Learning to be a fish

[Azel]

I finally finished my open water certification Sunday!!! It took me a while to get past my anxiety of clearing my mask, but I'm really glad I pushed through it and didn't quit!!! I just bought most of my gear today, and am really excited to get in the water tomorrow for my first fun dive outside of class, and my first dive with my husband.

Azel (Happy new diver!!!)

 

[victorzamora]

Wooohooo!! Congratulations and welcome to the club!!

Now: remember, just because you got your cert doesn't mean you shouldn't practice skills you aren't comfortable with. Take a few dives to ge5 more comfortable and confident under water, and then get back to practicing skills. The skills they teach you and test you on have a real-world use. Don't get caught in the real world needing to perform a skill and not be prepared for it. I can tell you that after 9 years of diving, I still make sure that I am fully comfortable with all of those skills and practice them regularly. And then practice them mid water as well once you get comfortable on the3 bottom. Oh yeah, practice them on your belly, not your knees. Much more realistic angle.

I'll tell you it was EXPECTED of us to perform a mask swap in a cave, in a hover, 1000 ft back in my cave class. I'm glad I had practiced my mask remove and replace mid-hover hundreds of times before that. The instructor never considered that I wouldn't be fully comfortable with that skill.

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 2

 

[TSandM]

Azel, congratulations! I'm glad you stuck with it.

Victorzamora has it nailed -- you had issues with the mask skills, so they are something you should work on REGULARLY until they are a complete non-event. As my cave instructor said to me, "Just because you aren't good at something isn't a reason not to do it; it is a reason to do it more OFTEN!"

If you ever want to do a dive with more experienced buddy, drop me a line. It's not hard to twist my arm to get into the water . ..

 

[Azel]

Thank you Victorzamora and TSandM.

I plan on practicing every safety stop. Last night during the safety stop I attempted to practice with my mask while I was horizontal, it was difficult, so I cheated and move on my knees instead.

TSandM I will definitely message you. I am very interested to dive with you. As soon as I will have my own dry suit (debating between purchasing one soon or wait for the dive fair this July to buy one). I am definitely interested in meeting other people for my husband and I to dive with. Diving with people who have more experience can be highly instructive.

 

[Toad 5]

Congratulations on learning to be a fish. Be careful because its easy to get hooked! In response to the float test, we used our wetsuits with no fins or gear. It was mid November in Indiana and we did our float test in a pool. I also would like to add that Scubaboard is great for any information or opinion about scuba.

 

[TSandM]

Azel, did you certify in a dry suit? If so, PM me your size. I may have one you can borrow for a dive or two.