My First Near OOA

[openmindOW]

So what do you think I should have done differently?

Kevin, you're fine. Thank you for your kind words.

I don't blame you. I blame your buddy.

Personally, I am not sure that there is much that you could have done differently. Yes, it sounds like your weight was not correct, but that is a matter of practice and training.

Possibly, you could have been more emphatic in gestures to ascend, but that really was not your responsibility. Once you signalled low on air and you thumbed the dive, your buddy should have stuck with you.

I remain appalled at your Instructor-buddy's conduct. When one buddy in the team thumbs the dive, then the team's dive is over - no reciminations.

Keep diving, Kevin. And thank you for sharing our story with us on SB.

 

[danvolker]

So what do you think I should have done differently? I was low on air, underweighted, and I couldn't get my buddy's attention. Should I have waited until I was out of air? Maybe grabbed some kelp and hauled my butt back to the bottom and waited for my buddy to give up on finding a lobster?

/apology

Openmind, I reread your comments and realized my response here was out of line. I apologize.

After this dive I did insist on clear consistent rules. Subsequent dives were much more enjoyable and safer. My buddy and I stayed together until we were back at the boat. Because my gas consumption was still much higher than his, my buddy often continued the dive solo so he could focus on hunting. I also skipped dives so he could have uninterrupted hunting time.

Thanks for asking what we would do....now you are really in for it

Aside from your buddy having been a Rule number one violation ( he is unsafe for you) , in the future you will need to find buddies with similar interests on a dive, and air consumption that is closer....if your buddy has so much air that he can go back to the boat with you, and have plenty for another dive solo, clearly you are not going to be fun for him to dive with--you should not knowingly do this to another diver, it is not fair to them. And I'm not suggesting he should be solo diving

So, on this dive, your buddy was "not" working hard, and you were..thus the big difference in air useage???? was he lower to the bottom, or using his hands to pull on the rocks or sand and not work as hard in moving? You need to find a way to be more efficient...If he is doing something better than you, you need to figure out what it is, right away.
Are you swimming with too much air in your BC, head up and feet down body posture--pushing a bow wave..?...if you create a very flat horizontal swimming posture, you should get a kick and glide that will use less effort for a given speed, and less air.

Since you were buddied to an instructor, and would have been expecting to be worse on air than him, you should have discussed what would happen when you got to 1000 or 750 psi. If it is only 30 feet deep, and you are new, I don't see why he could not accompany you to on the surface, or close to the surface--close enough to know there are no kelp entanglement issues, and you are fine. Once on the surface, I don't believe you should need him to get back to the boat. While I can't condone his solo diving, I don't think that was a terrible event. I am more concerned with your clear "DISCOMFORT". Once on the surface, you had air, the seas were no problem ( or you would have mentioned it), and you should have been able to swim back to the boat. The fact that a safety diver had to PULL you back to the boat, tells me that what may be the biggest issue of the entire dive, is poor swimming efficiency..this could be lousy fins like split fins, it could be dragging too much bulk through the water, but ultimately, every diver has to be able to propel themselves efficiently....I think it is clear that this was not happening for you....we need to figure out why, fix it, and get you back in the water with a better buddy.

Regards,
DanV

 

[ianr33]

I had my first near out of air experience

How many are you intending to have?

 

[ScubaSteve]

How many are you intending to have?

:spit:

 

[kevindwhite]

:spit:

At least one more just for fun.

 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

In your original post you mention diving in "kelp infested water". Is there any chance you are not comfortable in kelp and this is also causing some problems like burning air - besides the out to lunch buddy?

The first fews dives in heavy kelp can be overwhelming, especially if you are in surge and/or current. If you can do a few dives under benign conditions it quickly becomes a welcome environment rather than in infestation.

 

[Shasta_man]

Without reading every post, I'd say:

- yes, you should try to go with divers that had similar interest as in, photogs and hunters usually make poor buddies for newer divers.
- however, your buddy was an idiot particularly if he is a divemaster, as in he should be especially aware of the concerns involved. When you dive as buddies, you dive as buddies, not dive until you don't see me anymore or I don't want to go where you are going. Particularly in cold water with kelp and the poor viz that usually accompanies that. You stick with your buddy, period. Otherwise that's how we read about finding you dead on the bottom with your reg out.
- you go through air faster in cold water because it takes more effort to move and keep warm. Adding unfamiliarity only makes it worse.
- if you are running low on air, get shallow, like 20 feet shallow. You can make 500 lbs last forever and you're just a short swim to the surface instead of a full CESA. Understood you tried but were underweighted, so see next point.
- at the end of the next dive or better before if possible, don't get on the boat right away. Purge air until 500 lbs. Then hold a normal breath with an empty BC, and look where you are floating. Your eyes should be floating right level with the surface. Not well above or bobbing below, right at the surface. If not, add or remove weight. A kilo can make a surprising amount of difference. If just a little above the surface, take off a kilo/lb. Float again. Keep adjusting until you get it right. Trying to add or take away and guessimate your weight for next dive doesn't work well. You will be amazed at how easy it is to move and hover when properly weighted. You even save air because you aren't adding and subtracting air during the dive. Write the weight down. Use that the next time but run through the same drill again because it can be different due to the conditions or where you are. Don't let any experts talk you out of this. Make sure your weights are distributed correctly like around you and the tank. Don't try to overweight yourself to get down at first. Learn to dump your breath, BC and cross your feet to get down.