GUE Training Question

[ucfdiver]

Can you tell us more about your Rec1 class? What skills did they teach etc? I had thought it included drysuit training as part of it, but I also knew they were trying to make it shorter and more attractive to new divers.

My fiancee took the class late last year (new abridged version). It basically covered everything that a single tank rec pass for fundies would cover.

-Deploy SMB
-S drills
-Basic 5
-Minimum Gas
-Std/Mod Flutter/Frog and back kicks
-Compass navigation

Dry suit was optional during the class. The instructor switched between wet/dry, doubles/singles and the few dives where I was allowed to tag along I dove dry.

The class is the best OW class I have ever seen or heard about. I think the cost of it will likely prohibit it from becoming popular. Just covering the instructor's expenses for travel and site entry for a private class cost more than our local OW shop charges. It's worth it no doubt, and I'm sure lots of people will admit that after the fact...I guess time will tell how many new divers give it a shot.

 

[Taliena]

I haven't done a fundamentals course. I am ok with other agencies.
Diving is doing and the mindset and willing to learn is most important in my eyes. The agency is then not important.

 

[TSandM]

Agency is important when what the agency is doing is not like what anyone else is doing. GUE classes are different, because nobody else insists on a highly standardized equipment setup, standard procedures and protocols, standard gases, and a very heavy emphasis on operating as a team. UTD classes have some similarities, but relax the equipment standardization. Other instructors may have their own standardized approaches, but when you graduate from a GUE class, you step into an entire world of divers who are just like you -- people with whom diving is a seamless endeavor. In that sense, agency DOES matter.

 

[Gareth]

Hello DIR Divers
I have been researching GUE diving and it appears that, due to their high standards, many people do not pass on their first attempt. As best I can tell, a class is approx. $500 - $600 plus expenses. So my question is if a 'candidate' does not pass on the first attempt, do they have to pay the $500-6000 again or does GUE allow the instructor to work with them until they meet the standards?

My pass rates are as follows.

The follow up to a student's result depends on what happens during the course

• FAIL - If people outright fail the course they take the class again. Simple.
• PROVISIONAL PASS - If they achieve a provisional pass then it usually means something has stopped them from passing the course. The most frequent example I see is a badly fitting drysuit stopping someone from reaching their valves. In this instance they "could" have passed the course and the suit is just a barrier. Assuming they ace everything else then I would just need to see them in the water a while later to prove to me they have reached the required standard in a valve drill. This is usually a single dive. So a provisional pass usually upgrades in a day if they have resolved the issue
• RECREATIONAL PASS - Anyone that wants to upgrade from rec to tech usually has to spend one day with me. This is because I usually want to see a range of skills. People often make a weekend and do a day's coaching to ensure they are up to scratch before upgrading on the second day.

So, sometimes it's "do the course course again". Sometimes it's as simple as getting in the water with someone and confirming that they have developed what I asked them to develop. Whatever I feel is necessary is given to the student as a written report at the end of the course so that they have a clear direction and understand what they need to do in order to move to the next level in their diving. I also give them exercises to help them get to where they need to be. The same is true to technical passes. GUE want me to produce better divers, and leave it to me to do that, within the framework of the standards.

On a final note, sometimes it's "don't take the course again". If I think someone is going to be a danger to themselves or others, or is going to deliberately dive in a way which breaches GUE standards, then I will decline to retrain them. That might sound harsh, but GUE give me that freedom too. In every instance, I expect to be paid for my time. I treat diving instruction as a profession, albeit a part-time one, and I expect to be paid appropriately. When you stand at the start of a GUE fundamentals class you know people have paid hard earned money and expect world class education. That's a very serious responsibility, and one I am not embarrassed to charge for.

So, the short answer - there are some instances where you need to take the entire class, and some instances where you just need to get back in the water. Your instructor should, at the end of your course, make it clear what needs to happen next if you wish to progress with GUE. However, what and how much you pay your instructor for their time will be down to the individual.

Gareth (Garf)
GUE Instructor Trainer.