Divescape
Contributor
HELLO DIVER! HELLO, HELLO DIVER! ARE YOU OK?
Well first off let me trot out a few of those time worn clichés that you hear because, for this course they apply.
... This course will change the way you dive!
... Best course you will ever do
... This course is very rewarding! (Read challenging and tiring.)
There is a lot of work for this course, were the words that greeted me when Carel handed me the crew pack. He did not misspeak. The first chapter of the workbook took me a week to conquer, I found I could not concentrate for any length of time on the material. Still 2-5 were easier on the brain, but not on the hand. It is now a long time since I regularly made use of a pencil.
The DVD was a sobering reminder that an unresponsive diver at or below the surface, means that the dive plan has gone terribly wrong. The knowledge that the likely hood of preserving life in this circumstance is minimal is a sombre thought, but the knowledge that training, practice and refresher training can prevent things getting to this stage are motivation enough for the course.
With the theory behind it was an early start on Saturday for our confined water training, theory review combination. The theory was the easy part of the course, with the exam serving up little trouble, but for the obligatory PADI question, thrown in to challenge the way you think.
On to the pool where Carel pulled out an impressive number of slates for us to conquer. I was fortunate enough to train with four different types of buoyancy compensators represented. A conventional jacket type BC, a wing as well as the Mares air trim and Aqualung I3 system, each with their inherent challenges. The most important thing I took away from this is the critical importance of your pre-dive buddy check, and if in a group situation what is everyone diving. If you do not know how to work an air trim, or I3 or to remove a wing, in a rescue situation you are severally compromised.
Although the scenarios are serious we also had room for some humour. Hello, Hello, my name is Carel and I am a diverholic! sorry wrong meeting! Some Oscar winning performances of distressed divers followed with high treading, failing of hands and legs as well as some flying masks and regulators, and some hairy out of air ascents. Come rescue 7 unresponsive diver recovery, I had cause to regret some of my earlier antics as mid rescue I had to ask my victim to hang on a little longer because I had cramp from too much fining
Four hours later we had completed that stack of slates to Carels satisfaction and we were allowed out of the pool for a well deserved cup of coffee. Only sea trails now stood in front of us as tired and stiff we made our way, homeward bound.
Sunday dawned cool and overcast, with Long Beach Simons Town serving us up amazing winter diving conditions with great viz and no swell to speak of. Not ideal rescue conditions, but hey, I was not complaining.
I was just innocently adjusting my kit, when I was attacked by a panicked diver who had lost his buddy Casper the ghost weight. What ensued was a fairly in-effective search where I learned the importance of getting both specific and correct information to act on.
Non responsive diver recovery followed. I am told that my hands were shaking with adrenaline even on this practice drill. I was so focused on my rhythm that the beach arrived quicker than expected. Now to throw 100kgs of deadweight over my shoulders and carry it up the beach. The tide line beckoned but as I got shallower and shallower the water turned from molasses into glue that tangled my feet, and down I went into the sand. It would have to do, remembering in a rescue scenario there are no hard and fast rules, I was content to know that others could help me at this point, I commenced with heart massage.
Back in to the water for a FUN dive. Sure, but I had my eye on the wrong diver. Here psychologically I received a huge wakeup call, innocently looking at some nudibranchs, I was accosted by a panicked Carel, my eye saw panicked diver no reg, lost weight belt, but it would make the jump to offer my octo only to try and calm him down. My mind told me this is Carel he cant be out of air so he can look after himself and retrieve his octo. What a wake up, even those you respect as dive leaders can get into difficulties. I have indelibly burnt this scene into my cortex and if I can learn it here, I hope it will stand me in good stead for the rest of my diving career.
This leaves me in my reflections to conclude with a summary of just how bad my fellow Cape Town divers can be on just one dive. Obsessed diver pre-dive, panicked diver underwater, hyperventilating diver, out of air diver and an uncontrolled accent. As I sit here writing this my final thoughts are, if you have not done so then book yourself on a rescue course. I know there are courses paned by OMSAC instructors soon.
