So after a week of Tech1, I was more than ready for a few less stressful dives. A wreck diving event was happening in the area, so I decided to stick around for an extra day. For the first dive, got assigned a similarly trained buddy who wanted to take some pictures with me as the model. No problem. A 3rd diver (also GUE trained) joined us as well. Once we found the mooring block, my job was to put some gas in the attached jug and send it up. Mission accomplished and we had an awesome tour of the really cool wreck after that.
The 2 original buddies opted not to do the second dive. There were 2 others on the boat going to do it, so I opted to join them. One had quite an anti-DIR attitude (buddy #2), but hey - I'm almost used to that by now
. Buddy #3 seemed OK, but maybe a bit anxious. So we talked about the dive plan. I'm getting a bad feeling about this dive, but really want to dive this wreck (though it will be no more than 15 minutes). In we go. Buddy #3 has a weight belt issue and gets back on the boat to deal with it and returns. We head down the shot line, which had been briefly dragged by the boat's ladder so was no longer in sight of the wreck. So I took a compass heading and we swam to the edge of the viz (~50'). I thought I saw a large shadow off to the left, took a new heading and we found the wreck. I got control of the jug while buddy #2 got all the rope free of potential entanglements - except himself. See - he thought he thought he would just hold it in a pile on the deck until I sent up the jug. I finally convincd him I would not send up the jug until he was clear of the rope!
OK - mission accomplished!
Meanwhile, buddy #3's suit has flooded, he has become low on gas and thumbs the dive. The mooring line is almost in sight, so as we're ascending, I'm trying to get him to head in that direction to join buddy #2. He will have none of that and is making a rapid ascent for the surface. Buddy #2 has reached the line and is making a reasonable ascent. I'm in between them with a sinking feeling that there is no way I can stay with them both and not wanting to abandon either one. So I see buddy #3 break the surface and I go to the line and we do our ascent with stops.
I was relieved to find buddy #3 safely boarding the boat, though cold and stressed.
Max depth 92', bottom time ~ 8 minutes.
Let the critiques begin....
The 2 original buddies opted not to do the second dive. There were 2 others on the boat going to do it, so I opted to join them. One had quite an anti-DIR attitude (buddy #2), but hey - I'm almost used to that by now
. Buddy #3 seemed OK, but maybe a bit anxious. So we talked about the dive plan. I'm getting a bad feeling about this dive, but really want to dive this wreck (though it will be no more than 15 minutes). In we go. Buddy #3 has a weight belt issue and gets back on the boat to deal with it and returns. We head down the shot line, which had been briefly dragged by the boat's ladder so was no longer in sight of the wreck. So I took a compass heading and we swam to the edge of the viz (~50'). I thought I saw a large shadow off to the left, took a new heading and we found the wreck. I got control of the jug while buddy #2 got all the rope free of potential entanglements - except himself. See - he thought he thought he would just hold it in a pile on the deck until I sent up the jug. I finally convincd him I would not send up the jug until he was clear of the rope! OK - mission accomplished!
Meanwhile, buddy #3's suit has flooded, he has become low on gas and thumbs the dive. The mooring line is almost in sight, so as we're ascending, I'm trying to get him to head in that direction to join buddy #2. He will have none of that and is making a rapid ascent for the surface. Buddy #2 has reached the line and is making a reasonable ascent. I'm in between them with a sinking feeling that there is no way I can stay with them both and not wanting to abandon either one. So I see buddy #3 break the surface and I go to the line and we do our ascent with stops.
I was relieved to find buddy #3 safely boarding the boat, though cold and stressed.
Max depth 92', bottom time ~ 8 minutes.
Let the critiques begin....
