Next step for longer bottom times on deep dives?

[Edward3c]

Some of us 50-something "fat" old ladies do more adventurous diving than the tropical stuff. The youngsters say diving is too scary and dangerous.

I’ve been asked by those half my age if we could rest before getting in the water as they’re na**ed from the 100m walk to the waters edge.

 

[Marie13]

I’ve been asked by those half my age if we could rest before getting in the water as they’re na**ed from the 100m walk to the waters edge.

I take my time. Rolled my tanks down to the water today (bad knees). Turns out the second dose of the Pfizer plague jab (got it Wednesday) is making me very tired. Hit me like a ton o'bricks as I walked out of the quarry today. Only did one dive.

 

[Angelo Farina]

Some of us 50-something "fat" old ladies do more adventurous diving than the tropical stuff. The youngsters say diving is too scary and dangerous.

I know. My wife is another fat old lady doing the same.
My point is about the PERCEPTION of our belowed sport.
In the seventies being a diver did mean being part of an elite of super-trained and physically fit people, doing dangerous things without fear.
Now "everyone can dive", "diving is safe" and you can be certified in a weekend...
Sorry but this wastes a significant part of the appeal that diving was exerting on me when I was 16...

 

[Marie13]

I know. My wife is another fat old lady doing the same.
My point is about the PERCEPTION of our belowed sport.
In the seventies being a diver did mean being part of an elite of super-trained and physically fit people, doing dangerous things without fear.
Now "everyone can dive", "diving is safe" and you can be certified in a weekend...
Sorry but this wastes a significant part of the appeal that diving was exerting on me when I was 16...

I included that perception in my post. The youngsters are scared and think diving is too dangerous. Forget about me cave (mine) or ice diving. 40ft deep on a Lake Michigan shipwreck in 45F water scares the living daylights out of them. No cajones. It's not just women saying this, it's guys, too. They shudder when they see my shipwreck photos.

 

[doctormike]

6 weeks????
My OW course in 1975 was SIX MONTHS long...
Ok, probably too much..
But even today a FIPSAS-CMAS course is three months here!
I do not agree with you that it was a good idea to demolish these well-featured (and task demanding) OW courses to the point of releasing a diving certification in a weekend.
Sorry for being "old school" on this.
And personally I think that the continuous reduction in number of new divers is also due to the fact that it has been made too easy.
For a youngster it is not presented as a difficult, task demanding activity, as it was for me in the seventies.
If it is a sport suitable for a 60 y.o. fat lady, who cannot even swim without fins, it cannot be something exciting for a youngster...

You see, you didn't read my post closely enough!

I SAID "The argument you really want to have is why are we letting people with limited training scuba dive in the first place."

I did NOT say that the current trend in training (minimizing standards) was a good idea. I didn't say it wasn't. That wasn't the point of my post.

Dude, this ship has sailed. All of us technical and rebreather divers put together are a rounding error when you look at the scuba industry worldwide. Even throw in well trained recreational divers, we are still a minority.

What I described IS what the world's diving population primarily consists of. You might feel differently if you just hang out on scubaboard or with other dedicated divers, but that's not true. Just like I live in Manhattan and I think that everybody wears a mask outside, but that's not true either.

I was giving my opinion as to WHY the agencies just tell people in basic OW classes that they shouldn't break NDLs without further training, and leave it at that.

 

[doctormike]

My wife is another fat old lady .

You posted this? Wow, and I thought that rebreather diving was dangerous!

 

[Marie13]

You posted this? Wow, I thought that rebreather diving was dangerous!

Hopefully she either doesn’t read English or has no urge to peek on SB and use a browser translator to read SB in Italian.

 

[rhwestfall]

I knew it wouldn't be long until the chest thumping arrived....

 

[Mike1967]

Yes, all courses run by BSAC are for recreation (i.e. for fun) not to make a living from.

They can call it whatever they like but trimix to 80m aint no rec dive!
Getting paid doesn't define a tech dive either.

 

[-JD-]

You posted this? Wow, I thought that rebreather diving was dangerous!

[rude stereotype]He's in Italy. Is there another kind (of old lady)?[/rude stereotype]