Number of dives vs. total bottom time

[Scubaroo]

Just realized I have more posts in here than logged dives - I need to get out of the house more!

Anyway, number of dives is important, as we walk away from every dive with something new, but overall I think bottom time is the more important indicator of experience (after all, pilots brag about their logged hours, not number of flights!).

 

[bradymsu]

Dee,

I don't consider bottom time. The main flaw in counting bottom time is that it doesn't account for the situation the dive took place in. Lower visibility, depth and colder water play a big part.

For example, a diver with 80 dives averaging 25 minutes in cold inland lakes or quarries with 15 foot vis is probably going to be a better diver than one with 100 dives averaging 40 minutes in tropical water even though the second one has twice the dive time. Bottom time also doesn't account for depth, in fact the deeper one normally dives, the less bottom time they will have.

It's my opinion that counting bottom time is less accurate than counting dives and I suspect that's why it is rarely used.

 

[Stone]

Here's an example of bottom time possibly giving a false indicator of experience.

Diver A) Most local dive sites are about 90 fsw and there is usually a current (West Palm). The air table allows 25 minutes (max).

Diver B) Most local dive sites are 30 - 40 fsw and very little current (Ft Lauderdale) . Depending on your air consumption, 75 minutes of bottom time is doable.

The point is: For the same number of dives, Diver B gets triple the bottom time in very non-challanging conditions.

_______________________

The Rescue Diver course teaches you to look at a diver's gear and watch him get geared up to get an indication of experience.

I watched a couple of guys on the boat the other day that looked like they could have been SEALs (young, crewcut, buff, tatoos). Their gear looked good and they got set up smoothly.

I watched them hit the bottom like rocks, arms flailing and fins causing a sand storm.

As Dee said in her original post:

I know there's not a perfect way to judge someone's diving ability other than to dive with them. . .

 

[bradymsu]

Stone,

I agree. The best way to judge a diver's experience/ability (often not the same) isn't in a log book. It's seeing how they behave before a dive such as gearing up and small talk and during the dive such as where their fins are, hands are and their bubble exhalations.

 

[Greg G.]

My thoughts were along the same lines. The PADI dive log has a feature for keeping track of total bottom time to date, and as a new diver it was interesting to keep track of for a while, but as I gained more experience I stopped using it because I consider it useless information and a waste of time. When I interview a new buddy, I ask them about # of dives, type, cert level, last dive, overall experience, but I never have asked about total bottom time, never will.

Originally posted by bradymsu
Dee,

I don't consider bottom time. The main flaw in counting bottom time is that it doesn't account for the situation the dive took place in. Lower visibility, depth and colder water play a big part.

...

It's my opinion that counting bottom time is less accurate than counting dives and I suspect that's why it is rarely used.

 

[Dee]

Bradymsu...I totally agree with you. The conditions and locations of a persons dives are a better indicator of experience than either number of dives or total bottom time. But invariably most divers will ask how many dives you have when they want to know your experience level.

My point was that another way to get a better idea of experience would be to look at total bottom times compared to number of dives when assessing a potential buddy, especially in your own area. Of course you should watch "seeing how they behave before a dive such as gearing up and small talk and during the dive such as where their fins are, hands are and their bubble exhalations" as well as question them about recent dives...when and where. (The 'vacation, once-a-year divers are another whole subject!)

Most of my dives are in tropical temperatures because that's where I live and do most of my diving. But I've never been asked how many of my dives have taken place in the winter in low vis lakes. Those dives are definately more challenging and requiring more planning...more of everything. Never been asked anything but how many dives I had.

My original question was "How many of you keep up with your total bottom time?" and a comparison of total dives vs total bottom times, not what is the best way to chose a buddy.

 

[Walter]

...................numbers. I love numbers.

I retired yet another log book last month.

I keep three logs and record all my dives in each. My first logbook is a narrative in which I also record time in, time out, depth and other information I find useful. My second logbook (I retired it because I ran out of pages) is where I keep a running total of various categories. I now have it on Excel and print out a new page every 40 dives. My third log is on the Internet at http://www.diverecord.com.

My first dive was December 11, 1983 at Spring Quarries outside of Branford, Florida. My average bottom time is 37 minutes, which is an all time high for me. My all time low was an average of 23 minutes back when I had 5 dives. My average for this year is 45 minutes. My average depth is 61 ft. My all time high was 66 ft., which I had from 1991 – 1993. My all time low was 25 ft., which I maintained for my first two dives in 1983. I’ve made 576 dives to 60 ft or deeper, 281 to 100 ft or deeper, 771 on reefs, 263 on wrecks, 319 on artificial reefs, 45 in fresh water, 34 at night, 367 solo, 77 on nitrox. The site I’ve dived most often is Conch Reef off Tavernier in the Florida Keys with 165 dives. Davis Reef is a close second with 144 dives. The Eagle Wreck is a distant third with 107 dives. I’ve made 7 dives so far this month. My all time monthly high is 32, which I reached in July of this year. I’ve made 119 dives so far this year. My all time yearly high is 171, which I reached in 1986. I’ve reached or exceeded 100 dives in a calendar year 7 times. My all time yearly low was 0 in 1997. I dived very little from 1992 through 1997 only making 47 dives in that 6-year period. I've dived in only seven countries, one of which no longer exists - USA (dive # 1), Bahamas (dive # 4), Cayman Islands (dive # 35), Mexico (dive # 51), Honduras (dive # 126), Turks & Caicos (dive # 794), and the Soviet Union (dive # 832). I've only made dives in four states - Florida (dive # 1), Georgia (dive # 58), South Carolina (dive # 901), and North Carolina (dive # 986). In all those numbers there are lots that overlap. Totals are 740 hours 11 minutes (30 days 20 hours 11 minutes) in 1216 dives. My latest dive was October 20, 2001.

WWW™

 

[martinjc]

<Wondering if Walter's profile photo will display a pocket protector duct taped to his BC> hee hee

Seriously - that is an amazing amount of info...as I am new to diving it would be interesting to start keeping these types of records early. Would you consider sharoing your Excel spreadsheet? I'm sure others would be interested too.

Let me know...Thanks!

 

[Walter]

............if anyone wants a copy of the Excel spreadsheet send me an e-mail requesting it. I'll send you a clean copy.

You're on your own for the pocket protector. I don't use them nor do I use duct tape on my gear.

WWW™

 

[Butch103]

Walter, you are definetly experienced. (in diving, don't want to make any other accusations hehe). I hope one day to have the diving experience you have. ( the good ones that is).

Butch eace: