sporket
Contributor
I'm sure everyone has more than one story to tell. This is mine:
Today, I took a leisure dive with a friend and a very experienced diver. First off, I have never dove this location before. I was using his tanks and boat (experienced diver). We arrived to dive site #1. I asked what our plan was, and was told were going to dive in a grid type pattern. No lines just a compass. So the three of us took off. The viz was LOW around 3-4 feet. No problem, I switch on my light and prepared to stick like glue. As we were skimming along the bottom, I saw the largest muscle I have ever seen. I just looked down a few seconds and poof I was alone. Totally calm, I looked around and found no one. I waited around 1 min looking, saw nobody. So I surfaced and found bubbles 15 yards off in the wrong direction. I did a surface swim and pounced. I reached the bottom and nada. Surfaced again, found more bubbles and pounced again. This time money. Never taking my eye off them. Finally, dive one over!
Second dive. We headed over to an underwater forest. Needless to say my gut was screaming NO. I'm diving a Zeagle Ranger LTD, absolutely nothing wrong this this BC. Its a great piece of equipment. But as you may know. it has so many straps and buckles it just begging to be snaged on somehthing. Coupled with the vizablity, I sould have made this a no dive. But, I'm in need of buddies right? So in we go. No dive plan, other than "were just gonna swim around a bit". I sateted lets keep this one shallow due to the viz. It wasn't 5 min into the dive and you guessed it I was seperated and was hung by one of my fins. A branch went straight through the hole on my jet, immobilizing me. I easly untangle myself surface and found my buddies chatting on the surface. That was it. I decided to stay within 10 of the boat and surface and work on my skills.
Others may dissagree, but if this dosen't scream I need more traning, then nothing ever will. Preferably DIR-F (at the least). Which is why this is posted in this section. I wanted to hear what others in DIR thought. Since this is my chosen path. I realise this is elementy diving to some of you guys/gals. To me it was a major concern.
1) Buddy seperation. This is simply not acceptablein my book. Not being harsh on the other divers. But, to them it was no big deal.
2) I was the only one using a light. Its in my mindset that this wasn't for enhancing my vizablity, but rather as a better refernce to where I was.
3) I need better planning. Plain and simple.
4) My equiptment. The BCD I was using in my mind isn't acceptable. Although I didn't have it snaged on anything was nothing short of a miracle.
Anything else I missed please enlighten me. I have tuff hide and can take the critism. Thanks to you my mindset is changing in how I dive.
PS: If this is an unacceptable post in this form please move it. This probably belongs in the DIR Practitioner's forum
Today, I took a leisure dive with a friend and a very experienced diver. First off, I have never dove this location before. I was using his tanks and boat (experienced diver). We arrived to dive site #1. I asked what our plan was, and was told were going to dive in a grid type pattern. No lines just a compass. So the three of us took off. The viz was LOW around 3-4 feet. No problem, I switch on my light and prepared to stick like glue. As we were skimming along the bottom, I saw the largest muscle I have ever seen. I just looked down a few seconds and poof I was alone. Totally calm, I looked around and found no one. I waited around 1 min looking, saw nobody. So I surfaced and found bubbles 15 yards off in the wrong direction. I did a surface swim and pounced. I reached the bottom and nada. Surfaced again, found more bubbles and pounced again. This time money. Never taking my eye off them. Finally, dive one over!
Second dive. We headed over to an underwater forest. Needless to say my gut was screaming NO. I'm diving a Zeagle Ranger LTD, absolutely nothing wrong this this BC. Its a great piece of equipment. But as you may know. it has so many straps and buckles it just begging to be snaged on somehthing. Coupled with the vizablity, I sould have made this a no dive. But, I'm in need of buddies right? So in we go. No dive plan, other than "were just gonna swim around a bit". I sateted lets keep this one shallow due to the viz. It wasn't 5 min into the dive and you guessed it I was seperated and was hung by one of my fins. A branch went straight through the hole on my jet, immobilizing me. I easly untangle myself surface and found my buddies chatting on the surface. That was it. I decided to stay within 10 of the boat and surface and work on my skills.
Others may dissagree, but if this dosen't scream I need more traning, then nothing ever will. Preferably DIR-F (at the least). Which is why this is posted in this section. I wanted to hear what others in DIR thought. Since this is my chosen path. I realise this is elementy diving to some of you guys/gals. To me it was a major concern.
1) Buddy seperation. This is simply not acceptablein my book. Not being harsh on the other divers. But, to them it was no big deal.
2) I was the only one using a light. Its in my mindset that this wasn't for enhancing my vizablity, but rather as a better refernce to where I was.
3) I need better planning. Plain and simple.
4) My equiptment. The BCD I was using in my mind isn't acceptable. Although I didn't have it snaged on anything was nothing short of a miracle.
Anything else I missed please enlighten me. I have tuff hide and can take the critism. Thanks to you my mindset is changing in how I dive.
PS: If this is an unacceptable post in this form please move it. This probably belongs in the DIR Practitioner's forum