Old time scuba divers

[NorCalDM]

I think the depth limits get misinterpreted by many instructors and then that gets passed on to the students. The depth limits PADI imposes are for training dives and are standards for the instructor to follow. The only depth limit they try to impose after OW certification is age based and states for 10 and 11 year olds "After Certification - Must dive with a parent/guardian or PADI Professional to 12 meters/40 feet maximum depth" plug for them. As stated in the manual OW dives 1 and 2 - 12 meters/40 feet, OW dives 3 and 4 - 18 meters/60 feet or when conducting three dives in one day the maximum depth for the last dive is 12 meters/40 feet. Again these are max depths for training dives but the accepted recreational depth is 130 feet.

 

[Gene]

I first used scuba in the Weeki Wachee River in 1973 when I was 11. I was able to convince my then step-father to let me use the family dive gear, which he agreed if I read and then answered enough questions right from a large book that I seem to recall being called the Scuba Diver's Bible.
My family is all Floridians, and most family members got certified in the early 1970s and 1980s.
As I got older, I used my aunt's PADI OW student book to learn more about diving, and this continued up into the early 2000s! I finally got certified myself when I wanted to do technical wreck and cave dives, as there was no way I was going to do that without proper training.

 

[lexvil]

Like many nontechnical (recreational or sport) divers, I have occasionally dived deeper than 130 feet, generally when there was something important to do and/or see. I have only 36 dives (1.6%) deeper than 130 feet and all but 3 were less than 150 feet. None of these dives were deco dives.

I would imagine a reasonable number of experienced divers might confess similar transgressions.

I don’t think of it as transgression but I did 185’ in the early 70’s solo, DH Voit and a 72, just to do it. Dove the San Francisco (183’) maru on a single 80 about 4 years ago, 13 min bottom time with hanging deco bottles. We trained on the navy tables and I guess were expected to not be to stupid. There isn’t a lot of reason to go beyond 100’ unless there is a specific something to see or do.

 

[Jeff_O]

I first used scuba in the Weeki Wachee River in 1973 when I was 11. I was able to convince my then step-father to let me use the family dive gear, which he agreed if I read and then answered enough questions right from a large book that I seem to recall being called the Scuba Diver's Bible.
My family is all Floridians, and most family members got certified in the early 1970s and 1980s.
As I got older, I used my aunt's PADI OW student book to learn more about diving, and this continued up into the early 2000s! I finally got certified myself when I wanted to do technical wreck and cave dives, as there was no way I was going to do that without proper training.

I did a semester college class for cert open water NAUI PADI YMCA in 80 and Advanced NAUI in 84. They call Advanced now Master Diver. I found out since I misplaced my cert and got replacement and online. PADI did not keep old records. I think a lot more hours of training are in college classes than direct from shops.

 

[Darnold9999]

NAUI “Scuba Diver” in 1978 at the University of Victoria taught by the Safety Diver for the university. The limit of 130 feet as discussed in class was more a practical one than anything else. Using Tables and a steel 72 with J valve, the most common tank at the time, going beyond 130 feet gave you exactly no bottom time without doing deco on the way back up and the 72 didn’t have enough air for most people to do that.

My first dive after certification was to beyond 110 feet with the DM from my course. Memory tells me it was to 120 feet but that was a very long time ago. Wasn’t even discussed as an issue.

I have also gone beyond 130 feet but there has to be something really interesting there and the dive has to be dead simple as I am significantly narked at those depths.

 

[rhwestfall]

I think a lot more hours of training are in college classes than direct from shops

 

[Bigbella]

YMCA: 1977-8 -- 40 meters for open water; and our first ocean dive was to about 30 meters, all on Navy Tables.

Eight students hit the water; eight returned . . .

 

[mcohen1021]

PADI 1989 here... This is what I remember:

1. No dive computers until 1990

2. We were certified to 140 ft but our checkouts were less than 35 ft

3. AoW, you did 5 advanced dives. We did deep, night, current, navigation and search and recovery.

Since then, things changed and now you're not advanced until you have that AoW card and taken 25 specialty classes

 

[Lorenzoid]

I think the depth limits get misinterpreted by many instructors and then that gets passed on to the students. The depth limits PADI imposes are for training dives and are standards for the instructor to follow. The only depth limit they try to impose after OW certification is age based and states for 10 and 11 year olds "After Certification - Must dive with a parent/guardian or PADI Professional to 12 meters/40 feet maximum depth" plug for them. As stated in the manual OW dives 1 and 2 - 12 meters/40 feet, OW dives 3 and 4 - 18 meters/60 feet or when conducting three dives in one day the maximum depth for the last dive is 12 meters/40 feet. Again these are max depths for training dives but the accepted recreational depth is 130 feet.

I applaud PADI's use of the word "must" in "After Certification - Must dive with a parent/guardian or PADI Professional to 12 meters/40 feet maximum depth." However, the same question remains as with the "recommended limits" for adult divers: what is the consequence for breaking this limit? Are there scuba police for 10-11 year-olds but not for adults? Of course not.

 

[Silverback9]

Basic Class was in 1973, 13 years old. Textbook... "The New Science of Skin and SCUBA Diving". Equipment, Royal Aquamaster Double hose regulator, and Steel 72 tank. No BCD, No SPG, just a "J" Valve and of course a weight belt... 5 classes and 5 pool sessions. Most of the time 100' was batted around, but I do not recall a max depth coming up in class.
Check out dives.... Hanging on a line in 30' of water in Cheat Lake, WV. 3' visibility if we were lucky. Cleared mask, cleared regulator... Certified NAUI...
1977 PADI/YMCA - AOW, Deep dives, Night dive, Navigation dive, some basic search and recovery, AND a surface supplied air dive using a KMB-9 Mask, complete with communication, which was really cool. Max depth was 90' on the deep training dive if I remember correctly, but 130' was taught as sport diving limit. My AOW instructor would talk about deep diving this way. "You want to know what deep diving is like? Put a straw in your mouth, and run around your living room, clamp you nose and try to breath. Now you know what it is like."

I found out later that if you use an inexpensive, unbalanced regulator, yeah it SUCKS to dive deep. (PUN intended) But my Poseidon regulators (Cyklon 300, then) breath the same no matter the depth...