I can't speak for East coast beach diving. Most of my beach diving experience has been in So. Cal., but I deal regularly with waves ranging from 1' - 8'... if it gets much bigger than that you can be sure it'll be a low vis washing machine underwater. All the "take off your BC" posts to this thread have me a bit concerned ... aside from being little to no help, it seems to be a great way to lose or damage your most expensive equipment. Imagine having your tank slammed into your head by a big wave; not a great prospect.
Rodale's runs an article on-line every so often, recommending that divers enter & exit with their fins on, BC inflated, bracing against the waves (sometimes holding onto each other), or crawling out of the surf. This article is often accompanied by a picture of people using this technique ... in a lake or ocean with NO surf! Some of local instructors teach their students this way and it's both frustrating and sad to see them rolling on their backs in the surf zone as a result of this poor technique. We call them 'turtles' because they are so often on their backs, struggling to get up.
Here's what we teach our students:
- The fundamental goal of entries and exits is to get through the surf zone as fast and safely as possible.
- You will NEVER be stronger than the ocean; the concept of "bracing yourself" against a wave of any significant size is simply stupid. Ditto for holding onto someone else, gauranteeing that both of you will get knocked over.
Instead, realize that all the power of a wave is at the top; kneel beneath a wave of almost any size and it will simply sweep over you.
- Enter & Exit the surf with your BC completely uninflated: you don't want to have an "inner tube" on your back when you need to kneel beneath a wave.
- Enter & Exit with your fins OFF, one in each hand, pre-set to the correct setting, with the straps folded down over the heel out of the way ... no matter the bottom composition (sand or rocks), you'll more sure-footed and faster without them.
- Enter & Exit the surf with your mask around your neck ... having it on your face when a big wave comes risks losing it all too easily.
- Enter & Exit with your reg NOT in your mouth. If you have to duck under a wave you will be u/w for seconds at most. One instructor at our shop says that there's been at least one reported case of a diver embolizing when taking a breath from a regulator just as a wave pounded them....like going from depth to the surface in seconds while holding your breath. I can't refute the story, but you don't really need the reg either. I like to clip it in an out of the way spot so that it doesn't get banged into my tank or in the sand.
- Watch the waves for at least 20 minutes to get a sense of them before entering ... can't tell you how many divers don't do this, enter thinking the waves are only 2', then exit to some 'boomers' in excess of 8'!
- Time the entry between sets if possible, walk quickly to chest deep water, put fins on (should take 2 - 10 secs), get on your back and paddle quickly through the surf zone. To put your fins on make a "figure 4" with your legs, putting the right fin on with the left hand and vice versa. Being chest-deep is important; if you get too shallow you will be akward and prone to falling over.
- If you mis-time the lull between sets you need to watch the wave to decide how to handle it. If it's "round" simply bounce up & let it sweep past. If it's going to be a "flat face" wave then you need to kneel on one knee & let it go over your head. Kneeling on one knee makes it easy to get back up quickly ... don't dive under them headfirst. The wave will actually suck you into & under itself, then spit you out the backside.
- NEVER try to run from a big wave ... the backwash alone will pretty much prevent this. If a wave is going to break before it gets to you, run AT it and then kneel. The worst place to be is where it breaks on top of you or just after, because all the energy at the top of the wave is directed in many different (i.e. uncontrollable) directions.
- The process is the reverse on exiting: stop in chest deep water and remove your fins. If you stop out too deep, use the fins in your hands as paddles to get to standing depth (sideways at end of arms). I like to "bounce" up & down to maintain contact with the bottom as the water height varies. Use the smaller waves to push you up to the beach. Never turn your back on the ocean, in case you have to "run at" a big wave.
- Once you make the decision to head for land, it better be all 'asses and elbows,' high-stepping out of the last few feet. A lot of beginner beach divers forget this, dwaddle, and get knocked down by a measly 2' wave.
