Noob questions and comments about GUE Fundamentals class

[Anti-Hero]

Personally I enjoyed the PASS/FAIL aspect of Fundamentals. It added that additional stress for you to deal with and overcome. And passing feels great, like you really accomplished something that few other divers will ever experience outside of the technical diving realm.

 

[Jax]

I looked at the link quoted above because I am interested in reading more about fundies. There are two books offered:

Beginning With the End in Mind - the Fundamentals of Recreational Diving - PDF
Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving - PDF

Which is the best read, and why?

 

[Anti-Hero]

Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving is the book you want to start with.

Beginning with the END: is more centered around mixed gas diving, END being a double entendre for Equivalent Narcotic Depth.

 

[Scott L]

If one is definitely taking the class I would recomend joining GUE on-line which will give you access to training videos and other educational material that would benefit most divers without mentors.

 

[HenrikBP]

Beginning With the End in Mind - the Fundamentals of Recreational Diving - PDF
Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving - PDF

Which is the best read, and why?

I read "Beginning with the end ..." before taking Fundies. The content varies a bit from the presentation given during Fundies, but it was a good supplement and quite a bit more in-depth in certain aspects than "Doing It Right" which I'm reading right now. I didn't get that "Beginning ..." was aimed at mixed gasses?? It's meant as the reading material for the GUE Recreational diving certification as far as I know.

Also, depending on your perspective "Doing It Right" can sound a *tad* preachy at times. Some great info and good perspective on diving ... but still, just a heads-up

If you just want to get your feet wet and build on some basic skills Ed's buoyancy class is supposed to be fantastic.

Henrik

 

[TSandM]

Jarrod's book has a ton of information in it, but little of it is "I could put this into practice tomorrow" type information. The OW manual is much more hands-on pragmatic, and gives you a lot of information on HOW things are done.

Cost for Fundies is all over the map, because it depends on what the individual instructor charges, as well as transportation and housing costs, boat charters or entry fees to sites, gas fills, etc. I paid $500 for Fundies, and I believe the most expensive class I've seen is $1500 -- but that's in MX, where the instructors teach Fundies during time they could be teaching Cave 1, for which they earn far more. Call Ed and ask him what he's charging. That's the best information you can get.

The recommendation to register on the GUE forums, and to join GUE, is a good one. I actually recently started a thread on how GUE instructors are perceiving the Fundamentals class, since the Primer came into being, and you might find their answers interesting as well.

 

[Sloth]

"Beginning with the end in mind" is a much better reference then "Doing it Right" IMO. It's GUEs open water class book. I really like it. In fact I am making my wife read it in parallel with her PADI book as she goes through OW because I am such a kool-aid drinking freak.

I would highly recommend it to anyone that wants to get a better handle on how GUE approaches recreational diving and as a primer for Fundies.

 

[ptyx]

Hi,
I'm interested in taking this class, but believe me when I tell you that my skills are faaaaaaaaaar from being up to snuff with the requirements. I'm your basic OW scrub. I'm confident that I'll get there, but I need lots of time and practice.

My understanding is that there are two aspects of fundies:

1. Expose the 'basic OW scrub' to better diving principles
2. Make sure divers taking tech and cave classes are not complete clowns

The strict pass/fail exam is mostly targeted at the second group.

If you're in the first group (I was), fundies is challenging but the goal is to learn. It's not like you'll be able to do anything with a rec pass anyway, as Rec2 isn't available yet.

The way I see it, you get exposed to personal skills during the class, and get up to 6 months to work on them before doing a checkout dive and get instructor feedback. If you have good buoyancy - and this is mostly what rec fundies are about - you might be good to go immediately.

The only thing to worry about would be ending up in a class of divers wanting their tech pass. That might be frustrating for everyone. But it's easy to fix: just talk to your instructor first.

 

[Gombessa]

If you're in the first group (I was), fundies is challenging but the goal is to learn. It's not like you'll be able to do anything with a rec pass anyway, as Rec2 isn't available yet.

Rec 3 is available (at least in some locations) and only requires a rec pass in Fundies.

 

[AndyNZ]

Thanks to all, especially for the resources and the not looking at as a pass/fail thing. What's the tuition for the class,and what's the cost of the re-eval?

You'll find that varies a lot, as Lynne has pointed out.

Our Fundies course is probably the cheapest around, with a team of 3 it would set you back NZ$800 each, around US$600 at the current exchange rate. But of course, you have to factor in the flight!! And you'll have to come down before October, as our prices will go up before next summer.

The re-evaluation, again this will vary. Jamie gives students a re-evaluation or a chance to upgrade from a rec to a tec pass for free.... but it's one shot. If you haven't practiced the skills and improved then you will not get a second chance for free, but will get charged our daily rate for subsequent attempts.