New PSAI Programs

[Trace Malinowski]

As of 2011, I accepted an offer with PSAI that has been on the table for quite awhile and took on the role of International Training Director for the Americas. Most of you have considered PSAI, "the deep air agency," and rightly so due to Hal Watts' long-standing involvement with that aspect of the sport. However, there are several changes coming to PSAI. Gary Taylor became the majority owner and he's busy tweaking all materials, standards, philosophy, etc.

Recently, I helped develop the PSAI Advanced Buoyancy course by co-writing the Advanced Buoyancy, Trim, and Technique manual with Gary Taylor. The manual and power point presentations are a step by step analysis of skills that are similar to GUE Fundies, UTD Essentials, and TDI Intro to Tech. Unlike fundies and essentials, equipment removal and replacement are also part of the training since the philosophy of PSAI is that every diver be both team-oriented as well as self-sufficient. There are also some other skills that are not taught in the other programs.

In January, I beta-tested a new PSAI Sport Trimix program which will allow students who have completed the Advanced Buoyancy course to choose to move to trimix rather than air and nitrox for dives to 150 feet. The gas mixtures allow for 18% to 40% oxygen in the back gas and up to 100% oxygen in the deco gases.

PSAI will continue to offer Advanced Nitrox, Extended Range, and Narcosis Management programs. While these programs are highly encouraged, they are not required. The narcosis management program is "highly encouraged" to Level III which is 150 feet on air. Levels after that are available for those who wish to gain experience - especially for those explorers in remote regions who do not have access to trimix.

While deep air will always be controversial, understanding and experience will allow its use to be another tool in a diver's toolbox.

The new philosophy of PSAI is to allow divers to make possibly safer choices, yet not limit them or deny them access to information, procedures, or training in all aspects of sport, technical, and public safety diving. The new public safety diving program is structured after the commercial diving world. Divers may enter scuba training in a unique public safety diving level 1 course that is comparable to open water for rescue professionals. Level 1 divers are surface support during operations, but may also assist in diving, much like tenders in commercial diving. Doug Phillips is PSAI's public safety diving director. He may be contacted with any questions regarding that program.

I decided to assume this role to help make our sport safer. If anyone has any suggestions, gripes, ideas, for bettering technical diving standards, please let me know.

 

[Blackwood]

Good news, Trace. I hope with your new purview you'll be able to affect meaningful change on dive training.

 

[rjack321]

Scrap the name "narcosis management" its a flat out lie.

Next question?

 

[Dive-aholic]

Trace, I hope you can have a positive impact on PSAI. I became a PSAI instructor a couple of years ago because I was looking for an agency that would allow me to teach classes in sidemount. PSAI was willing to do that. About a month later IANTD released updated standards that allowed me to teach in sidemount. A few months later, at DEMA, I did a cross-over to TDI, which also allows teaching in sidemount.

I finally dropped PSAI this year for a few different reasons.

First, whenever I mentioned PSAI to any of my students, none had heard of the agency and weren't interested in a cert.

Then I found out one of PSAI's new manuals (not yet released yet) is being written by someone with very little experience in that particular subject area of diving.

Finally, I found out PSAI's standards for making instructors are very low. While I knew that the process for me to become a PSAI instructor was much easier than any other agency I teach through, I didn't realize just how desperate they appear to make instructors. All I had to do was send in copies of my current instructor ratings and I was crossed over to be able to teach all of the same/similar courses. Then recently I found out PSAI doesn't require new technical/overhead instructors to have any teaching experience like most other agencies. The agencies I currently teach through all required some previous experience teaching recreational courses before they would consider me as a technical or overhead instructor candidate. PSAI is the exception and it only reeks of desperation to fatten its instructor ranks.

To be clear, this is not something I would post in the open forum. I post it back here because this is a private area only viewable by certain people. But you did ask. Hopefully you can have a positive impact on PSAI and make it a more respectable agency. Maybe one day I'll return to its instructor ranks, but until things change, I prefer to teach through agencies that have higher standards.

 

[ucfdiver]

I decided to assume this role to help make our sport safer. If anyone has any suggestions, gripes, ideas, for bettering technical diving standards, please let me know.

Doesn't sound like it, unless you scrap the deep air and solo courses.

Frankly this smells fishy, your posts seem to be namedropping GUE/DIR guys and implying DIR when it sells courses (I'd bet that 10-20% of your posts use Bob's name), and reeling it back in (solo, deep air) when you become involved in an agency that needs these to sell courses. People are dying solo/deep air on a somewhat regular basis, so I hope the tuition $$$ makes it worth it when the inevitable happens.

 

[Trace Malinowski]

Good news, Trace. I hope with your new purview you'll be able to affect meaningful change on dive training.

Marc, thanks! I was really feeling on top of the world today. I underwent a successful virectomy in New York City on my right eye yesterday, then I came home and logged into T2T and I thought more people would be happy for me and happy that I took this job.

Scrap the name "narcosis management" its a flat out lie.

Next question?

So, deep air diving is okay as long as the organization calls it something else?

Trace, I hope you can have a positive impact on PSAI. I became a PSAI instructor a couple of years ago because I was looking for an agency that would allow me to teach classes in sidemount. PSAI was willing to do that. About a month later IANTD released updated standards that allowed me to teach in sidemount. A few months later, at DEMA, I did a cross-over to TDI, which also allows teaching in sidemount.

I finally dropped PSAI this year for a few different reasons.

First, whenever I mentioned PSAI to any of my students, none had heard of the agency and weren't interested in a cert.

Then I found out one of PSAI's new manuals (not yet released yet) is being written by someone with very little experience in that particular subject area of diving.

