Has anyone ever? Reasons for DIR...

[Cave Diver]

Recent activity in another thread got me to thinking about this.

I often see many of the *Whats* of DIR, the *Hows* and *Whos*, sometimes even the *When* and *Wheres* but I cant recall harldy, if ever seeing the *Whys*

So, I thought I'd list some of the reasons that I chose to dive DIR through some examples.

Please NOTE:I am not suggesting that DIR is the only solution to these situations. Nor am I implying that DIR are the only safe divers, or that if you're not DIR then you poor buddy or any other type of skills.

So, has anyone ever:

• 
  Looked around and wondered where your buddy ran off to?
  Found yourself having to share equipment and fumbling to make the exchange?
  Wondered how you managed to rip your wetsuit so badly on a piece of coral?
  Wished you had brought a piece of equipment (lift bag, knife, etc.) with you on a dive but hadnt?
  Found yourself popping to the surface unexpectedly during a safety stop?
  Been surprised at how low you or your buddy was on air when you finally checked during your dive?
  Wondered where the boat was?
  Been on the verge of panic because you found yourself in conditions above your experience leve?
  Tried unsuccessfully to get your buddies attention?
  Wondered what that piece of equipment is that's dragging behind them?
  Almost got your mask kicked off by someone you're diving with?
  Unexpectedly find yourself in deco?
  Marvel at how the dive guide just seems to be able to hang motionless?
  Just want to improve your overall skills and comfort level?

If you answered any (or all) of these questions with a "Yes" then there may be something you can learn from DIR.

All of the above instances are things that happened to me when I first started diving. Things that got me thinking that there must be a better way, which started me on the path to find it.

Once again, this is not the only path to achieve that goal, but it is one of the more comprehensive ones.

So, let's hear your reasons for choosing DIR...

 

[Doc Harry]

During PADI OW I was unsatisfied with many aspects of the training, but since I was a NOOB I was ignorant of the alternatives. Some of the things that I noted during PADI OW:

-jacket BC sucked, it was too cluttered, needed something more streamlined
-finding and then donating my octo was far inferior to donating the primary reg
-primary hose was too short, made the air sharing ascent difficult
-training was too brief and too superficial
- etc., etc.

When I discovered DIR, it all made perfect sense to me, exactly what I was looking for.

 

[TSandM]

It was the skills -- the quietness in the water, the ability to position yourself where you want to be and STAY there, the ability to move through a dive site without disturbing it (and that STILL delights me, every single dive) -- that caught my interest first.

It was getting a glimpse of what diving as a team was all about that kept me there. It is a deep and pervasive pleasure to do a dive where you're completely on the same page. Nothing is awkward or confusing or frustrating or just not right . . . Everybody is where you expect them to be, doing what you expect them to do, and if you need anything at all, you get it right away. And you know everybody involved has the skills to deal with whatever comes up.

Team diving's addictive.

 

[MBH]

Sometime during my OW training I became aware of the hogarthian equipment configuration and and a few of the principals of DIR. It made sense to me as well. I completed OW in standard recreational gear but I was less than impressed with what was regarded as acceptable diving practices.

I knew deep down in my soul that there was a better way to dive. With a little encouragement from a few fine people on this board, I made the commitment and I've never looked back.

Best thing that could have ever happened to my diving.

 

[Jason B]

So, let's hear your reasons for choosing DIR...

I had a cave dive go very south. It was in the midst of this fiasco that I knew I had to make a change.

 

[Sloth]

I got certified in 96 I never had a chance to do any diving. Fast forward to 2003 and I happen to read an article about cave diving online somewhere. It looked amazing and it made want to start diving again so I went and got re-certified.

I then started reading all the books about diving I could find and was taken aback by how dangerous technical diving was. Then I started realizing how many deaths were poor choices. Diving deep on air, poor gas management, poor team work or no team at all. I started to hope there was a better way as I knew I wouldn't go into technical diving if these books were any indication of what to expect.

Eventually this lead me to DIR. At first I was a bit unsure about it due to all the negative feedback from non DIR divers and from some arrogant posts by DIR divers but after actually meeting some DIR trained divers I realized the difference between internet DIR and IRL DIR and happily started moving that way.

 

[Cave Diver]

Great stories, keep them coming!

As a somewhat interesting sidenote, the quote in my signature line "The best way to find the solution is to go out and dive the problem" comes from a chance meeting with a DIR diver at my local mudhole. We'd gone there to dive and some mutual friends introduced us. I ended up sitting down and having a quiet conversation with him for about an hour debating different procedure, protocols and scenarios in the cave environment. At one point, we had different viewpoints on how to handle a particular situation and kept debating the pros and cons back and forth for quite a while.

Finally, he just looked and me and said "If you really want to know which way works better, lets just go dive and see."

Profound!

We can debate things all day long here in the forums or out at the dive site. But in the end, just shut up and dive! Shortly after that he convinced me to take a fundies class and...

 

[FLDVR]

"We can debate things all day long here in the forums or out at the dive site. But in the end, just shut up and dive! Shortly after that he convinced me to take a fundies class and..."

That about sums it up!
Theres some great reasons for Dir given here, I went down the path less traveled when a local dealer sold me a Halcyon harness and wing many years ago, he said it would make a big difference in my diving!

It took many more years to finally take the fundies, but it's been such a great experience diving with a solid team that I feel like a fish out of water when I go back and do Rec. dives on vacation.

I cant wait for Cave1 !!!!!!!
Henry

 

[jjones9527]

For me it was the final dive of my Deco course. As I zipped along at 140' on air, looking around wondering where my buddy was, where the instructor was, hell where anybody was. After that day I was handed the card and left to my own devices, however I realized that I knew absolutely squat about deco. Around the same time I was diving occasionally with a few people who had take DIRF. The honest skill assessment and video review of the skills really sold me on it. Then seeing Tech 1 and 2 divers in the water, compared to the other tech trained people who I was diving with sealed the deal. The whole thing just made sense to me. I took the first DIRF I could, which turned out to be a year later. With the courses I had done and dives I had logged up to that point, I still only came away with a provisional. I was able to hook up with the large contingent of Tech 1 and 2 guys we have here, and 2 months later I went back and got my full pass. A year later I'm now Tech 1 and having a great time, constantly learning, and building up to more and more challenging dives.

 

[*Floater*]

It was the gear that got me initially. Because I lacked experience I didn't know what gear was good, but when reading these boards I noticed a lot divers moving from non-DIR gear to DIR-compliant gear but not so much the other way around. So I figured I couldn't go wrong with the hog/DIR approach, plus the idea of gear and procedures that wouldn't become obsolete as I advanced in my diving appealed to me. Then I read a few glowing DIRF reports and ended up taking it instead of adv. nitrox/deco procedures on my next vacation, and I'm glad I did.