Hey Hoover ~ Did you ruin someone's dive?

[RiverRat]

Keep diving that's the thing. Try not to exceed your training too much, dive more and you'll start to relax. The anxiousness can really cause you to hoov. After awhile you'll stop worrying about the little things and calm down. Shallow dives are perfect for you to work out weighting/trim issues etc. For me getting to within a few pounds of perfect weighting helped my SAC rate dramatically! I need to lose a few pounds too but being relaxed is actually more important for air consumption. I would still think about the sunday dive group. Just tell them your experience upfront and I'm sure someone will take you along. You may have pick and choose dives until you get more experience.

 

[OE2X]

Ok so I'm as green as they get and because of this I guess I'm a Hoover. Getting in shape and dropping some pounds is first on my agenda. But my lack of expierience, I think, drains my tank faster that it should.
reading though this thread I started to feel less and less like joining the Sunday dive groups that are around, for fear of recking someones dive. Now I am taking further PADI classes to improve and I guess will stick with them until I feel I can hold my own and not disappoint someone I would be diving with.
Maybe I'm more sensitive to this but if your like me simple shallow dives are what you should stick to until you don't bring the expectations of others down to a level that is not enjoyable to them.

Just my .02



J

Jason - there is no need to avoid the Sunday dive groups. You should participate in them. If you are a hoover, be up front with people. I've had that happen to me and it's been fine every time. In fact on a number of occasions I've loaned the person one of my 130's for the dive. This has worked very well as both of us have a nice built in safety margin and we have gotten a decent amount of bottom time. I really enjoy taking out new divers to local spots. If my dive gets called short on a site that I've dove a gazzillon times - no big deal. I probably dove that site yesterday for an hour or I'll come back tomorrow and get my time in. No big deal. Again newbies are fun to dive with in the right environment. Local shore dives are a great place to gain experience.

The premise of this thread though is for a hoover to know their limitations and be responsible. There are a lot of dives that I would have to pass on because I don't have the training or awareness to be a safe buddy. No big deal, but I would be up front with the person that I'm talking with. A friend of mine recently had an experience where his buddy of opportunity lied to him about his skills. The dive was very short and irritated my friend. It was wrong on the B.O.O.'s part to have lied.

So go on the Sunday dives by all means. Enjoy them. If you have limitations - be up front with the person that you are thinking about buddying up with.

 

[Jason McK]

thanks Everyone, What I nice Group here. OK so I'll check out were they are going this Sunday and see if I can get some bottom time

Jason

 

[OE2X]

thanks Everyone, What I nice Group here. OK so I'll check out were they are going this Sunday and see if I can get some bottom time

Jason

Hey Jason - one thing I forgot to mention. If you don't have tanks and are thinking about buying some, see if you can locate some high pressure 119's or 130's. PST is starting to kick some out and there is a new company called Worthington (Canadian) that is also starting to send some. Might be worth considering.

Last night I did a dive for 54 minutes and still came up with 2000 psi in my 130.

 

[ClassAction]

Wowza, UP's trolling! Why, I'd never...

Most every diver started out a hoover. Real newbies are often too occupied with the mechanics to remember to check their gauges.

Any diver who isn't prepared to dive with a beginner once in a while should confine his diving activities to diving solo. Where would you have been if no-one more experienced had taken you along?

I completely agree. The new people are nervous enough -- I remember worrying throughout the entire dive that I would run low first and "ruin" everyone's dive. Now that I'm more comfortable, I always try to be extra helpful to the new guy. I find that some tips (e.g. keep your trim horizontal, relax, stay a few feet above me if you're starting to run low, etc.) help to relax the diver and will typically extend the dive.

On a recent trip, I actually saw someone "warn" his dive buddy to go easy on his air. I'll bet a "warning" like that could actually lead to an OOA situation with certain divers...

 

[Dive-aholic]

Pug,

Hypothetically speaking, of course, I'd cooperate with the DM in all respects for one day. I can be pretty darned noble for one day. At the end of that one day, back at the shop, the operations manager and I would hold a quiet Come-to-Jesus meeting. I would read to him from the scriptures. We would pray and commune together. We would achieve consensus and mutual understanding. And thereafter I would not be bothered with his problem children for the remaining days of my extremely expensive trip! He has employees whom he pays to ensure these clients survive their own inadequacies.

Bon Voyage,

Doc

Amen

Couldn't have said it better myself. Except...after making sure my buddy returned to the boat safely, I'd be on a hot descent back to the reef.

 

[Mel.B]

I haven't read all the post but I think what comes round goes around. Diving is a sport where (normally) two people stick together. I know I had early dives when I went through my air quickly and cut other peoples dives short and now I have been on dives where my dive has been cut short by other people. It all works out in the end. I've also been in the situation where we managed to get onto a wreck that is not dived very often as it is a shipping chanel and pretty much as soon as we desceded my buddy had a problem and we had to ascend. I was dissapointed but not angry or upset at my buddy and I certainly wouldn't ask for any monetry compensation, because I hope (expect) she would do the same for me if the situation was reversed.

mel

 

[abuckel]

Hi my name is Andy and i have a problem I am an airhog, and i am also in the market to puschase tanks as i am finishing picking up my first setup, im a big guy about 5'11" and well to put it bluntly i hate being the ******* that is first to run low on Air. Any recomendations on what tank setup to go with. If its useful im running an Avid BC, Aries Atmos Pro reg, atmos 2 computer, oh and also recommends on a good secondary air system would be appraciated, as i am big and would like to live i have ruled out spair air. Feel free to PM me any advice appraciated
thanks,
Andy

 

[OE2X]

Hi my name is Andy and i have a problem I am an airhog, and i am also in the market to puschase tanks as i am finishing picking up my first setup, im a big guy about 5'11" and well to put it bluntly i hate being the ******* that is first to run low on Air. Any recomendations on what tank setup to go with. If its useful im running an Avid BC, Aries Atmos Pro reg, atmos 2 computer, oh and also recommends on a good secondary air system would be appraciated, as i am big and would like to live i have ruled out spair air. Feel free to PM me any advice appraciated
thanks,
Andy

Andy - welcome to Scubaboard. I hope you enjoy it here. Ask lots of questions and jump into the discussions.

My advice to you is to see if you can find some PST 119's, 120's or 130's. They are hard to come by, but they are awesome tanks. Worthington is coming out with a new line of tanks in the same sizes. They should be in shops shortly.

 

[lamont]

Andy - welcome to Scubaboard. I hope you enjoy it here. Ask lots of questions and jump into the discussions.

My advice to you is to see if you can find some PST 119's, 120's or 130's. They are hard to come by, but they are awesome tanks. Worthington is coming out with a new line of tanks in the same sizes. They should be in shops shortly.

The Faber 120s are fine tanks as well. Their finish is a little less durable to being slammed around than the PSTs (e.g. falling out of the back of a truck going down the road, etc) but the Worthington's are going to have the same finish as the Fabers, only with the PST steel alloy. And you can probably buy a Faber or two right now.

I've been super happy with the PSTs, but I had to wait months to get my first pair, and totally lucked out and was at the right place at the right time with my second pair...