Mentoring a new diver the minimalist way

[Blackwood]

I've said it before and I'll likely say it again (provided I don't get too bored):

Most every diver is a minimalist. There aren't a whole lot of folks out there who bring more gear than they deem necessary.

The difference lies is in the defining of necessary gear.

While you can break down different dive objectives to define gear requirements, at the end of the day, SCUBA diving requires a body of water, an air source and a way to breathe it. Nothing else. So if you have a mask, you are diving beyond bare minimums. If you have fins, you are diving beyond bare minimums. Etc., ad nauseam, yada blah blah.

"But I want my hands to be free." Great. If having your hands free is an objective, bring a harness to affix the tank to your person.
"But I want to be able to see." Great. If seeing is an objective, bring a mask.
"But I want to be able to move easily." Great. If moving easily is an objective, bring fins.
"But I don't want to be cold." Great. If warmth is an objective, bring an exposure suit.

Wanna dive without a BC? Diving a profile that supports it? Great, go for it. Wanna dive with a BC? Great, go for it.

But doing one or the other isn't a sign of some great spiritual enlightenment (LOL @ zen). It's a choice, no more, no less.

 

[gonphishing]

here is a nice shot of a free dive suit

 

[Nemrod]

Well, there is minimalism and then there is real minimalism. I saw zen being used in reference to DIR on this board because of their minimal equipment reliance and encumbrance, since some of us in this thread really are far more minimal we must then rightfully claim the title, zen minimalist, we are more zen-er than thou.

Hey, Mr. Gonphising, were did you get that thar rubber suit of yours? it is godawful hard to find a beaver tail suit with no stupid graphics all over my rear and chest and legs and arms and back and butt. I would feel a lot more minimal with that suit!

You know, it occurs to me that some don't understand that diving without an inflatable flotation airbag is in fact a system. You don't shore dive without a surface float for example (except where there is kelp etc). Swimming with a depleted tank, using a snorkel is very easy due to the buoyancy of the properly weighted diver. Properly weighted for no BC diving is not the weighting scheme most modern BC dependent divers learn in their PadI three hour wonder program. Why does that some of us can do without a BC most of the time intimidate so many to the point of rabid mouth foaming?

N

 

[gonphishing]

Hey, Mr. Gonphising, were did you get that thar rubber suit of yours? it is godawful hard to find a beaver tail suit with no stupid graphics all over my rear and chest and legs and arms and back and butt. I would feel a lot more minimal with that suit!

thats !!!
M & B wetsuits out of long beach ca.
call Don at
1--562-422-3493
old school baby!! tell them Eric from nor cal sent you!!!

1

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

Hawaiian Backpacks were a standardly available item back when. They were hardly "crude," they were well thought out and rather well manufactured (at least the ones I used) with curved shoulder pieces that were padded with thin neoprene and cotter pin/hole adjustments....

Ooops, my bad! Again, dang it..... That is the 2nd time in one thread that I should have chosen my words more carefully

I'm "verbally-challenged" I guess.

You are of course right. Substitute "early" for crude. It really was well made and a good, simple design. Mine had a single, stainless steel band with an adjustible cam-type clamp that held the tank securely, and like you said, padded curved shoulder pieces. I really loved mine, and thought it was great for small-boat diving (easy to don/doff in the water).

 

[gonphishing]

one more for the bug divers.

M&B rules

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

With my 7mm M&B I can easily backpack dive because it's made out of some really dense stuff not available on an off-the-rack dive shop suit.
With my 1/2" Rubatex M&B monster truck tire suit it's pretty hard to backpack in it so I throw on a mach V when I dive with that. I use the 1/2" when the water get's down in the 40"s and or want to do 3 or more dives in a day.

The 7mm was around $650 and the 1/2" was around $1000, that included shipping on both.
But I got premium suits with kevlar on knees and elbows, spine pads, stainless twist locks for the beaver tails, and 3/4 center front zippers.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I think that's great man. Do you guys advocate anything specific for your group's concept of minimalism or is it freeform? Are there things you for sure do/do not like to see as far as configuration, skills, etc?

The main thing will be no BC's, just a backpack. That's the whole point of this exercise.
The other things that wouldn't work well would be drysuits, split fins.
They can use whatever else they have, we don't care. They can use octos and buddy dive if they want, that's not my call, if they like their computers, whatever.
The main thing is no BC.
I threw no drysuits or split fins in there because those two items wouldn't work well with backpacking.
The rest of the stuff doesn't matter right now. With this guideline they will at least get the jist of what backpack diving is all about.

Just to reiterate, all these are certified divers with many dives already under their belts on the North Coast, so it's not like they're green.

 

[novicediver]

Why the beavertails vs full suits? Does more water leak into the beaver tail suits?

 

[DaleC]

Why no drysuits?