the problem.

As long as the mix dives were DIR, they count. If there was some whack job stuff going on (like solo diving), they don't. I'm guessing the former is true.

 

[rjack321]

Photocopy your logbook
Circle the dives at you highest level of GUE certification (might want to use color)
For DIRF you need 25 recreational dives
Mail it with your check to GUE

They are NOT going through your certs or log book to see if you have or have not exceeded some training standard by another agency. In fact they probably won't look at the non-circled dives as more than a curiousity.

The Quality Control board acts on misconduct (mostly by instructors or others who might represent the agency). Diving under another cert is not misconduct.

If you have any doubts about this call Sheila, she will set your mind at ease. Its really not that big a deal.

 

[lamont]

If you take and pass Tech1/Cave1 before your 3 years are up for DIRF, then the clock stops on the DIRF card and starts on Tech1/Cave1. Same for T1->T2 or C1->C2, but i don't think T1/T2 stops the clock on C1 and vice versa.

(IMO its all pretty silly and either you're an adult and if you take a break from technical diving, you'll ease yourself back into it, or you aren't... makes more sense for GUE instructors than divers... plus it doesn't stop someone from taking a year off technical diving and then doing a 330 foot dive first thing they start diving again with no warmup...).

 

[b1gcountry]

I just heard back from GUE, and they requested that all my dives be in the "GUE tech fund range", but said that if I don't have enough dives, I could include Trimix level dives if I added a note and included copies of my Trimix card.

Based on my diving for the past two years, the only 100' and under dives on 32% without stages have been fundies related. All my other dives have either undershot the mark (single tank) or overshot (deco, stages, 100'+). I have a couple years to do it, so I should manage the extra recreational dives in doubles before I have to renew.

Tom