Is there any sort of "rebreather experience" programs out there?

[Jimmer]

Dave's in British Columbia,...bit of a commute.

Not exactly an afternoon trip for me

 

[MrPersonallity]

Dive rite has a Tech Tour going on in different parts of the country this year, They are doing Optima experience with the tour.

 

[Jimmer]

Unfortunetly for me, they aren't coming to Canada according to their list of stops.

 

[MrPersonallity]

Hell, most of the Canadians are down here now any way , so whats one more? No one is gonna drop a unit in your front yard, you may have to travel to get what you want. I drove to Florida to try one. You know what? I dont regret it. I own 2 rebreathers and am looking at upgrading both to the new electronics, The technology lit a new fire to the sport for me.
Maybe Silent Diving has got something going on up there. if not , winter is coming , so take a trip south.

 

[wedivebc]

Just a little caveat to those taking a RB experience. When I first went in the pool on my initial RB training I hated it. My buoyancy sucked, breathing was way different than through a regulator, and I kept hearing all those voices "these things will kill you".
If I hadn't paid for the training I may have walked away right there. It was later during the training I started to feel in tune with the equipment and wasn't until training was nearly complete that I felt I might actually like diving a RB.
A while ago I was invited to Edmonton to conduct a RB tryout by a dive shop there. I did 4 days of pool work with various groups of divers. One group were very experienced tech divers who wanted to look at RBs due to the nature of some of their expeditions. Afterwards these divers commented that the megalodon was hard to breath, lacked the ability to trim and generally made them feel uncomfortable.
The point is that an hour or so in the pool will not give you a most favourable impression and you can expect you will feel out of your element when first diving one. The advantages of diving RB become more apparent when you have the freedom of movement the open water provides and when you get to experience first hand warm moist breathing gas, and really long bottom times without having to worry about how long your air supply will last. Then you will apppreciate the experience. I am hoping to be able to provide such and experience by next summer once I can get the training agency and insurance underwriters to sign off on it and insure I can conduct the program safely.
Anyway bottom line if you do a RB experience keep an open mind. You may love it but if you don't you might need to try again.

 

[Curt Bowen]

I've been fascinated by rebreathers since I was about 14, and now that I'm through college, I might actually have the means to get into rebreather diving within the next couple years. But before then, I'd like to actually try one, and see if it is for me, and also get a chance to compare the various brands and see which one would be the best unit for me. Is there any programs like this running, and how would I find out about them?

Thanks,
Jim

Where do you live Jim

I would like to come to Canada

 

[Jimmer]

Hi Curt, I live in Waterford Ontario. It's a small town about 15 km north of Port Dover on Lake Erie. Do you have any plans in the works yet for Canada?

 

[Thalassamania]

Just a little caveat to those taking a RB experience. When I first went in the pool on my initial RB training I hated it. My buoyancy sucked, breathing was way different than through a regulator, and I kept hearing all those voices "these things will kill you".

That's the god's honest truth.

 

[PerroneFord]

That's the god's honest truth.

LOL! I was so busy trying to maintain my setpoint (manual ascent), manage the buoyancy in the bags, keep trim, and blow through my nose (no bubbles?), that I couldn't hear the little voices in my head...

Honestly, the drysuit is harder to manage I think. But at least it's not trying to kill me.

 

[almity1]

and I kept hearing all those voices "these things will kill you".

That is called "Respect"