Pony practice...what do you do??

[halocline]

Typically I have it filled with 50% Nitrox.. so would not want to spend a lot of time deep breathing off of it.

It is attached upside down on the right side of my tank, and typically is a 19 cf tank. The regulator is routed up and attached to one of my right side, where one would normally see an octo.

Some interesting ideas, especially later in your post, that to me sound more in the tech diving realm. The thing I wanted to respond to here is that if you're using a non-recreational blend (50%O2) I think you're clearly talking about deco gas, not a bailout bottle, unless you have a hard bottom of 60ft.

If by some chance an OOA diver went for this gas (thinking it was an octo due to the way the reg is routed) at a significantly greater depth there could be big problems. I guess it's a matter of judgment. I would handle this bottle exactly as a deco stage, clearly marked as such.

 

[drbill]

Perhaps the most important element of "practice" regarding a pony bottle is regularly attaching it to your primary tank (if that is where it is mounted) so you don't "forget" it as I did that one time I really needed it. Of course for those who sling theirs or carry it in other ways, remembering to take it.

I avoid the issue of whether I'll remember to attach mine (keep in mind, I'm an "old timer" who does have occasional "senior moments") by just keeping it attached to my primary tank at all times. Fortunately our LDSes here on Catalina fill my tanks that way.

 

[Reg Braithwaite]

I carry a pony attached to my main tank and it's a dual purpose tank.. on the bottom, it would be my emergency gas... but as I start my accent, it becomes my deco gas (on none deco dives...). Typically I have it filled with 50% Nitrox.. so would not want to spend a lot of time deep breathing off of it.

Let me see if I have this right. You are doing a dive that would normally be considered a no-deco dive. You are taking a very small tank of EAN50. It has two uses: First, you use it as emergency gas should you need it. Second, you use breathe it on your ascent to scrub off nitrogen. Is that correct?

If so, I wonder if you have seen this discussion on the value of high O2 mixes on no-deco dives?

What is the PO₂ of your pony mix at the deepest point in your dives?

 

[ianr33]

2.) Diver's buddy runs OOA, diver then deploys pony and gives it to OOA diver if possible. The problem I see with this is as follows: The OOA diver won't want to wait the 5-10 seconds for the donating diver to deploy the reg hose and then turn on the valve from the pony. More likely the donating diver will give the OOA diver his donation reg, switch to his secondary if necessary, and then deploy the pony and give that to the OOA diver. That would allow him to recover his donated regulator and then the two can begin their ascent/exit. Is it worth it to begin air-sharing or just have the OOA diver wait for pony deployment??
/QUOTE]

In a genuine OOA emergency (which should of course only happen with a gear failure) what I would do is donate the long hose I am breathing from and go to my bungeed backup. Once the situation is under control it may make sense to hand off the pony.

Donating the reg you are breathing from is fastest and its the only one you absolutely KNOW to be working. Giving a panicking diver a pony reg only to find it blows an O ring once the valve is turned on would be bad. Not very likely agreed but why chance it?

 

[Reg Braithwaite]

Donating the reg you are breathing from is fastest and its the only one you absolutely KNOW to be working. Giving a panicking diver a pony reg only to find it blows an O ring once the valve is turned on would be bad. Not very likely agreed but why chance it?

I don't fully understand the case for handing off a pony. If either of you are on the pony, the dive is over. Why hand it off? From the smug vantage point of my arm chair, a long hose as you suggest seems like the simplest thing. Have a long hose on your back gas and necklace the pony regulator. No other second stage. The pony holds at least half rock bottom as discussed elsewhere. Take a few breaths from it when you reach bottom to make sure it's operational.

If you need the pony, it's right there for you. if your buddy has a mechanical failure, hand off the long hose, switch yourself to the pony reg, and the two of you ascend immediately.

Additional switches and hand offs seems to be adding complexity at a time when simplicity is essential.

 

[hudson]

I don't see much of a case for handing off the pony either. Obviously it avoids being attached to the OOA diver via a long hose, but why would that be an issue? What I do is I wear my pony reg on a bungeed necklace, that way I can keep it on at all times (as I would notice any leaks under my chin) and it's super-fast to access.

 

[ianr33]

oops....

 

[ianr33]

I don't fully understand the case for handing off a pony. If either of you are on the pony, the dive is over. Why hand it off?

I only said MAY make sense to hand off the pony

Off the top of my head : Rough surf exit where the OOA diver might risk having the reg pulled out of his mouth. Ripping current on an upline where it would be nice to have one hand on the line and the other to equalize with rather than hold on to the reg. Ascending a boat ladder in rough seas. Really ugly buddy


Agree that generally speaking would be best to just ascend sharing air.

 

[Sinbad the Diver]

Why can't you use the pony as part of the gas plan then its not bad gas management?
Tech divers stage extra backgas all the time.

Thanks, I've never understood why this is considered such an absolute no-no. If were diving with a buddy in a purely recreation no-deco dive, why would using a 19cf pony along with my 80cf back gas as part of my total available gas be wrong? Why is it different than diving independent doubles? As long as I plan my dive based on that total gas amount, why is it any different? I've never done this, I carry a pony as an emergency device, but I've never understood the reasoning behind this thought.

I would see a problem if someone said their plan is to keep going until their back gas was gone, then switch to the pony and start heading up...that would seem a might reckless.

And as for the original question....to practice, on the last dive of the day sometimes I'll switch to the pony and do my ascent, safety stop and surface. Since my purpose in having it is to allow for a safe ascent in case of failure, that's a good time to practice with it. By doing it on the last dive of the day, I'm not emptying it so that it's not available for later dives.

 

[Tanked]

And as for the original question....to practice, on the last dive of the day sometimes I'll switch to the pony and do my ascent, safety stop and surface. Since my purpose in having it is to allow for a safe ascent in case of failure, that's a good time to practice with it. By doing it on the last dive of the day, I'm not emptying it so that it's not available for later dives.

I do this too on occasion. I feel its a good way to keep in practice