RECREATIONAL Dive Poll – Briefings & Navigation

[billt4sf]

How useful are briefings for most RECREATIONAL divers?

 

[Saniflush]

I'm always in favor of information/reconnaissance beforehand. I use the good and ignore the bad or what I am already familiar with.

 

[Reelman1]

I find the " here's what we're gonna do and here's what we hope to see" part of the briefing helpful and usually informative, but I consider the emergency plans and procedures to be indispensable and all too frequently overlooked by some...

 

[CT-Rich]

I like to hear what there is going to be on a dive. I would hate to find out after the dive that I was so engrossed in the side show that I missed the main event. The wording of the poll doesn't really reflect how the briefing influences me.... It asks how confident I am in my ability to navigate on a dive which is not the same as asking how helpful the briefing was. And navigation doesn't really get mentioned in the selected answers.

 

[flyboy08]

On our last trip this past August to LCB, the DM drew maps on a white board for each dive....they were very informative to the dive....and allowed some fun back and forth dialog.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Curious about the title ... briefings and navigation aren't the same thing. The former is like a map, the latter is the ability to follow directions once you're familiarized by the map. Lots of people listen intently to the briefing, and then get lost the moment their head submerges.

When I'm traveling I always pay attention to the briefing ... it's going to give me all the information I need to find the best stuff during the dive. This is particularly important on dive trips like the Red Sea ... where we didn't have a guide to follow.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[boulderjohn]

In recreational reef diving, the need for a briefing or for navigational skills varies dramatically by the area. here are just some examples.

• In Key Largo, they moor on a reef area and tell you what it is like under the boat. It can vary tremendously, and the briefing can be very helpful in finding your way around. The reef may be ahead of the mooring, it might be all around; it may a series of spur and groove ridges. How you plan your dive depends upon you knowing that from the start.
• In Cozumel, you usually drop over a wall and drift. A DM keeps the group together so they can ascend together and be picked up safely by the boat at the end of the dive. On many of those dives, a DM is key to the quality of the dive. He or she knows the entrances of the cool swim throughs, entrances you would probably never find on your own.
• In Thailand, I did a number of dives where we entered in one spot and came up in another very specific spot, where our boat picked us up. Again, the DM was crucial. He knew how to get there, and no briefing could have done that for us.
• In a lot of wreck dives, a good briefing will really help you get the most out of that visit. When diving a new wreck, I listen to that briefing carefully.

 

[dbnewton]

Some briefings are better than others naturally. But I always approach it from the point of view that information is valuable and ignoring it is foolish and serves no purpose. I can think of more than one time where late in the dive I used information from the briefing to orient myself. Could I have done so without the briefing, maybe/probably, can't say because I had the briefing.

 

[TMHeimer]

Most of my charter dives have been wreck dives. While I find the briefings to be useful, I have a general plan I follow being a shell collector. Most useful is knowing the size of the wreck, so I can plan a route. Of course, a thorough discussion with the buddy on our route is a must--taking into consideration of course what the buddy`s interests are. I usually suggest a bit of time right on the bottom for my needs then I follow the buddy around.
Oh yeah, I like detailed info. on where the anchor line is --usually at or near the bow of the wreck.

 

[Steve_C]

-Briefing. Go down the line. Do not just drop down, you will miss the wreck. Essential information if not familiar with NC diving.
-Information pointing out which way to go for certain attractions. Very useful in the Keys since I am almost always unguided.
-Which way to go when you reach the wreck to get to bow/stern.

There is often helpful information in the briefings especially if new to the boat/site. Most pay attention.

I thought the answer options were bad and none fit my experience so I did not fill it out.