Overly Dramatic Title: The Curse of The Most Experienced Diver

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I was on a boat sometime ago where the lowest cert was the DM. 6 trimix instructors, 2 trimix divers and a DM.The charter and the DM was under the impression we only had OW as that was all we gave them. However after a 60 min rec dive and various attempts to get us to surface the DM had to surface (OOA). Ten minutes later we started to surface and we all played dumb wanting to know why he left us "alone". This is still the funniest thing I have ever witness on a boat.

Show what you need to in order to dive, anything additional is over-sharing.
 
I was on a boat sometime ago where the lowest cert was the DM. 6 trimix instructors, 2 trimix divers and a DM.The charter and the DM was under the impression we only had OW as that was all we gave them. However after a 60 min rec dive and various attempts to get us to surface the DM had to surface (OOA). Ten minutes later we started to surface and we all played dumb wanting to know why he left us "alone". This is still the funniest thing I have ever witness on a boat.

Show what you need to in order to dive, anything additional is over-sharing.

I wonder how the dive would have differed if the DM had known the truth.

Quite a few years ago I did a dive on a site in Cozumel called Palancar Caves. It was a wonderful dive through a labyrinth of canyons and swim throughs. A few days later I ended up doing the same site with the same DM--but with a different group of fellow divers. It was a very frustrating dive because of the comparison to the previous dive. We did essentially a wall dive, with no swim throughs and no beautiful labyrinth of coral. After the dive, I asked the DM the obvious question: WTF? He explained that there were some beginning divers, and he did not know if they were able to do that stuff. I am sure those OW divers thought they had had an outstanding dive on a famous site, but they had no idea what they had actually missed.
 
great answers. I use my master diver card... it shows my deep, nitrox, and night which are the most important dives to me on a liveaboard... I never thought about asking for a comp or per dive fee. I like that idea! I did a dive a couple weeks ago as a diver! loved it!
 
great answers. I use my master diver card... it shows my deep, nitrox, and night which are the most important dives to me on a liveaboard... I never thought about asking for a comp or per dive fee. I like that idea! I did a dive a couple weeks ago as a diver! loved it!
I do not think that will work, would not even ask about it...Advising them that you expect to be paid and receive a comp can work if you are an insured dive pro such as an instructor or even a dive master..anything else may get you either diving with their dm or sitting on the boat.
 
I do not think that will work, would not even ask about it...Advising them that you expect to be paid and receive a comp can work if you are an insured dive pro such as an instructor or even a dive master..anything else may get you either diving with their dm or sitting on the boat.

I agree. I have always shown a pro card when diving, and I have received a lot of unasked for perks. The key phrase is "unasked for." I never ask for a benefit, nor do I expect it, but I often get it. I am sure the reason is they expect some benefit in return. They assume that if they treat me well and help me enjoy the trip, I will return, and I will recommend them to students--and I have certainly done that. My students have received a lot of tips about operations to use in destinations, and they have received tips on operations to avoid. If, on the other hand, you are not a professional working with a shop or students, I am not sure why they would be expected to do anything other than to try their best to give you a dive experience appropriate to your experience. If you show them a master diver card with an indication that you have one a lot of dives, I would expect them to set you up with good dive experience that would be worth your money, but that is all I would expect. (And that is all I expect myself.) You will have a much better dive experience than the dive professionals who so cleverly hide their true certification level so that they can be grouped with the beginners, but it would be wrong to expect more than that.
 
Maybe some experience outside of cattle boats would help.
 
I was on a boat sometime ago where the lowest cert was the DM. 6 trimix instructors, 2 trimix divers and a DM.The charter and the DM was under the impression we only had OW as that was all we gave them. However after a 60 min rec dive and various attempts to get us to surface the DM had to surface (OOA). Ten minutes later we started to surface and we all played dumb wanting to know why he left us "alone". This is still the funniest thing I have ever witness on a boat.

Show what you need to in order to dive, anything additional is over-sharing.

Reminds me of when I was in Truk. I am used to being the most experienced diver on the boat, but on the Truk Odyssey I was definitely no better than middle third. It was really nice being amongst a group of seriously, seriously experienced divers, and being treated that way by the staff.
 
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