Rescue diving course-what did you wish you knew going in?

[Jayfarmlaw]

Signed up to take rescue diving course in two weeks. Any tips or knowledge you wish you knew before you took the course? I have the book and a working through it. I plan on a couple of "tune up" dives to refresh skills before the course.

Any equipment you wish you would have had?

i have an Air 2 on my BC, should I put a standard Octo back on and have redundant backups?

thanks in advance for your response.

jay

 

[RJP]

Rescue diving course-what did you wish you knew going in?

I wish I knew the instructor that I was going to have to haul out of the water - multiple times - was 6'5" and 250lbs!

:shocked2:

i have an Air 2 on my BC, should I put a standard Octo back on and have redundant backups?

Train the way you dive... dive the way you train.

Don't fiddle with your gear in anticipation of the class. You want to know you can do what you need to do... with your gear configured the way you actually dive it in the real world.

As to whether you should dive with an Air2 at all... well, that's a [-]can of worms[/-] discussion for another thread.

:cool2:

 

[Macan]

Signed up to take rescue diving course in two weeks. Any tips or knowledge you wish you knew before you took the course? I have the book and a working through it. I plan on a couple of "tune up" dives to refresh skills before the course.

Any equipment you wish you would have had?

i have an Air 2 on my BC, should I put a standard Octo back on and have redundant backups?

thanks in advance for your response.

jay

Get physically ready. Workout, build stamina, eat and rest well. You're going to need it. Rescue is a great course and loads of fun if you're with a big class.

 

[kevindsingleton]

I'll concur on the "get physically ready" part. You definitely will use every muscle in your body, especially if you get to do your checkout dives in rainy, muddy quarries like I did. Nothing like the fireman haul up a slippery bank with a really big fella on your back, simulating unconsciousness to get your heart pumping and your legs aching.

Enjoy the experience, and hope you never need those skills!

 

[TSandM]

Not a bad idea to practice a few of the emergency procedures you were taught in OW -- do a couple of air-shares, for example. Don't change your gear -- First off, you should learn how to manage things in what you intend to dive, and second, if there are any drawbacks to the configuration you have set up, you should learn about them, and simulated emergencies are a great way to do that.

Other than that, I don't think there's any specific preparation needed. Rescue class really doesn't involve a lot of diving, but a LOT of surface time, and it is strenuous. Make sure you can be warm and comfortable.

 

[Dnaber]

Why is it that Navy Seal training come to mind everytime someone mentions Rescue training?

 

[Russoft]

I don't want to hijack the thread, so could you simply elaborate regarding the physical demands? My wife and I are interested in taking Rescue Diver. But if I understand this right, it's physically demanding. My wife is not very strong at all and is about at capacity just carrying her weight belt and an AL80. She's unlikely to be able to carry me, much less a larger or fatter person.

Last thing we want to do is sign up, only to find she can't handle it physically.

 

[hilljo88]

It's a great course. You'll be glad you did it. Be careful on the haul out drills. Bad technique and size mismatch can lead to a shoulder getting wrenched, and to ribs getting cracked against pool deck/dock/transom.

---------- Post added August 18th, 2015 at 02:29 PM ----------

I don't want to hijack the thread, so could you simply elaborate regarding the physical demands? My wife and I are interested in taking Rescue Diver. But if I understand this right, it's physically demanding. My wife is not very strong at all and is about at capacity just carrying her weight belt and an AL80. She's unlikely to be able to carry me, much less a larger or fatter person.

Last thing we want to do is sign up, only to find she can't handle it physically.

I think its a great idea for you to take it together. Even if, worst case, she cant pass all of the physical requirements (and you may be pleasantly surprised) she will learn so much in the course and become a much better diver. Just think: if something were to happen to you on a dive, wouldn't you want your dive buddy to have as much knowledge and at least some practice in how to appropriately respond?

 

[Mouth Breather]

Signed up to take rescue diving course in two weeks. Any tips or knowledge you wish you knew before you took the course? I have the book and a working through it. I plan on a couple of "tune up" dives to refresh skills before the course.

Any equipment you wish you would have had?

i have an Air 2 on my BC, should I put a standard Octo back on and have redundant backups?

thanks in advance for your response.

jay

I wished I had known how valuable it was and what a sense of accomplishment I'd have in completing it. I'd have done it sooner!

 

[Doc]

That I had gone thru "the exercise" maybe 20 years younger.