You need to be pushed, tested, bruised, harassed, exhausted and put under real pressure, otherwise you're not getting your monies worth. Not necessarily what you'd expect from a luxury dive holiday.
Rescue Diver Course Location: Worth doing it in a nice expensive spot?
- Thread starter TSFisk
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Agree!
If you want the cert, going somewhere pretty is GREAT! I did!
Shortly later I realized my skills were not there to be a true lifesaver, so I did 2 things:
1. Hired an excellent instructor to come kick my ass in paradise. I had to pass lifeguard minimum standards and minimum Navy Seal swim test (not as bad as it sounds, actually).
2. Went back to the Northeast and did it again.
I ALSO realize that I am no longer in the same shape to make those difficult rescues and it's the #1 reason I don't teach right now. I can swim a mile, and run 5, but not while dragging a #250 dude anymore.
Ask yourself what you are wanting to accomplish and let that guide your decision.
Shortly later I realized my skills were not there to be a true lifesaver, so I did 2 things:
1. Hired an excellent instructor to come kick my ass in paradise. I had to pass lifeguard minimum standards and minimum Navy Seal swim test (not as bad as it sounds, actually).
2. Went back to the Northeast and did it again.
I ALSO realize that I am no longer in the same shape to make those difficult rescues and it's the #1 reason I don't teach right now. I can swim a mile, and run 5, but not while dragging a #250 dude anymore.
Ask yourself what you are wanting to accomplish and let that guide your decision.
Charles Graves
Registered
Hey, so I am a certified rescue diver myself, and my thoughts are that it really depends on how much money you have to blow!
If you are not hurting for money at all, already own a nice home and at least one secondary rental property, and you have a good job that pays enough for you to go on nice vacations every two or three months, and it's important for you to see nice scenery during the course, then sure! Why not do your rescue diving course at a nice location. **** it. Live life!
However, on the other hand, if you aren't at that place yet, and money still holds value to you, then you might be much better off doing your rescue diving course at an affordable quarry or lake nearby, and then you can do the vacation to an awesome place to "celebrate" getting your cert!
For some perspective, I am in the "income $180,000 a year range" and I'm at the point where I make good money, but I still want to spend it wisely. What I did was I did the rescue diving at a local quarry and then went on a 2 week vacation to Puerto Rico to see a lot of cool stuff and do a lot of diving while I'm there too.
The way I see it is, rescue diving course is SUPPOSED to be hard, military-ish, which means a little unpleasant, a little tough/rough, not the best water temps, not the best sight seeing, etc. Just hard, brutal. And THATS OKAY. If I wasnt willing to do a hard course, then I wouldn't have bothered getting my rescue diver in the first place, because I feel like I wouldnt really have earned it or deserved it anyway. The course's purpose is to teach you to save someone's life in a critical situation, and when that situation happens, it isn't going to be fun, it's going to be scary and hard. So I wanted to kind of prepare myself for if that day god forbid, ever came. Thankfully it hasnt yet.
If you are not hurting for money at all, already own a nice home and at least one secondary rental property, and you have a good job that pays enough for you to go on nice vacations every two or three months, and it's important for you to see nice scenery during the course, then sure! Why not do your rescue diving course at a nice location. **** it. Live life!
However, on the other hand, if you aren't at that place yet, and money still holds value to you, then you might be much better off doing your rescue diving course at an affordable quarry or lake nearby, and then you can do the vacation to an awesome place to "celebrate" getting your cert!
For some perspective, I am in the "income $180,000 a year range" and I'm at the point where I make good money, but I still want to spend it wisely. What I did was I did the rescue diving at a local quarry and then went on a 2 week vacation to Puerto Rico to see a lot of cool stuff and do a lot of diving while I'm there too.
The way I see it is, rescue diving course is SUPPOSED to be hard, military-ish, which means a little unpleasant, a little tough/rough, not the best water temps, not the best sight seeing, etc. Just hard, brutal. And THATS OKAY. If I wasnt willing to do a hard course, then I wouldn't have bothered getting my rescue diver in the first place, because I feel like I wouldnt really have earned it or deserved it anyway. The course's purpose is to teach you to save someone's life in a critical situation, and when that situation happens, it isn't going to be fun, it's going to be scary and hard. So I wanted to kind of prepare myself for if that day god forbid, ever came. Thankfully it hasnt yet.
Also, dragging an unresponsive diver out of the water and performing CPR on the beach tends to upset the other guests!
After all, they've come to an exclusive location to get away from the riff-raff
After all, they've come to an exclusive location to get away from the riff-raff
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I found the course to be quite challenging mentally (not a new thing for me, ask my wife). Physically not so much. 5 days in a row. I was at the time 52. I don't think not being exhausted diminished what I thought was a good course.
Frackingawesome
Contributor
I always try to get certified in the worst possible conditions. if you can do something in 40degree water with 5' vis then 80-degree water and 100' vis is a piece of cake. that said I agree with Jim Lapenta gear matters.
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