Scooter thread split from Diver missing from Vandenberg Wreck in Key West

[The Chairman]

Then don’t use one Idgaf.

It's a forum. If we all agreed, then it would be a boring place. I'm simply reminding people that additional gear means additional planning. Having a scooter can put you in peril if you don't make proper plans like setting limits. I do GAF if people simply jump on a scooter with nary a care in the world and get hurt because they've exceeded their physical limits and have no backup plans for when it fails. At some point, all man-made things fail. I hope I'm not being too subtle here. No, I'm not posting for your benefit. Apparently, you think you have it all figured out and wouldn't heed my advice no matter how pertinent. I'm posting for others to read and perchance to take heed.

For everyone but PfcAJ: Diving is all about limits. Yeah, depth, time, and air are ingrained into our heads from OW. There are more limits than just those three. The more you complicate your diving, the more you need to plan. The tendency is to plan for everything to go right, and that's mostly what will happen. A prudent diver also plans for when things go awry. That often is the difference between getting back on the boat or us opining about what possibly could have gone wrong for you. Be prudent: there's nothing down there worth dying for. We really don't want to discuss your untimely demise.

For PfcAJ: BUT FITNESS IS EFFING IMPORTANT!!! (happy?)

 

[The Chairman]

but to deny its fun factor

Many of us are purists. I don't always dive with a bladder on my BC which causes some consternation. It's how I learned to dive in another century, so it's no big deal to me. But then, I also dive a rebreather, not for the added no-deco time, but for the silence. The silence. Different strokes for different folks!

 

[Nick_Radov]

…and that is why you are promoting a scooter? I find those things ridiculous. The last thing I need in the water is to be behind or on a machine (but for the boat). I get enough “ motor time” on I95 driving to work.

If you can’t swim down or around without a machine…just say’n

It depends on the conditions. Diving offshore in the Pacific Ocean, sometimes the currents are just too strong to swim against (especially with a tech diving rig plus camera). It doesn't matter how fit you are, you won't make it down to the dive site without a scooter. Currents can also vary by depth so it can be calm at the surface and then ripping near the bottom. So, if you're not willing to use a scooter then you don't get to dive those sites at all — which is fine.