Logged Dives

[Bob]

Watergal,
Pilots log everything in their logbook. N number of the plane, type plane, number of take off and landing, actual IFR, IFR on top, etc. etc. You get the picture. A pilots logbook is the legal record of his/her flights. A divers log is the same, it needs to be filled out accurately and completely. Like unwed, I log everything about my dive. I"ve been logging on my PC for the last two years, before that, a paper log. I have only logged 49 dives this year, at 44 minutes (average per dive) average depth 79 feet, with two dives of 128 and 122 ft. Average water temp, a bone chilling :cold: 80F. :tree:Bob

 

[watergal]

Thanks, LY. I used to live over another bridge in Thunder Bay, ONT. Do we have a name?:cold:

I am in full agreement with the problems with objectifing experience, my issue is with assessing potential dive buddies. I have not heard it was an issue with dive classes other than instructor-track-type professional courses. I am definitely not an angency type gal, but I am told that neither PADI, YMCA, ror NAUI have any requirement for number of dives to enter any non-professional track class and that SSI does only for AOW, which is probably appropriate (how can call someone an "advanced diver" after 9 dives?!). GUE might, but I have not been brave enough to face the flames :fire: from it's proponents and find out. I am sure someone here knows...

UW79: I log all that you mentioned, but I can't read my own writing! :doctor: Must investigate that PC thing!

Bob--Average of 80°??!! I want to be your buddy!

 

[Lost Yooper]

I pretty certain that ALL of the agencies have minimum logged dives they use as prerequisites to get into their courses. NAUI requires "minimum of 100 logged dives, 30 of which are deeper than 100 fsw (30 msw), in the environment in which the course is being taught" for their Extended Range class. Now, get ready for the flames from a GUE proponant ; GUE requires 75 dives for their Tech 1 course. Go get some first aid, eh!

I just don't like that type of system. I mean 75 dives in deep, murky, cold water utilizing a dry suit, is equivalant (in terms of task loading and effort) to a ton more dives in tropical paradise waters. Suppose that a cold water diver has 50 dives, 30 of which are with a dry suit, 5 of which are ice dives, and 10 of which are shipwreck penetrations. This wouldn't be out of line for a diver up here, and comparing that diver to a paradise diver of equal dives is nutts! I'd like to see more discretion (which may be there for all I know) on the part of the instructors to determine if a diver is ready for the class.

Mike

 

[Bob]

Watergal,
That's one of the perks of living and diving in Florida. If it's too cold where I'm at, the Keys are only a short trip away... Must be tough up North.:tease: :tree:Bob

 

[rebelrph]

I got cert. in 1997 and have made 62 dives to date with 25 of those since 5-14-01.

Todd

 

[watergal]

Originally posted by Lost Yooper
Now, get ready for the flames from a GUE proponant ; GUE requires 75 dives for their Tech 1 course....
I just don't like that type of system....
Mike

Hey, no arguement here. You are the proponent. You wanna be the one to tell the higher ups they may not quite be 'doing it right?' OUCH! I felt that from here!:yelling:

Ok, Bob, rub it in whydoncha. I was in Gainesville,FL for med school. Only perk I got was free cafeteria food. Sigh.

Regards!

 

[Lost Yooper]

Originally posted by watergal


You wanna be the one to tell the higher ups they may not quite be 'doing it right?

Maybe one of these days. The subject hasn't come up that I've seen. Since that's the only thing their not quite doing right, I might let them pass on it .

Take care.

Mike

 

[Walter]

I agree that type of dives are more important than total number. OTOH, I won't agree that dives in cold water are necessarily more advanced than dives in warm water, although they often are. If you make 1,000 dives on a shallow tropical reef you are very experienced in that environment, but not necessarily ready for a cold deep dive without guidance. OTOH, I've seen experienced cold water lake/quarry divers who were totally lost in a warm ocean. If your experience is all in cold water lakes & quarries, you need guidance in the ocean. Experience in one type of diving only carries over so far to another. Several years ago, we allowed a very experienced cave instructor to penetrate a wreck with us. Quite frankly, he was not prepared for that type of diving and nearly killed himself. OTOH, you'd never get me in a cave. I know enough about cave diving to know I am NOT qualified to make a cave dive.

As far as logging dives, I keep track of most things. I have a log on Excel that keeps track of dive #, location, date, depth, time, total time, average time, average depth, 100 ft or deeper, 60 ft or deeper, reef, artificial reef, wreck, fresh water, night, # this year, # this month, # at this location, total # of locations, cavern, solo, nitrox & %. I've never kept track of cold vs warm because I have no idea where to draw the line. I'm thinking of adding a column for viz < 3'.

DSSW,

WWW™

 

[Lost Yooper]

I suppose I may have generalized too much based on my experiences and other's I've talked to. Diving up here and diving in tropics is like night in day to me and other's I've talked to. It's like a dream in the tropics by comparison. I don't think there's any comparison in terms of task loading. Up here, it can feel more like work than fun sometimes. The only guidance I've needed in the tropics is for fish ID .

Mike

 

[socaldiver]

I have my Viper that has the dive info in it (still need to get the interface to download), plus I record everything on my paper logbook that goes everywhere with me. I write my starting psi and ending psi on my slate along with anything else of "interest" that may occur during the dive. I keep track of my weight and which wetsuit I am using. I don't transfer the information into my logbook until the end of the day when I am either snug in my home or my rack on the boat or my room at the lodging I am staying at.

When I do get home, I transfer all the information onto the Excel spreadsheet that Walter was so kind to share (although I have added a few more columns Walter mainly my SAC rate) and then I anxiously wait for my next adventure.