- If all else faile, THEN crawl out on all 4 like a baby ... embarassing but effective.
- If you are diving a site with large rocks or uneven bottom, use the tide tables to do to at high tide; makes for a much safer & easier dive.
Rodale's runs an article on-line every so often, recommending that divers enter & exit with their fins on, BC inflated, bracing against the waves (sometimes holding onto each other), or crawling out of the surf. This article is often accompanied by a picture of people using this technique ... in a lake or ocean with NO surf! Some of local instructors teach their students this way and it's both frustrating and sad to see them rolling on their backs in the surf zone as a result of this poor technique. We call them 'turtles' because they are so often on their backs, struggling to get up.
Here's what we teach our students:
- The fundamental goal of entries and exits is to get through the surf zone as fast and safely as possible.
- You will NEVER be stronger than the ocean; the concept of "bracing yourself" against a wave of any significant size is simply stupid. Ditto for holding onto someone else, gauranteeing that both of you will get knocked over.
Instead, realize that all the power of a wave is at the top; kneel beneath a wave of almost any size and it will simply sweep over you.
- Enter & Exit the surf with your BC completely uninflated: you don't want to have an "inner tube" on your back when you need to kneel beneath a wave.
- Enter & Exit with your fins OFF, one in each hand, pre-set to the correct setting, with the straps folded down over the heel out of the way ... no matter the bottom composition (sand or rocks), you'll more sure-footed and faster without them.
- Enter & Exit the surf with your mask around your neck ... having it on your face when a big wave comes risks losing it all too easily.
- Enter & Exit with your reg NOT in your mouth. If you have to duck under a wave you will be u/w for seconds at most. One instructor at our shop says that there's been at least one reported case of a diver embolizing when taking a breath from a regulator just as a wave pounded them....like going from depth to the surface in seconds while holding your breath. I can't refute the story, but you don't really need the reg either. I like to clip it in an out of the way spot so that it doesn't get banged into my tank or in the sand.
- Watch the waves for at least 20 minutes to get a sense of them before entering ... can't tell you how many divers don't do this, enter thinking the waves are only 2', then exit to some 'boomers' in excess of 8'!
- Time the entry between sets if possible, walk quickly to chest deep water, put fins on (should take 2 - 10 secs), get on your back and paddle quickly through the surf zone. To put your fins on make a "figure 4" with your legs, putting the right fin on with the left hand and vice versa. Being chest-deep is important; if you get too shallow you will be akward and prone to falling over.
- If you mis-time the lull between sets you need to watch the wave to decide how to handle it. If it's "round" simply bounce up & let it sweep past. If it's going to be a "flat face" wave then you need to kneel on one knee & let it go over your head. Kneeling on one knee makes it easy to get back up quickly ... don't dive under them headfirst. The wave will actually suck you into & under itself, then spit you out the backside.
- NEVER try to run from a big wave ... the backwash alone will pretty much prevent this. If a wave is going to break before it gets to you, run AT it and then kneel. The worst place to be is where it breaks on top of you or just after, because all the energy at the top of the wave is directed in many different (i.e. uncontrollable) directions.
- The process is the reverse on exiting: stop in chest deep water and remove your fins. If you stop out too deep, use the fins in your hands as paddles to get to standing depth (sideways at end of arms). I like to "bounce" up & down to maintain contact with the bottom as the water height varies. Use the smaller waves to push you up to the beach. Never turn your back on the ocean, in case you have to "run at" a big wave.
- Once you make the decision to head for land, it better be all 'asses and elbows,' high-stepping out of the last few feet. A lot of beginner beach divers forget this, dwaddle, and get knocked down by a measly 2' wave.
- If all else faile, THEN crawl out on all 4 like a baby ... embarassing but effective.
- If you are diving a site with large rocks or uneven bottom, use the tide tables to do to at high tide; makes for a much safer & easier dive.
Shaka, how tall are you? hehe
