NSS-CDS Full Cave: The Live-Blog

[dewdropsonrosa]

I'm fairly new to backmount doubles (I prefer to dive sidemount doubles). During the portions of the dives that we're in open water (in the basin or the spring run), I can maintain decent trim and buoyancy management. At this point, I'd probably feel comfortable doing wreck dives to 80-90 feet. I would want to accrue additional experience before going deeper.

Buoyancy in the cave is slightly more complicated because I'm in the early stages of learning to navigate flow. By the end of the course, I will have completed about 20-24 supervised dives in doubles.

(Further note: I may or may not reach Full Cave in this time period. If I only make it to Apprentice and need additional practice or extra innings, I've already accepted it as a possibility).


Edited to further add: Reggie does offer a Doubles Orientation to divers who either want to take it or need to take it before moving into the cavern. Based on his assessment of my skills on Day 1, he decided that I could progress.

 

[rddvet]

Why not do it in sidemountmif that's what you're comfortable in? Adopting a new gear configuration in conjunction with a course isnt usually ideal.

 

[dewdropsonrosa]

I originally intended to, but caving in sidemount requires additional task loading (namely, monitoring two SPGs and making frequently regulator switches in the dark) and gas management strategies.

Reggie believed that making the transition to backmount for cave diving would be less difficult than handling the entire training burden in sidemount. At this point, I'm hoping to come back later in the summer for additional SM training.

On the open-water side of things, both Reggie and my prospective trimix instructor felt that developing backmount skills would better suit my near-future technical wreck diving plans.

 

[laikabear]

Thank you for posting your blog for us to read! Everything you are doing sounds crazy challenging and I can't wait to hear what happens next.

 

[barth]

How many people are doing the course? Are you doing the course alone?

 

[Schwob]

@dewdropsonrosa :
Just chiming in to express how much I appreciate you sharing your experiences with us
...
And sharing how impressed I am how well you do it (it reads well, you tread courteously, explain, ... reading works well even in passages were I am not quite sure I saw (due to no cave or cavern exposure whatsoever yet on my end the same picture you were painting, ... but heck I am seeing interesting, worth to read pictures nevertheless
...
And to encourage you, although I am quite aware you got all the motivation you need and don’t really require external motivation or support... nevertheless: Just great... keep cranking and chipping away...
...
And tongue in cheek: Hey, you only almost cried... That’s pretty good!
How would I know? a couple of years+ back during my only tech exposure to date (an intro to tech and a little bit kind of thing) with just 50ish dives under my belt then, struggling the first afternoon with a hopelessly head heavy pair of loaner 120s on a loaner rig considerably to small for my girth (and hence sitting too high, remedied the next day)... well I was fighting like I’ve never ever even been in water yet, nothing wanted to work right and the encouragement I got literally was: “You are doing quite good. To my surprise you didn’t even cry yet...”
Anyway, head up, keep cranking and chipping away....
...
And to complain :
What the heck are you doing? I had resolved that I neither have the time nor the funds to “go tech” ... You sort of are subversively chipping away on that, you know, .... , ... that’s not what I meant above...
...
Anyway, keep’em coming! Appreciate!

 

[kensuf]

Were you at CCDS on Sunday morning with a rebreather student, @kensuf?

Yup, that was me.

 

[rddvet]

I originally intended to, but caving in sidemount requires additional task loading (namely, monitoring two SPGs and making frequently regulator switches in the dark) and gas management strategies.

Reggie believed that making the transition to backmount for cave diving would be less difficult than handling the entire training burden in sidemount. At this point, I'm hoping to come back later in the summer for additional SM training.

On the open-water side of things, both Reggie and my prospective trimix instructor felt that developing backmount skills would better suit my near-future technical wreck diving plans.

If checking spgs and doing reg switches is excess task loading then that generally doesn't mean strong sidemount skills. Those are simple tasks in the dark or not. I could see the pro of be for trimix.

No offense, but between a zero to hero cave course and already talk of trimix, maybe think of slowing down and enjoying the diving. Maybe it's how it's presented here, but it seems like you're in a rush.

 

[Compressor]

I am thoroughly enjoying this adventure in training Dewdropsonrosa. Thank you very much.
One of the lessons here is that one can take the course and learn so many things even if they don't want to become cave divers.

Thank you again.

 

[Compressor]

For those getting interested, I looked on NSS-CDS site and found the student workbook free for download.
Here is the direct link.

Thank you NSS-CDS.