So close but not yet

[Badge353]

Mother Nature reared it's ugly head this weekend and I did not finish my OW certification. Went out Saturday and did one shore dive off Refugio State Beach in Santa Barbara. Visibility was 5-10 ft and other then being a good cofidence builder for the first non confined water dive there wasn't much else to see. Still it was a blast to do.

After an hour drive up the coast to Ventura and a very unrestful night sleep on the Spectre thanks to about five people who can't seem to realize you have 35 other people trying to sleep and know how to talk quieltly I awake ready to go Sunday morning. Getting all my gear ready to go and the captain comes on board and in a very deflating moment tells us all to go home he is not going out . Apparently ther was 30-35 kt + winds going through the Channel Islands and he did not feel like beating up a boat load of divers (I don't blame him and wouldn't want to be out in that weather to begin with). It was such a let down and had been looking forward to getting these dives done.

So hopefully we are looking at going back on Friday night and doing the dives on Saturday. I have my fingers crossed we can all work that in our schedules so we can get the dive done and I can start my beginning status as a new diver.

 

[fnfalman]

There's always a next time.

 

[TSandM]

Probably a good call on the part of the captain. You don't want difficult water conditions to add to the challenges of finishing your certification!

I hope the weather cooperates for you soon, though. The diving in the Channel Islands is FABULOUS!

 

[Scott]

Agreed, it was a good call on the captians part. I don't have a good sense of what a 35 kt wind on boat would feel like, but for an new diver I think it could sour ones view about diving.
I hope you have blue skies and calm seas the next time you go out. I have always enjoyed what SoCal diving has to offer.

 

[mselenaous]

One of the most important lessons to learn when diving it when NOT to dive. Safety, site conditions, personal comfort level, diving within one's own abilities, even how we feel at any given time, are all factors that weigh in on this decision. It's always a good call to follow the Captain's judgement to call it or that of someone with more local experience.
There's always another day to dive.

 

[KeithG]

Run away today and live to fight another day...

This is a great learning experience. You have already learned that it is okay to thumb a dive.

This one was based on expert judgment of another person. Your next step is to make this type of decision yourself. EVEN if others (more experienced or stupid than you) decide conditions are okay for them.

You can call a dive at any point. I often call dives from the comfort of my afternoon nap on a liveaboard. Sometimes I call them 10 or 15 minutes in when I decide I am not happy kicking in this current or I just do not like the visibility.

 

[MeraSonnet]

Yes, to get your 4 Open Water Certification dives in in one short trip is a challenge that is subject to mother nature and good dive calls. Glad you are safe and still excited. My certification in 2009 got stretched out over 6 months, ranging from the Sept weekend trip that was intended to be "it", to February. The Sept trip cert dives were cut short by lightning storms, bad diving conditions... and also too many students on the trip trying to certify at different levels... the instructor was spread too thin for timely diving for any one level certifying. So when I hear of folks planning their certification in anticipation of subsequent dive travel, always put in a word that certification can take longer than expected and to give some buffer time for the unexpected.