Solo diving in Coz....

[deepsea21]

Buddy System? The majority of extreme tech/wreck divers may dive in a group on their planned explorations but no one NEVER has an assigned buddy. Want to know why? Because that is how two divers end up dead instead of one. Read the NYT best seller 'Shadow Divers' by Robert Kurson. Once you start reading it you will not be able to put it down... A true story with lives lost in their pursuit of rewriting WWII U-Boat history off the east coast of the USA (which they did).

 

[ggunn]

Gordon--

What's your take on the solo/no solo thing? You've been going to the island for a long time.

I have no dog in that hunt. I dive a lot when I am there but there's no way my wife would let me go diving without her!

My only take on the issue is that the dive ops there have the right to manage their liability however they see fit.

 

[cruiser]

I can categorically say that the solo dives made me a much better diver. Skills refined in solo diving also made me a much more useful buddy when I do buddy dives.

^^^ This ^^^

 

[nippurmagnum]

If the vehicle suffers a sudden and unexpected breakdown the driver can simply pull over and call for help. Many or most divers are not comfortable diving alone and they never will be. It's got nothing to do with skill and little or nothing to do with confidence.

I would respectfully disagree. The analogy of solo divers to solo divers is very much on point. In an emergency, if your vehicle suffers a "sudden and unexpected breakdown," you as the solo driver have to react quickly and appropriately -- whether it's a blowout, a skid, a crash, or engine trouble. You can't count necessarily count on being able to "simply pull over and call for help" -- in the middle of an emergency, the circumstances may not allow you the luxury to do that, or you may not be in an area where you can stop safely, or you may not have phone, or the phone battery may be dead. And an automobile mishap can be just as deadly as a diving mishap -- more so, in fact.

I think drivers need to be fully prepared to take responsibility for their own safety, and so do divers. In both scenarios, relying on someone else to be looking over your shoulder to keep you safe is a recipe for trouble.

 

[caruso]

I would respectfully disagree. The analogy of solo divers to solo divers is very much on point.

Except it's not, because most people drive alone after getting their driver's licenses and do not require additional equipment and training. Solo diving, besides requiring the extra training and gear, also puts a person in a situation where they may be alone, in a dark, hostile, and unnatural environment and subject to challenges and danger that they won't typically experience in a typical day on the surface such as marine predators, entrapment, and even undue anxiety due to the "creepiness" factor.

 

[cruiser]

I see a marketing niche emerging--a certification for Cozumel solo diving. Of course, we'd want the local dive businesses to be on board and honor it.

The course would address and remedy the concerns that Coz ops have against solo diving (which I can't determine yet because the excuses given are flimsy).

 

[nippurmagnum]

Except it's not, because most people drive alone after getting their driver's licenses and do not require additional equipment and training. Solo diving, besides requiring the extra training and gear, also puts a person in a situation where they may be alone, in a dark, hostile, and unnatural environment and subject to challenges and danger that they won't typically experience in a typical day on the surface such as marine predators, entrapment, and even undue anxiety due to the "creepiness" factor.

Well, I'll grant you what when you drive a car, you are highly unlikely to have marine predator issues, short of a Sharknado.

As a driver, you constantly have to deal with drunk/distracted/poor drivers, ice, rain, darkness, poor visibility, deer jumping out in front of your car, and all manner of other changing, often "hostile" conditions. And someone who just got licensed to drive a car is legally entitled to drive alone, but the mere fact of having a license is no guarantee that its holder is a good diver. That's why rental companies won't rent a car to licensed drivers under the age of 25, period. The rental agencies want to increase the chances that their renters will have a certain level of driving experience/maturity/competence. The one thing rental agencies never require is that the renter drive with a buddy.

Similarly, solo diving requires competence, experience, maturity, and common sense from the diver.

BTW, I am definitely NOT suggesting that you should dive by yourself if the very idea makes you feel "undue anxiety." But it would be an interesting thought experiment to write out the factors that would cause you to feel anxiety during a dive, and ask yourself whether that anxiety would be more diminished if (1) you acquired the experience/skills to deal with those factors yourself, or (2) you had more buddies around you to help you out.

 

[JamesBon92007]

I see a marketing niche emerging--a certification for Cozumel solo diving. Of course, we'd want the local dive businesses to be on board and honor it.

The course would address and remedy the concerns that Coz ops have against solo diving (which I can't determine yet because the excuses given are flimsy).

Part of the problem with solo diving on Cozumel is that we are not allowed to dive in the marine park without a qualified DM so it could only apply to areas outside of the park.

 

[caruso]

BTW, I am definitely NOT suggesting that you should dive by yourself if the very idea makes you feel "undue anxiety." But it would be an interesting thought experiment to write out the factors that would cause you to feel anxiety during a dive, and ask yourself whether that anxiety would be more diminished if (1) you acquired the experience/skills to deal with those factors yourself, or (2) you had more buddies around you to help you out.

Don't know if you're specifically addressing me here or just putting it out to divers who are hesitant to dive solo. Speaking for myself, most of my dives are solo, I prefer it for the most part, I got the SDI solo certification over 10 years ago and I always carry the appropriate additional gear. My last dive was 3 days ago, solo, in less than 2 feet of visibility in the Long Island Sound off my own boat which I posted about on another thread that was moved to the "jokes" section because one or more moderators did not believe that I forgot my weights and used 2 boat anchors to stay down.

The only time I experience "undue anxiety" while diving is when I'm asked to buddy up with a diver of unknown skills and experience.

 

[cruiser]

Part of the problem with solo diving on Cozumel is that we are not allowed to dive in the marine park without a qualified DM so it could only apply to areas outside of the park.

That would work for me.