Help for 13yr old son

[KidScuba]

Hello and thank's for your time. I'm very new to scuba, other then certification I've only been once (1996 St Thomas ) were going on a cruise and my 13 year old son would like to join me and our group ( all first time divers ) for a dive in St Maarten or St Thomas. I would love to see him join us and would consider diveing more if he enjoyed it, what is your advice for us and what Island / dive would you recommend.

Thank's again.

Todd

p.s. we live in Utah

 

[Dee]

I very strongly suggest that you start over with a new OW class. Things have changed in the last 8 years and that's really too long to just take a refresher course. Your 13 yo son is old enough for OW classes, you could take it together. Your son may get by with a resort course, although in my opinion they don't teach enough safety nor do most of the dives follow the restrictions. As the adult buddy to that young man, you will be responsible for him. You should at least have the training, and preferrably the experience, to handle any emergency that may arise.

Just my 2¢

 

[crispos]

Dee has it right. You need to do a refresher. Eight years is a long time. Your 13 year old son should do the pool course with an Instructor experienced and willing to teach Juniors. As you don't show where you are from or when the cruise is, it is hard to advise if he should do his Open Water in the States or if he can do his Open Water certification during the Cruise.

As to islands, I haven't been to St. Maartin or St. Thomas. Either one could be good, check the trip reports on the Internet.

 

[KidScuba]

test

 

[DandyDon]

Howdy!

Welcome to SB!! :happywave Put us in your computer's favorites and check in often. This is a great place to learn, compare, argue

Dee is right on on your needed retraining, but I wouldn't want to plan on your 13 year old doing Resort Course diving, especially that far out in the Caribbean - where rules are but guidlines! Your son is old enough for real training, however, and that would be safer. I dived today with a 13 year old of some esperience and her father, but he and I still agree - she's still just a kid. This is a technically challening and potentially dangerous sport, a lot more challenging than swimming - which can still be fatal.

If you can do training for both of y'all in time, then maybe snorkel training for both of you. Make sure he wears an infalted snorkel vest, and if you do any freediving - make sure you trained to prevent shallow water blackout.

The Scuba at St.Maarten is okay, but nothing great; you'll dock on the Dutch side. Be careful you don't plan a trip with the kids to a nude beach on the French side. St.Thomas would be my preference, with a catamaran excursion to Buck Island.

don

BTW - it would really help if you'd fill out your Profile - so we can respect your training and experiences, or be courteous if you're a newbie?!

 

[mobymark]

Its great to dive with your kids!!

 

[BlueDevil]

Make sure he wears an infalted snorkel vest,

Why? As long as he is a competent swimmer I can't see why he would need an inflated vest (which would make duck diving impossible). My 10 year old has been snorkelling since she was 5 and hasn't worn a vest, and my 7 year old is also doing well with snorkelling. They just wear a 3mm shortie suit for a little added buoyancy. Of course I stay very close to them at all times. I always thought snorkelling vests were for near non-swimers having their first experiences of snorkelling.

BD

 

[DandyDon]

Why? As long as he is a competent swimmer I can't see why he would need an inflated vest (which would make duck diving impossible). My 10 year old has been snorkelling since she was 5 and hasn't worn a vest, and my 7 year old is also doing well with snorkelling. They just wear a 3mm shortie suit for a little added buoyancy. Of course I stay very close to them at all times. I always thought snorkelling vests were for near non-swimers having their first experiences of snorkelling.

BD

I guess I tend to give generally prudent statements when I don't know qualifications, like "...he is a competent swimmer"...

Except - rare that it is, when I snorkel, I wear a deflated vest, in case. Things go wrong, and the ocean is stronger than any of us. I used to think that swimming in salt water was so easy only an idiot could drown, but now I know that hundreds do every year in US waters alone.

So, now - I think that it's just fine to wear a deflated vest saltwater swimming, it's fine to give even more prudent suggestions - especially when I don't know qualfications, and no one should criticize another for working at being safe.

My opinions, offered with double your money back...

 

[BlueDevil]

So, now - I think that it's just fine to wear a deflated vest saltwater swimming, it's fine to give even more prudent suggestions - especially when I don't know qualfications, and no one should criticize another for working at being safe.

Don, my post certainly wasn't meant to be critical of anyone wanting to adopt safety measures that they feel prudent. Rather I was interested to find out your reasons for using a vest. I have been snorkelling for a lot of years and cannot remember ever seeing someone wearing a vest. In fact the only times that I have seen them have been in dive shops (two dive shops in total). One of these occasions was only a couple of weeks ago when I saw one in a shop and pointed it out to my wife and commented that maybe one would be useful for our seven year old (but decided against it - was I right or wrong? - I hope I never regret that decision). Also the conditions I snorkel in are generally very calm and inside a bay - maybe you are more often snorkelling in ocean currents and swells?

I tend to think of a mask and snorkel as being a great piece of survival equipment - I could swim for many hours with them. If I was on a sinking boat I would grab my mask and snorkel first, then grab a life jacket second.

One thing that is apparent on this forum is that there are many differences in "diving culture" in different countries, states etc. It is possible that snorkelling vests are in common use in the circles you dive in, but not in the circles I dive in. Maybe I can learn something from this. A good example would be the use of DSMBs. From what I can gather these have been used in Britain for many years, but have probably only been in use here in Australia over the last 10-15 years (starting mainly in the technical community and then spreading into general use). I do wish that DSMBs had been in common use locally when I started diving over 25 years ago - they are a great idea.


BD

 

[Doc Intrepid]

I very strongly suggest that you start over with a new OW class. Things have changed in the last 8 years and that's really too long to just take a refresher course. Your 13 yo son is old enough for OW classes, you could take it together.

Dee has it dead on.

Retake the open water course with your son. Go through it as buddies. Not only will it make the diving significantly safer for both of you, but it will build memories he'll treasure years from now. Diving with kids has unique challenges, also unique rewards. IMHO, this is one of those 'important' things...

Hope you both enjoy diving on the cruise.