Solo Diving Article

[Cacia]

Paul is an info-hound, like a walking encyclopedia.

 

[PaulChristenson]

Ugh, where? avoid those places, there are probably other problematic regulations for me. Regulatory hell, one of my deepest fears.

Why would you avoid them if you were certified...it just makes it easier to dive, if buddies don't show up...

In the Fire Service we live by regulations (OSHA,VOSHA,NIOSH,NFPA...etc) or die...

 

[Cacia]

because I am not? and I want to buy other stuff? where are they Paul, very curious? you always have the scoop, wish I was well read.

 

[MikeFerrara]

This article compares solo diving to poorly done team diving and makes statements like

Second, the buddy system is deeply flawed. It fosters dependent behavior in many divers and is proven not to enhance safety. In fact, it may do just the opposite for many divers forced into the role of buddy.

Which is demonstrably misleading and only true of poorly done buddy diving. I don't doubt that the buddy system as applied by the author is flawed but there are other ways. The fix for a flawed buddy system is to adress the flaws, not to do away with the team. LOL the authors logic seems flawed to me.

The "Helper" Myth
Besides being forced to by operators, perhaps the only reason many divers remained tethered to the buddy system is the "it's safer!" claim: Two divers can help each other in the event of injury, panic or equipment failure. Unfortunately, dive accident statistics and actual reports tell a much different story. In reality, buddy partnerships fail more often than they succeed. The reasons: Buddy diving encourages dominant and passive roles, one diver's ability to help the other is negated by separation or inattention, and few buddies have the actual experience or skills to assist another diver in the sudden onset of equipment failure, panic or an out-of-air situation.

I have to say this is false since I've seen divers help divers in the case of problems including equipment failures many many times. Though it's true that buddy seperations often go hand in hand with accidents where one diver fails to help the other that's just more proof that buddy diving is often done poorly. To find out why all we need to do is to look at how it's usually taught. It isn't. It's talked about in texts but rarely are student divers actually required to demonstrate that they can function as a buddy on a real dive. Instead students follow the instructor in a pack like a school of mindless guppies during very short tours during certification dives. Then when they fail as buddies once certified it's used as evidence that the buddy system is flawed. the way I see it, one of the very agencies that has failed miserable at teaching team diving is now selling solo diving courses as an alternative. SD magazine did a great job of running a publicity campaign for them and uinfortunately many divers swallow the swill that they published. As poorly as they teach bussy diving, why should we believe they are capable of teaching solo diving?

In fact if we really want to look at what accident stats tell us, we'll see that the biggest problem is a low level of proficiency in skills that are needed by every diver on every dive. More failure by the agencies? Not opnly do they fail to teach buddy diving but they don't even teach basics like buoyancy control very well. BTW, the article keeps mentioning mounting evidence, why don't they present the data they're refering to?

If you want to see if team diving works, take a look at a practiced well trained team. There are lots of them and they work very well. Buddy diving does work but it doesn't work by accident or somehow by magic just because you're near another diver. Being able to help another diver takes practice and drilling in the kind of problems/tasks that are expected. Poorly done buddy diving is a pain and it can be dangerous but I don't see it as a selling point for solo diving. The reason to solo dive is because you don't want a team, not because a team can't work.

 

[all4scuba05]

because I am not? and I want to buy other stuff? where are they Paul, very curious? you always have the scoop, wish I was well read.

just dove there this weekend...noticed this rule of theirs....http://dutchsprings.com/faqscuba.htm

someday it will be a requirement to have a Drysuit Card or you can only enter with a wetsuit.