How soon after your cert did you go on your own dive without any DM?

[Reg Braithwaite]

There's no reason to wait, assuming your OW class was adequate.

IMO, OW is not adequate in and of itself. YOU may be ready without waiting, but I do not believe the OW curriculum from any major agency is sufficient training to perform dives without mentoring or supervision.

I can't remember who it is, but there's a .sig around SB that says a certification card is not insurance against emergencies, it's a license to learn outside of the classroom. Some people are ready to risk their lives learning without help, some are not.

FWIW, I was not ready and what scares me is that I didn't know I was not ready for some little time. Luckily, I did guided dives up to dive 25 or 26 or so. And now that I think about it, I'm still not ready.

 

[Blackwood]

My first dive out of OW was unsupervised. In retrospect, that may not have been a good idea.

 

[BioLogic]

My very next dives after OW cert. But my buddy and I picked very easy dives for the first few.

In a quarry like that with no currents, tides, or navigation problems, how would having a DM around have made me safer anyway?

 

[DiverLS]

I went diving as soon as I could put my BC on a new tank. I met a "safety diver" who was with the Instructor and he had been helping me and talking to me all throunh my check out dives. So he invited me to go diving. (Yep - he was hitting on me) Turns out he was just OW with 25 years diving experience.

But I had a blast and no mischaps. Still diving 29 years later and enjoying all of it.

 

[BHB ScubaTroll]

Actually, I did several dives before I was OW certified. I did them solo. I cleaned my pool diving on scuba before taking any class.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Right after cert dive number 4. As Walter said if the class is properly taught anyone should be able to turn around and dive unsupervised but with a buddy of equal skill. If one feels they cannot do this, their training is lacking.

 

[BabyDuck]

well, dive 1 post-cert was with my instructor, 10 min after the last cert dive...

since then, no dives with a dm as a guide or leader except on a liveaboard. then, a dm was in the water every dive but you weren't obligated to stay with them or anything though you could if you wanted.

 

[diver 85]

5 days after cert. was completed on a Sunday, wife, daughter & I were diving Toledo Bend on our own in 3-5' vis.......but that was in '85 when diving was really taught not just sniffed by you...

 

[firstdive2005]

Great thread!
I dove all my dives up to 85 supervised. Then I went on a trip to the Comox to do some dives with a buddy that was getting his Advanced Nitrox (SDI). My friend was paired with another student. I was left with another diver with approx 25 dives. We dove the Saskatchewan. What a rush. I did not realize until the dive was over and we where examining our dive at the hotel that I led the dive from the start. From doing our dive plan to surface. I did know he was not 100% comfortable so we did a lot to get him comfortable with our dive plan. I did not know until we got home that he got comfortable because he felt secure with my planning. All I did was do the plan and then acknowledge the plan with the instructor, he was very happy with our plan. After the planning part was over we did buddy checks on surface, then bubble checks at 10ft. On surface I had told him I wanted to know his air amount at least every minute, that did not happen but he did let me know alot. His sac rate is alot higher than mine. He is also an Advanced Diver yet he was very concerned about our depth going to 120fsw. I had a slate with me so I change our dive plan to stay on the deck at 100fsw, I could feel his relief. He stayed with me like glue. We played with our bouyancy and I took lots of pics. We played with a wolf eel and saw tons of cod. This was his first dive without a real DM. This was my first dive without a DM. I did however have my plan checked. All I did was mimmick the last time I dove there for my drysuit card. Kinda cheated. But I have had great, caring, cautious, very firm instructors. I do know at that time I was not cocky but I was confident and very cautious. I am always reviewing my dives and looking at my dive habits and checking them against those that I feel more experienced.

 

[diversteve]

Technically during certification. We did two dives with an Instructor (class of 6) and afterwards the instructor told us four of us looked comfortable enough to go by ourselves while he worked with the other two on one last dive that afternoon. Just stay 30-40' and near the island. So we did - my buddy and I and the other two divers went off together. For those familiar with SoCal it was off Los Coronados Islands. For me personally, Scuba was an extension of years of swimming/snorkeling so I took to it easily.

The following morning we did our CESA drills and beach dives to get certified. One of the two he was working with should've failed, he came up holding onto the instructor white-faced. But they certified him anyway. I noted his name so that I never went on a trip with him later. About 2 mos. later my buddy and I did 4 shoredives on our own around LaJolla Cove. After that I started diving in Hawaii, where it's normal (mandatory?) to have a DM escort the group.