Retrieving Regulator Underwater(OW skill).

[Ez E]

So I took a PADI comprehensive refresher in jan/feb of this year. One of the skills was retrieving a lost regulator. I passed the skill fine. The other guy taking the class had some struggles(maybe because of his weight I dunno).


So I was talking to a buddy who is interested in diving about skills you learn/perform. He asked what of you can’t retrieve your regulator? I said well grab your octo or secondary until you can.

This got me thinking about the guy from jan/feb. I was wondering, if you are doing your OW course. You are taught to retrieve the primary regulator while exhaling bubbles(never hold your breath). What if you fail to retrieve it on your breath? If you grab the octo and breathe on that while recovering your primary, is that a fail?

I know this is kind of a stupid question but had me perplexed. Everyone always recovers it on their own breathe(that I have seen). So for the instructors out there is this considered a “fail” if you grab your backup and then recover the primary? Or does it show competency to grab the octo when you are out of air vs. freaking out and shooting for the surface?

 

[rick00001967]

a padi instr would have to comment on the pass vs fail in this scenario.

but i personally would be impressed if a new student was aware enough to grab their own octo if they could not find the primary, then continue until they did recover the primary.

just fyi....our local shop teaches with the back up reg on the left. not the right as is the usual practice. so it would be awkward to retrieve the back up to use for yourself.

i switched to an aqualung abs as my back up years ago when i started teaching there. if you look it up you will see it is a style that can used on the left or right. i started keeping it on a necklace around my neck. i found this way it worked for me and for my buddy. no other instructor there adopted this.

 

[Landau]

Would this be a fail? It depends…

If the student did everything right but was unable to recover the reg because it got snagged on the tank strap behind his back and grabbed the octo instead - PASS but I’ll still get them to try again until they are confident they can do it.

If the student did everything wrong: rolled body in wrong direction, swept arm from top to bottom instead of bottom to top, only used one hand when the other could grab the reg but through pure luck recovered the reg - I’m going to work with them so they can recover the reg by doing the right actions and not relying on luck

 

[boulderjohn]

I came to the opinion more than 15 years ago that this skill is an example of what happens in many instructional situations in many areas of study--a skill created in the past continues as it was originally created even after equipment changes make the original process less than optimal. This case is especially interesting (and complicated) in that regard.

I assume you were taught the skill, as most people are, while kneeling on the floor of the pool. That makes the skill (both versions) completely different from what happens when you are diving. For the sweep method, leaning to the right while vertical is completely different from leaning to the right while horizontal. The reach method is completely different. When kneeling, gravity pulls the tank and regulator down and away, so divers are often taught to use their left hand to lift the tank. It is one of the hardest skills you do in the class. When you are in horizontal swimming position, gravity puts the regulator right behind your head--that skill is ridiculously easy.

When students are taught to do skills while horizontal rather than on their knees, both versions of the regulator recovery skill are so easy that it brings something of a paradox. While it makes sense that you would reach for your alternate in a real situation, in a real situation on a dive, the primary regulator is going to be right in front of you with little to no effort on your part, so it is actually easier to grab the "lost" primary than the alternate. It is really only easier to get the alternate if you are upright in the water and the primary has somehow gotten behind you.

A second complication is the type of alternate being used. The most common kind is still the alternate (sometimes) held in place in the "golden triangle." A lot of people today (including me) use a different system, with the alternate held just below the chin on a bungee cord necklace going around the neck, with the primary donated to an OOA diver. It is extremely easy to get that to your mouth--some people can actually switch to their alternate just by dipping their heads--no hands involved. The "golden triangle" regulator often comes loose from its holder and may not be readily available to you, so your lost primary may still be the best choice.

 

[tursiops]

There is no "fail," only a "not yet pass." You keep working with the student until they get it, competently. The skill is to recover one's own reg...not the one you have primarily for your buddy if needed. The point is NOT to do the classical "arm sweep" but rather to recover a reg that has been dropped or been knocked from your mouth, and not hold one's breath while doing that. The arm sweep is one way to do it in one (unlikely) position in the water.

 

[TravisD]

I try to teach underwater problem solving - if they have problems with a skill, but identify a safe, in-standards way of addressing the problem, that's in their favor. I'd still go back and get them to do it without grabbing the octo, just to make sure they know that it's possible, but kudos if they find a way to recover that doesn't involve going to the surface.

 

[Scubagermany]

Why would you not hold your breath?
I can imagine the last thing I would do if I ever lost my regulator accidentally is exhale.... Unless I was ascending....

 

[tursiops]

Why would you not hold your breath?
I can imagine the last thing I would do if I ever lost my regulator accidentally is exhale.... Unless I was ascending....

That is exactly the problem: if you are stressed, you may be ascending and not know it. Also, exhaling and not holding your breath are two different things. Just let a few bubbles come out of your mouth....you'll have opened your lungs but use very little gas.

 

[Scubagermany]

It takes quite a bit of practice to just let out a few bubbles.
I think new divers are much more likely to exhale too much.
If they do not manage to retrieve the regulator and run out of air they have a bigger problem than they face by holding their breath...

 

[Comm]

I teach that if they have the situational awareness to switch to the octo then good for them. The ultimate goal is to stay calm and in control - and breathing helps do that.

Once they switch to the octo they still have to complete the skill requirement - “Recover a regulator from behind the shoulder.” Meaning they have to do the appropriate sweep or reach back to recover the primary. Once primary is in hand they have to switch to it and stow the octo.