Is PADI popular because it's cute?

[jamaicancowboy]

I never said the swimming requirements weren't required. My comment was that I think they're more of a way to weed out who is/isn't comfortable in the water. This is my own thought, not from any instructor I've ever talked to. My comment about SEALs was meant to show that different water disciplines (scuba, lifeguards, etc) require different and possibly more demanding skills.
Most impressive 5-point failure you've described, especially how you placed me 201 yards from safety. I thought I was safe for a second - Darn, I was within 1 yard of surviving. I'm not sure any diving agency trains divers for that failure scenario though.

 

[jamaicancowboy]

Thank you NudeDiver - it's a redundant, circular conversation that will last long after we're all gone.

Adios my friends

 

[Guba]

I just talked with a young man who just completed a scuba certification course and he is absolutely jubilant. He can't wait to get in the water with some of his classmates (and possibly a few other divers) to try out his new skills. Can this young man swim the 200 m in ten minutes with no aids? Nope. That would be extremely difficult considering he has no legs. You see, this fellow is part of the "wounded warrior" program for soldiers. He lost his legs in Iraq. But you should see the spirit and enthusiasm with which each of these new divers approached their cert course.

I'm not an instructor, but there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that I would apply the standard described earlier to these young people who have sacrificed so much. If I can be a part of this program in any way, you can bet your reg I'll be there.

While I appreciate Nemrod's sentiment, it seems a bit inflexible to me. And I say that as another WSI, Open Water Lifeguard, Facility Lifeguard, swimming instructor, and lifeguard trainer.

 

[Nemrod]

I just talked with a young man who just completed a scuba certification course and he is absolutely jubilant. He can't wait to get in the water with some of his classmates (and possibly a few other divers) to try out his new skills. Can this young man swim the 200 m in ten minutes with no aids? Nope. That would be extremely difficult considering he has no legs. You see, this fellow is part of the "wounded warrior" program for soldiers. He lost his legs in Iraq. But you should see the spirit and enthusiasm with which each of these new divers approached their cert course.

I'm not an instructor, but there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY that I would apply the standard described earlier to these young people who have sacrificed so much. If I can be a part of this program in any way, you can bet your reg I'll be there.

While I appreciate Nemrod's sentiment, it seems a bit inflexible to me. And I say that as another WSI, Open Water Lifeguard, Facility Lifeguard, swimming instructor, and lifeguard trainer.

I don't especially appreciate twisting my words around. I am completely in favor of teaching certain types of challenged people diving. All things, almost all things, can be overcome with adjustments and a hand up from a friend and while we are on the subject, one of the better long distance swimmers I have come across was a lady who was without use of her legs and trust me, 200 yards or 2,200 yards would be no problem for her and I am equally sure had she wished to dive I would have helped her and she would have been good at it.

Nonetheless, if a person of normal circumstances is really interested in a sport (hobby or whatever) then they should be interested enough to cross such a low hurdle as to swim 200 yards or even more given the FACT that you cannot breath underwater without machinery and sooner or later you will come upon a situation where dog paddling is insufficient.

I am really surprised that as a WSI you would not be pro water education since as a WSI teaching swimming and life saving is what we do (did) and you should know as a WSI the tragic consequences of not knowing how to swim adequately to survive so why would you encourage a non swimmer to take up scuba? At least over the course of instruction? Since most PadI courses are barely three days long or less, then it occurs to me that part of class preparation should be learning to swim beforehand since three days is not enough for both unlike during the past when scuba courses were 7 to 12 weeks of duration.

Circular, maybe, you still should know how to swim if you play in and on the water and 200 yards of fin/snorkel assisted dog paddling does not meet the threshold of "swimmer."

Anyways, enough of all that, sink or swim, you guys are grown ups and they do have those Darwin awards.

N

 

[Splitlip]

While I think PADI has it's issues, I don't think they are as bad as I have been reading. There was no way to say I walked in with a check and out with a c-card. I worked for it and have found thru diving that there is always more to learn. Diving is an ongoing learning experience where after almost every dive there is a new gem of knowledge and experience that was gained. Either by good example or bad.

Every diver MUST take responsibility for themselves and continue to learn. No matter who they got certed with.

Sorry to sound like an old codger, But I think today PADI, NAUI and SSI wil take your check and "pass" anybody so they do not have to refund the money.

(Sounding like my Dad). When I was certified in 1973 (NAUI) it meant something. People "failed" if they did not measure up, whether the class was paid or not.

I was a teen when I got my ticket, and proud of it. After certifiction my brother and I confidently took Dad's (NAUI certified himself) boat and skillfully did 80 footers.

Now answer truthfully. Would anybody allow their 10 or 12 year old PADI certified child do a real dive without you?

 

[SouthSideScubaSteve]

Like many others who’ve posted here, I got OW certified thru PADI because:

a) the LDS nearest to my home teaches PADI
b) I recognized the PADI name (back to the question raised in the OP) when I looked them up on the Web

From what I’ve read on the PADI website and in their literature, what PADI (and many of the other certifying agencies) has done is to split what 20 years ago was taught in one comprehensive “SCUBA” course into several courses. My OW instructor told me that when he was originally certified, the course covered what is today OW, AOW and most of the current Rescue course. It seems obvious to me that this was done for a several reasons

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1) to make it easier for the person who just wants to dive on vacation every year to be able to do so

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2) creating a tiered certification system makes it easier to get people to try SCUBA

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3) a progression of classes and training creates an established customer base of repeat customers

What PADI has also done that the others have not (at least not as well) is to market themselves and create brand name recognition among non-divers (read as potential customers). As someone who’s spent 20+ years in sales and marketing, that’s no small feat and at the end of the day, if that brings more people into the sport, I see that as a positive

SSSSteve

I don't know what the current watered down requirements are....

PS - Nemrod, just so you know what the “current watered down requirements” are, this is from the “course prerequisites” section of the PADI Open Water Diver Manual:

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“To become a SCUBA diver …float/tread water for 10 minutes and swim 200 meters/yards…”

FYI- a friend who got NAUI OW certified 1 year ago tells me the NAUI “swimming” prerequisites were virtually the same …

 

[Divedoggie]

There once was a diver from padi
Who went diving with another young laddy
the water was cold
and his reg it free flowed
and now he's pushin up daisies, eegaddy!

 

[NudeDiver]

There once was a diver from GUE
who said all other agencies were hooey
the diver was bold
his insults free-flowed
and now he's got no buddies - oh fooey!

 

[annasea]

<snip>

FYI- a friend who got NAUI OW certified 1 year ago tells me the NAUI “swimming” prerequisites were virtually the same …

Not quite as I remember from my NAUI OW certification 2 years ago... NAUI also requires an underwater swim.

 

[Zieg]

In my curiosity I just checked the Padi website.

"Before completing the PADI Open Water Diver course, your instructor will have you demonstrate basic waterskill comfort by having you swim 200 metres/yards (or 300 metres/yards in mask, fins and snorkel). There is no time limit for this, and you may use any swimming strokes you want."

I'm sorry, but to me that means swimming 200m is not required, you can opt for the 300m snorkel. You know, one OR the other. In my opinion, they are not the same. Walter has been trying to get some to understand this, but they get their blinders on and only see the 200m swim part or tell some story about how their instructor made them swim 200m.