If You Were Hosting a Dive Day . . .

[seaducer]

It can take tact on the pro's part to disallow a diver who is keen and shows up based on the house rules, but it is pretty simple I think to say "my boss/shop/liability insurance won't allow it; besides I believe it to be unsafe for the following reasons..." You don't have to look 100% like the bad guy AND you can impart some knowledge.

Communication is all about language choice. IMO using a word like believe invites an argument (see what I mean). If you are fully convicted in your opinion, just state it that way with all the evidence you have. If you just have a bad feeling, blame the insurance, say it is in violation because "they think"{insert your own opinions here]. Hey, this is supposed to be a fun event, why invite a potential argument?

There are a couple state park facilities that disallow any solo diving. I respect that prohibition. Local public lakes have no such prohibition so I do as I please. One local shop tried to tell be I could not dive the lake solo. You just have to know the hand signal for "sure I can, watch me".:mooner:

This begs the question...if they are watching, are you still solo?:kiss2:

 

[halocline]

I participate in "shop" events frequently. Certain things like 60' depth limits, appropriate exposure protection, modern equipment (i.e. no vintage gear) and buddy systems are often enforced as "shop rules."

No vintage gear, huh? Who's the genius that thought of that one?

Yep, those old regs will kill you.

 

[Van Isle]

All I'm saying is there are some shops who place restrictions on how you participate with their pros on their sponsored "shop" dives, and this is how they deal with it. The OP was asking how he could deal with situations; this is one way I've seen it done.

Whether or not solo diving, vintage diving, etc, is "unsafe" is not really the question. It's more "how can I get folks to conform to standards set by me/my employer/land owner/insurer" whatever that standard may be.

VI

 

[DaleC]

I think VI is correct in the sense that a group can impose any rules it wants on an event it is sponsoring, whether they make sense or not. It's up to the individual to decide if they want to participate.

I guess it depends on how inclusive or exclusive the group wants to be. Some clubs/groups are non shop affiliated and can be more flexible while others are shop/agency directed and have a vested interest in towing a certain line. I was a member of one such club that tried to "over dictate" to its members (particularily the more active divers it turned out) and that group no longer exists.

If you are an agency affiliated group that does not endorse soloing I can see the conflict but I have a harder time with the vintage ban. Who determines whether a peice of gear or technique is unsafe or not?