Finally, I found out PSAI's standards for making instructors are very low. While I knew that the process for me to become a PSAI instructor was much easier than any other agency I teach through, I didn't realize just how desperate they appear to make instructors. All I had to do was send in copies of my current instructor ratings and I was crossed over to be able to teach all of the same/similar courses. Then recently I found out PSAI doesn't require new technical/overhead instructors to have any teaching experience like most other agencies. The agencies I currently teach through all required some previous experience teaching recreational courses before they would consider me as a technical or overhead instructor candidate. PSAI is the exception and it only reeks of desperation to fatten its instructor ranks.

To be clear, this is not something I would post in the open forum. I post it back here because this is a private area only viewable by certain people. But you did ask. Hopefully you can have a positive impact on PSAI and make it a more respectable agency. Maybe one day I'll return to its instructor ranks, but until things change, I prefer to teach through agencies that have higher standards.

Rob,

I really have a lot of respect for you and the fact that you were a PSAI instructor caused me to look into the organization. When I did my crossover, Gary Taylor contacted my references and my instructors and instructor trainers. While I think every agency should demand in-water evaluation, doing that impressed me compared to one popular tech organization you mentioned that just wanted my credit card.

Here's the real deal as you and I both know it. Every agency suffers from quality control problems. An agency like PADI makes every instructor get in the water, yet PADI is often the butt of Internet jokes. GUE is known for quality control, yet GUE instructors have taught many bad classes and some have been dismissed. All other agencies fall somewhere in the middle. An agency is only as good as its people. PSAI took a chance on you and from my experience watching you teach, chose a quality instructor.

I didn't know you had left the organization, I kind of had you in mind as one of the PSAI instructors who could help with improving that quality-control.

As for the book, I know the story and when it comes out I think you'll feel slightly differently. Once it's published let's discuss it.

Doesn't sound like it, unless you scrap the deep air and solo courses.

Frankly this smells fishy, your posts seem to be namedropping GUE/DIR guys and implying DIR when it sells courses (I'd bet that 10-20% of your posts use Bob's name), and reeling it back in (solo, deep air) when you become involved in an agency that needs these to sell courses. People are dying solo/deep air on a somewhat regular basis, so I hope the tuition $$$ makes it worth it when the inevitable happens.

James,

PSAI doesn't support solo diving. PDIC does. According to Panos GUE honors solo diving cards for the reason that if GUE doesn't honor theirs they won't honor GUE's. Or, would you consider that name-dropping? I love to solo dive. If I didn't, I'd just become a GUE instructor. I like the freedom to choose to dive when, how, and with whom (or not) I want to dive. Sometimes that's in a team with DIR protocols and sometimes that's alone. I have always supported a diver's right to choose what tools or philosophies he or she wants to follow.

I really resent your post.

 

[LiteHedded]

Marc, thanks! I was really feeling on top of the world today. I underwent a successful virectomy in New York City on my right eye yesterday, then I came home and logged into T2T and I thought more people would be happy for me and happy that I took this job.



So, deep air diving is okay as long as the organization calls it something else?



Rob,

I really have a lot of respect for you and the fact that you were a PSAI instructor caused me to look into the organization. When I did my crossover, Gary Taylor contacted my references and my instructors and instructor trainers. While I think every agency should demand in-water evaluation, doing that impressed me compared to one popular tech organization you mentioned that just wanted my credit card.

Here's the real deal as you and I both know it. Every agency suffers from quality control problems. An agency like PADI makes every instructor get in the water, yet PADI is often the butt of Internet jokes. GUE is known for quality control, yet GUE instructors have taught many bad classes and some have been dismissed. All other agencies fall somewhere in the middle. An agency is only as good as its people. PSAI took a chance on you and from my experience watching you teach, chose a quality instructor.

I didn't know you had left the organization, I kind of had you in mind as one of the PSAI instructors who could help with improving that quality-control.

As for the book, I know the story and when it comes out I think you'll feel slightly differently. Once it's published let's discuss it.



James,

PSAI doesn't support solo diving. PDIC does. According to Panos GUE honors solo diving cards for the reason that if GUE doesn't honor theirs they won't honor GUE's. Or, would you consider that name-dropping? I love to solo dive. If I didn't, I'd just become a GUE instructor. I like the freedom to choose to dive when, how, and with whom (or not) I want to dive.

I really resent your post.

what does that mean? honors them how?

 

[Tegg]

Trace,

How many of the "new" instructors for PSAI in the last 12 months did not have to do any type of IDC?

Just wondering because if an organization simply allows instructors to "crossover" from another agency with no in water and in session training, then I fail to see where the "difference" will come from for the PSAI program. It would simply be a "rebrand" of another agency's training program, wouldn't it?

I do not know the answers to the above, which is why I am asking... but I have heard several things through the grapevine and want to clear them up and I figure this type of "closed" forum is the better place to discuss this.

 

[Trace Malinowski]

what does that mean? honors them how?

You can't get tossed out of GUE if you dive solo with an SDI or PDIC solo diver card. You are not GUE's problem at that point. Without a card, you can.

 

[Trace Malinowski]

Trace,

How many of the "new" instructors for PSAI in the last 12 months did not have to do any type of IDC?

Just wondering because if an organization simply allows instructors to "crossover" from another agency with no in water and in session training, then I fail to see where the "difference" will come from for the PSAI program. It would simply be a "rebrand" of another agency's training program, wouldn't it?

I do not know the answers to the above, which is why I am asking... but I have heard several things through the grapevine and want to clear them up and I figure this type of "closed" forum is the better place to discuss this.

SDI/TDI allows the same thing. I don't agree with it in most cases.