Well first off let me trot out a few of those time worn clichés that you hear because, for this course they apply.
... This course will change the way you dive!
... Best course you will ever do
... This course is very rewarding! (Read challenging and tiring.)
There is a lot of work for this course, were the words that greeted me when Carel handed me the crew pack. He did not misspeak. The first chapter of the workbook took me a week to conquer, I found I could not concentrate for any length of time on the material. Still 2-5 were easier on the brain, but not on the hand. It is now a long time since I regularly made use of a pencil.
The DVD was a sobering reminder that an unresponsive diver at or below the surface, means that the dive plan has gone terribly wrong. The knowledge that the likely hood of preserving life in this circumstance is minimal is a sombre thought, but the knowledge that training, practice and refresher training can prevent things getting to this stage are motivation enough for the course.
With the theory behind it was an early start on Saturday for our confined water training, theory review combination. The theory was the easy part of the course, with the exam serving up little trouble, but for the obligatory PADI question, thrown in to challenge the way you think.
On to the pool where Carel pulled out an impressive number of slates for us to conquer. I was fortunate enough to train with four different types of buoyancy compensators represented. A conventional jacket type BC, a wing as well as the Mares air trim and Aqualung I3 system, each with their inherent challenges. The most important thing I took away from this is the critical importance of your pre-dive buddy check, and if in a group situation what is everyone diving. If you do not know how to work an air trim, or I3 or to remove a wing, in a rescue situation you are severally compromised.
Although the scenarios are serious we also had room for some humour. Hello, Hello, my name is Carel and I am a diverholic! sorry wrong meeting! Some Oscar winning performances of distressed divers followed with high treading, failing of hands and legs as well as some flying masks and regulators, and some hairy out of air ascents. Come rescue 7 unresponsive diver recovery, I had cause to regret some of my earlier antics as mid rescue I had to ask my victim to hang on a little longer because I had cramp from too much fining
Four hours later we had completed that stack of slates to Carels satisfaction and we were allowed out of the pool for a well deserved cup of coffee. Only sea trails now stood in front of us as tired and stiff we made our way, homeward bound.
Sunday dawned cool and overcast, with Long Beach Simons Town serving us up amazing winter diving conditions with great viz and no swell to speak of. Not ideal rescue conditions, but hey, I was not complaining.
I was just innocently adjusting my kit, when I was attacked by a panicked diver who had lost his buddy Casper the ghost weight. What ensued was a fairly in-effective search where I learned the importance of getting both specific and correct information to act on.
Non responsive diver recovery followed. I am told that my hands were shaking with adrenaline even on this practice drill. I was so focused on my rhythm that the beach arrived quicker than expected. Now to throw 100kgs of deadweight over my shoulders and carry it up the beach. The tide line beckoned but as I got shallower and shallower the water turned from molasses into glue that tangled my feet, and down I went into the sand. It would have to do, remembering in a rescue scenario there are no hard and fast rules, I was content to know that others could help me at this point, I commenced with heart massage.
Back in to the water for a FUN dive. Sure, but I had my eye on the wrong diver. Here psychologically I received a huge wakeup call, innocently looking at some nudibranchs, I was accosted by a panicked Carel, my eye saw panicked diver no reg, lost weight belt, but it would make the jump to offer my octo only to try and calm him down. My mind told me this is Carel he cant be out of air so he can look after himself and retrieve his octo. What a wake up, even those you respect as dive leaders can get into difficulties. I have indelibly burnt this scene into my cortex and if I can learn it here, I hope it will stand me in good stead for the rest of my diving career.
This leaves me in my reflections to conclude with a summary of just how bad my fellow Cape Town divers can be on just one dive. Obsessed diver pre-dive, panicked diver underwater, hyperventilating diver, out of air diver and an uncontrolled accent. As I sit here writing this my final thoughts are, if you have not done so then book yourself on a rescue course. I know there are courses paned by OMSAC instructors soon.
