Importance of Self Reliance

[agilis]

The answer to this question is yes... and they are right to make that assumption.

No I am not saying you are an idiot but it is a sign of a competent DM that they take the time to check divers gear. There are many more stories of divers going over the side without checking their gear and having a failure than there are of DMs screwing up divers gear.

I appreciate that you are careful but a dive operator cannot and should not make that assumption unless they are familiar with your habits.

And I am right to make the assumption that the DMs are incompetent, bored, and likely to make errors. Most are not and do not, but then neither do most paying customers fail to open their own valve.

I think the excessive double checking of each customer's equipment has made many vacation only divers, especially the newer crop, into completely non-self reliant divers who actually expect the DMs to set all their equipment up for them, hold their hand during the dive, and keep track of their air consumption. This is what I had in mind when I wrote "when I look around me".

The DM may have good reasons to check my equipment because (s)he does not know me, But since I don't know her or him I make sure I double check anything they do that concerns my equipment. I will stop at the boats edge and recheck my valve and anything else that was touched by anyone other than me. I make the assumption that I'm smarter, more competent, and have better diving skills than they do, and I'm generally correct. I am polite unless they get surly. It cuts both ways.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Yeah, people make silly mistakes. Solo divers make silly mistakes and members of buddy teams also make silly mistakes. However, the chance that both members of a buddy team make the same silly mistake at the same time is much lower than a single person making a silly mistake. Just saying.

Oh, I know you're "just saying": I love it when people assert as fact what they haven't even really thought through as theory. What makes you so sure about that as an absolute matter? Perhaps the incidence of silly mistakes is higher for buddies, who are more complacent about check procedures than solos, who generally have the consequences of a screw-up at the forefront of their minds during pre-dive prep and planning. It's at least a good a theory as yours, and I've avoided couching it as fact without a shred of evidence for such a statement.

---------- Post added August 27th, 2013 at 01:22 PM ----------

If you do that, then you're not a buddy team.

lol If a team makes a mistake, they aren't really a fair example of a team; if a solo makes a mistake, it's proof of why the very idea of solo diving is inherently more dangerous. You and Peter Guy crack me up.

 

[Chilly_Dipper]

And I am right to make the assumption that the DMs are incompetent, bored, and likely to make errors. Most are not and do not, but then neither do most paying customers fail to open their own valve.

Absolutely. I never meant to imply that you were not responsible for checking your own gear and sorry will be the DM who tries to adjust my gear without my express consent. But getting mad at the staff for doing a little due diligence is just silly.

---------- Post added August 30th, 2013 at 12:37 PM ----------

I dont think i am alone on this.... What concern does a DM have when he is not in the water and guiding a group. Do DM's not read the waivers we all have to sign. We the divers are FORCED to make all but our selves faultless if we want to dive on your boat or site.

If this were true then we wouldn't have lawyers now would we.

Signing a liability release form in fact does not relieve a company of liability. They still must ensure they take ALL steps possible to ensure whatever activity is being partaken in is done in as safe as a manner as possible.

BUT as I stated above I pity the dive boat staffer that touches my gear without my consent first and I still do my checks before dropping off the boat.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

Good stuff from the OP. Not everyone is a solo diver. Buddy checks become redundant self checks, and even this experienced solo diver did not do an adequate one on the surface. He corrected with a clear head. Better not to have a situation allowed to correct. I have dove solo, and I prefer a buddy: not just for there presence, but for heightened awareness for myself in dive prep, pre-dive check, and the dive. To each their own. Just be safe.
DivemasterDennis