Prejudice against solo divers

[smokey braden]

jb good,
welcome to this board.

 

[ShallowDiverDave]

I was going to comment on this thread, but JB, you said it all!

 

[fire_diver]

she goes scuba diving"). Frankly, being ignored is fine by me, as it's almost as peaceful as some nice, unperturbed bottom time.

I completely agree. I too have been basically "ignored" when I do my solo diving. I kind of expected some confrontation about it, but I have been pleasantly suprised. I have only had a few questions about my pony. Most are usually curious whether it's a stage or a bailout.

FD

 

[drbill]

"you're one of us and you understand, or you arn't and you don't" Tom Mount.
So don't justify your solo diving...

I don't justify it (even though I've been doing it since well before PADI or NAUI were "born"), my statistics do. They show that I am 20X more likely to have an incident while diving with a buddy than while diving solo.

I dive solo in my homes waters unless on e of my regular dive buddies is available. However I NEVER dive solo in an area I'm unfamiliar with... always prefer a buddy under those circumstances.

 

[Petedives]

I dive solo in my homes waters unless on e of my regular dive buddies is available. However I NEVER dive solo in an area I'm unfamiliar with... always prefer a buddy under those circumstances.

Agreed. Why I'll always dive solo at Tunnels Reef, but not these SoCal waters
until I *really* know them, and well.

Peter

 

[Mako Mark]

They show that I am 20X more likely to have an incident while diving with a buddy than while diving solo.
.

Oh come on Bill, that is just a squewed curve because 100 x more divers dive in groups.

Personally I think the predujice is because solo divers are just not team players...

my last solo dive was last weekend and I surfaced alive with 2 bar in my tank and a bag full of BBQ fodder. It is a matter of knowing your limitations.

Dont try and do it on a resort boat in the carribean tho.

 

[Hemlon]

I haven't dealt with any prejudice yet but the only places that I have been solo are at my local lake and in Cozumel.

But at the same time, I am hesitant to mention the fact that I solo dive to non-divers. In the unfortunate event that I ever take a DCS hit, I really don't want my non-diving friends to be standing there with pointed fingers. "See!!! I KNEW you shouldn't have been diving solo!!"

I could try telling non-divers that solo divers are actually MORE safe when solo but most of them have their minds set firmly.

Most of us "push the envelope" less when we're solo than we do when with a buddy!

Ok, I am now well-vented. I feel better!

 

[drbill]

Oh come on Bill, that is just a squewed curve because 100 x more divers dive in groups.

Mark, I was referring to MY personal statistics, not those of the diving population as a whole. I analyzed (and normalized) them last year out of curiosity.

 

[drbill]

By the way, I actually encourage some to be "critical" of my solo diving. I dive off a local dive boat (Scuba Luv's King Neptune) which often carries instructors and their BOW, AOW and other students. I encourage the instructors I know to make a point of letting their students know my solo diving is NOT something they should try until they gain sufficient experience and training.

 

[SmileMon]

I don't know about you guys, I just recently started diving solo on a regular basis, but something changed, my dives are more relaxed now, my air consumption dropped to a point I'm surfacing because I'm tired, although its beach diving, it doesn't change the fact I feel great after the dive.

I never got attitude about my solo dives except from my co-workers which are afraid of their own shadow and here on scubaboard, but I can understand other solo divers trying to say its not safe/not enough experience, I did the same to all my friends that wanted to get a motorcycle.