Newbie in need of Opinions

[northcoast_diver]

...As I look back, even tho I had no interest in diving until a couple of months ago, I think I have been mentally training for a year. What with all the discussions and studying with BF. I felt relaxed during my dives because for over a year I have heard and read "as long as you can breath...." and "never never hold your breath" These things are so ingrained in my mind that, that I have been able to stay calm in all situations so far. Even in my confined water when I found my self tipping heels over head and when I started going up when I removed my gear on the pool floor.
...
Lisa

Learning to scuba is just more training along the lines of swimming on the surface, then swimming underwater, then snorkeling on the surface, then freediving underwater. As you play in the water, you get more comfortable with it.

Almost everyone learned to swim through lessons. Those who did not typically do not develop better swimming skills than the dog paddle. Scuba is the same way.

Wearing a mask is immeasurably more comfortable than being blinded by trying to see underwater without a mask. Eventually, the mask becomes your window on the underwater world, and it does not seem claustrophobic anymore to you. It just takes getting used to. Same with the mouthpiece on both the snorkel and on the 2nd stage reg.

If you take slow steps, like you have been doing, you will learn very thoroughly, and it will be fun all along the way. And the more you scuba, the better you will get.

You are actually a very cautious but ideal student, because you think.

 

[ScubaNorth]

1. I log every dive.

2. Yeah sounds like that was way out of line.

3. This jerk needs a lesson. If he did these things to me, it would be the last time he did it to anyone.

 

[pasley]

... Also a friend who is recently Rescue Certified was to stay near us too. He kept messing with my BF. Jerking his reg out of his mouth, pulling the marker bouy down and hooked the line under my bf tank and letting go, causing him to shoot up a little before grabbing him, pushed my BF into another group of ow students and scaring them half to death. My BF finally pulled his knife on this guy. He backed off then. At the surface he claimed it was all in fun and that my BF should consider it good practice. ... This same guy helped out in the Rescue class. He went with the AI who was going to be the unconscious diver at depth. Unbeknown to the AI, this guy tied a wire around his leg and to the wreck then left him to “get help”. When the “rescuers” found the diver, they couldn’t move him and when they tried, the wire tightened up on his leg. Luckily, they discovered the problem and was able to “rescue”him. ...

Lose this loosers name and never be in the water when he is. He will eventually kill someone or get them bent or embolised, all in "good fun" or "practice". He is an inmature self-centered jerk and should not be certified. I will bet he would not be too happy if someone returned the favor on a dive and hooked him to a buoy or turned off his air.

If I had been the victum of the wire trick I would be filing attempted murder charges with the local police assuming he was still alive after I got back to the boat. What an idiot!

The remainder of your questions have been well answered. I log a dive if I get wet. Sometimes you drop down and the vis is just not there and you abort the dive. I still log it. But theat is me. I did not log the pool work.

 

[mstudley]

3. During my OW cert dives, I swam next to the instructor and my BF stayed behind and above in case I panicked. Also a friend who is recently Rescue Certified was to stay near us too. He kept messing with my BF. Jerking his reg out of his mouth, pulling the marker bouy down and hooked the line under my bf tank and letting go, causing him to shoot up a little before grabbing him, pushed my BF into another group of ow students and scaring them half to death. My BF finally pulled his knife on this guy. He backed off then.

If anyone ever pulled this junk with me they would have gotten the knife in the leg. Not kidding. There is nothing fun/funny/educational/useful about his actions. All he was doing was putting your BF's life in danger. Real nice.

My advice would be to avoid him at all costs when it comes to diving and not to be afraid to use your knife when appropriate

 

[Garyra]

Gratz on your C-card Lisa. Diving has become an obsession for me in a very short period of time. It has become just as important as riding my motorcycle. Now instead of my wife telling me to go play on the highway she tells me to go jump in the lake

1. When is a dive considered a logable (sp) dive. The instructor had the rescue class log dives that were to 20 feet for only 5 minutes or less. Basically descending and ascending almost immediately....

I am not sure what agency you are using but PADI allows you to log 5 training dives for Rescue Diver class even though you normally only are under the water 2 - 3 times and even then usually not for very long or very deep. Personally, I log everything, but PADI requires that a non-training dive be for 20 miniutes minimum with a surface interval of 10 minutes between dives to be counted towards the required number of dives for certifications like Rescue and Divemaster.

2. ...About this time the AI had seen this and came by gave my BF and I the okay signal. We both okay back. The AI then took my hand as we descended and held it till we got close to shore.

Personally, I don't think that the AI should have gotten involved. on the other hand, since you were out with a class the instructors are considered liable till the class is concluded. I would have thought that a better way to handle the situation would have been for the AI to just hang close if he felt there may be a problem, just in case, not to have taken over; especially since you both signaled that you were fine.

3. ...He kept messing with my BF. Jerking his reg out of his mouth, pulling the marker bouy down and hooked the line under my bf tank and letting go, causing him to shoot up a little before grabbing him, pushed my BF into another group of ow students and scaring them half to death. My BF finally pulled his knife on this guy....

Frankly, this is shocking behavior, especially from a Rescue Diver. I guess it goes to show you that even though someone had the c-card, it doesn't mean they learned anything. Since your instructor seemed to blow off the behavior of the people there, I think I would find a different instructor for future training. I don't think that an insturctor needs to be militant by any means, but they need to ensure that the divers working with thier classes are modeling good behavior and definately not putting others at risk.

I am very glad that you are not letting these few lapses in other people's judgement discourage you. Believe me, there are a lot of good folks out there making bubbles. Once again welcome to the addiction.

 

[HammerNoMore]

1. When is a dive considered a logable (sp) dive. The instructor had the rescue class log dives that were to 20 feet for only 5 minutes or less. Basically descending and ascending almost immediately. My BF and I don’t feel those should be logged. So what would any of you count as a “dive”. If I counted those, I would have three more to add to my log book in addition to my checkout dives. But to me, going down then right back up doesn’t seem like a true dive. Please post your opinions.

Being a victim on the surface is not a dive. You were right not to log them. For the rescue students things are a bit different. The rescue course (PADI) is considered to be 5 dives. Even if you never submerge for some of them you still need to log 5 "training" dives for rescue.