I drank the GUE Fundies Kool-Aid and survived!!

[drbill]

I guess we can't buddy up in the future, Sam, since I'm the poster boy for non-DIR diving. I do feel there is much good philosophy in it, but I just can't stomach the name. GUE and unified team diving is fine with me though.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

While I agree with you, I can promise you there were (are)a lot more DIR horses rears than just one. There were several on this board who would attack a non-DIR diver at any oppertunity, thankfully they are gone and this board was a lot more civil than others. Most of the problems came from fresh out of DIR-F students sucked down way too much coolaid.

Sometimes it's difficult to convey enthusiasm over an internet forum without coming off in an unintended way. When a newly DIRF'ed diver asks "why wasn't I taught this way from the beginning", many who have no exposure to DIR take that as a slam against conventional training. It wasn't necessarily always the case, even though it may have appeared so.

In our local community we adopted a voluntary "30-day gag rule" ... where the newly DIRF'ed were asked to "chill" for 30 days before going online and proclaiming the merits of their newly discovered abilities. That gave them time to not only temper their enthusiasm a bit, but also come to realize that the Fundamentals class really is just an introduction to DIR, and by no means makes them experts or elite divers. I think such an approach saved many misunderstandings, and left the dive community outside of DIR with a lot less reason to feel animosity toward the DIR "newbies" who might otherwise have come across like a bunch of "know it alls".

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[JeffG]

and left the dive community outside of DIR with a lot less reason to feel animosity toward the DIR "newbies" who might otherwise have come across like a bunch of "know it alls".

Yes...so the real "know it alls" could ply their trade.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

The point re: baseline skills for Fundies bears repeating. I took the same DIR-F class as Sam and Henrik. Not having mastered the requisite buoyancy and trim skills PRIOR to class, I flamed out. Spectacularly.

While I did my very best to maintain a positive, cheerful outlook - and especially to be as helpful a teammate as possible despite my prodigious shortcomings - the experience has left me absolutely crushed.

I apologize to my classmates for taking up their time as I struggled with the most basic of skills.

Oooohhhhh ... don't apologize. What you experienced isn't at all uncommon.

I had over 900 dives when I took Fundies for the first time. Note I just said "for the first time".

At the time I was pretty happy with my skills, had been diving with DIR folks for a few years, and thought I'd pass easily.

Silly me ... my ego got pulped, and it took me a while to start feeling good about diving again, but in the long run it made me a better diver.

I took Fundies again with a different instructor a year later and was much happier with the result.

If nothing else, the class will have showed you where you need improvement, and given you some tools to achieve it. Now all it needs is a good dive buddy and some hours of bottom time ... and, of course, a positive attitude.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Only thing I can add; DIR is for everyone in my opinion, however some people may choose not do dive the philosophy for various reasons.

I know, it's a matter of semantics I suppose, but when I hear the phrase " it's not for everyone " it makes me think, "oh but it is," to my mind it's a matter of choosing weather you want to improve your diving or not.

I'll disagree ... first off, I know some real kick-ass skilled divers who are nowhere near DIR standards. That doesn't make them any less skilled or less safe than their DIR counterparts ... they simply decided to go down a different road.

Secondly, there is nothing unique about DIR. It's simply a packaging of skills and techniques ... most of which had been developed specifically for cave-diving and applied to other environments.

It's quite possible to improve your diving without going the DIR route. DIR is a very effective way to become a skilled diver ... but it is far from the only way.

For my own part, after a couple of classes and a few workshops, I decided that GUE wasn't the right way for me to achieve my objectives. Having experienced how the program works, I felt it wasn't the best fit for my learning style. That by no means is an indication that I think one program is inherently "better" than another ... it's a great system and I recommend it frequently to my students as a great way to develop their skills. But I also recognize that some people are going to develop better using other approaches.

We're all different ... there simply IS no one-size-fits-all approach to skills development that's going to work best for everybody.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[BabyDuck]

Yes...so the real "know it alls" could ply their trade.

you, or bob?

 

[TSandM]

Many of the great things that come out of Fundamentals training could be taught with any agency, and are, if the instructor is so minded: It is truly about simple things done with precision. Every diver, in my opinion, would benefit from the ability to clear a mask in the water column without losing buoyancy control or losing his buddies. Everybody who ever dives off a boat would be well served to know how to shoot a bag, and do it in a controlled, smooth fashion. Everybody who ever dives near a silty or sandy bottom should know some kicks that avoid degrading the visibility, and the back kick is simply an incredibly useful thing to know how to do.

Where GUE training goes beyond that is with the standardization of gases and equipment (which I really enjoy, because it saves so much time and fuss in the pre-dive) and in the intense emphasis on situational awareness and team. It's also unusual in that the standards for any level of training are stated and quantified, and you don't pass if you don't reach them.

The end result is that you end up diving in a low-stress situation, where the reactions of everybody on the dive are more predictable than random. It's fun. I tend to be baffled at the resistance of people who DON'T want to dive this way, but it's because it suits me so superbly well. At any rate, Fundies is a fabulous class for polishing diving skills, becoming a better buddy, and having more fun in the water.

 

[Belmont]

I have trained with an instructor who was with JJ, Lamar Hires and Sheck Exley when they started in the early days. He works with IANTD and teaches the same curiculum as GUE. I have covered all the basics up to intro-cave.

I was lucky to have been able to get my instruction on a one to one basis, adapted to my speed of learning.

The problem I am now facing is that I have to look for like minded dive buddies, not easy to find.

I can say that I have not enjoyed as much the last dives I have done with beginners. I am now 58, I started at 56.

 

[contender]

I have trained with an instructor who was with JJ, Lamar Hires and Sheck Exley when they started in the early days. He works with IANTD and teaches the same curiculum as GUE. I have covered all the basics up to intro-cave.

I was lucky to have been able to get my instruction on a one to one basis, adapted to my speed of learning.

The problem I am now facing is that I have to look for like minded dive buddies, not easy to find.

I can say that I have not enjoyed as much the last dives I have done with beginers. I am now 58, I started at 56.

And who would this instructor be.... LB??

 

[DevonDiver]

I had over 900 dives when I took Fundies for the first time. Note I just said "for the first time". At the time I was pretty happy with my skills, had been diving with DIR folks for a few years, and thought I'd pass easily.
Silly me ... my ego got pulped.....

That's an excellent validation for the course!

Any training that challenges your preconceptions about your ability and skill is always a worthwhile endeavor.