solo diving training vs tech training

[bradlw]

Over my lunch break today I watched a video about Padi's self sufficient diver training. Just a random thing that youtube's algorthim popped into my suggestions...
I'm not really looking into it or thinking about taking the class.... although it did cross my mind to try to get my hands on the class text book...well probably not for the padi one...but for some solo diver class...just so that I can knock some of my rust off and see if it covers anything different than what I remember practicing or in recognition that I may not know what I I have forgotten....

I don't know when the mainstream recreational agencies started accepting and teaching this stuff....but I dove with this mindset and equipped pretty much like this I'll say at least 2 decades before they started teaching the class.... diving with pony bottles and added redundancy back when nobody else on any of the charts I'd go on did. I was always thinking through the set-up and scenarios perfecting my system and plans.

Anyway, this was like a 1 hour video (watched at a faster x2 speed) so I recon' it covered it fairly thoroughly, although I know he glossed over a few areas that surely would be covered. It was a vid on the channel "Everything Scuba" if you're curious....

anyway, it got me to thinking....
all the skills that are required to be demo'd were covered and practiced in a much more hardcore way through my journey through IANTD's technical diving courses (adv nitrox, tech diver, deep air, full Trimix diver) I've gotta believe that same thing tracks through everything in the course....pretty much everything was covered and then some....

swim without a mask.... sure thing.....but lets do it by compleley ditching ALL my gear (mask, all tanks, the whole rig)...and following a cave line some long distance maybe 60ft? away to buddy breathe...then leave him and return and re-don all my gear....at depth in 40-Fathom Gratto..not in some swimming pool!​

I think I've seen mentioned in other threads here, about showing the solo certification card and some dive operators will let you go solo without getting forced onto an insta-buddy.
SO I was wondering...if a person had some advanced technical certifications would that be considered equal for solo? (assuming of course you showed up properly equipped)

 

[Lorenzoid]

I don't know if you saw this thread in which the question was whether an instructor should qualify as a solo diver (for what purposes, I'm not certain). Instructor vs Solo Cert

 

[Marie13]

My local quarry will not let you solo dive if you just have a tech cert. You need the solo cert to solo dive. Same with some charter ops I know. It’s probably the insurance.

 

[rhwestfall]

Places are going to do/require what the want because it is their choice.

Reminds me of the story of a diver (tech instructor/instructor trainer) being denied a Nitrox fill because he didn't have a card. Had a tri-mix cert.... Go figure...

 

[Lorenzoid]

Reminds me of the story of a diver (tech instructor/instructor trainer) being denied a Nitrox fill because he didn't have a card. Had a tri-mix cert.... Go figure...

As I recall, the punchline (though it was apparently a true story) was, "Okay, then just give me a 32/0 trimix fill."

In that other thread I noted in my post above, an instructor said he was qualified to issue Solo certifications to his students. What if he just issued himself a solo cert?

I'm aware that it's not uncommon for experienced cave divers to dive solo--no Solo card needed, unless the gatekeeper of the cave requires one.

If someone with the ability to prevent you from diving requires that you have a Solo card, that's the end of the story.

 

[scubadada]

If someone with the ability to prevent you from diving requires that you have a Solo card, that's the end of the story.

And the card you have may make a difference.

Solo diving, or not, from the Explorer Ventures Turks & Caicos Explorer II

I recently read a review on Undercurrent in which the poster was denied the opportunity to solo dive with his PADI Self Reliant Diver certification. He was told that only the SDI Solo Diver certification was accepted. This seems to be borne out on the Explorer Ventures website This reminds me...

scubaboard.com

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

You can find the SDI manual here:
There is no student manual for the PADI or SSI version AFAIK (at least there wasn't a few years ago)

 

[Wibble]

Solo and technical diving is similar and related, like overlapping circles in a Venn diagram.

​

Technical diving requires that you can resolve issues underwater and be self reliant, although it can emphasise team working. There’s no limits up to your training level, e.g. you must be able to safely complete a dive on your own including all decompression and exit procedures.

Solo diving, certainly as taught in the SDI and PADI syllabus, is restricted to recreational diving limits only and teaches you how to execute a completely solo dive. Most skills learned are familiar to a technical diver such as switching to alternative gas supplies and resolving problems.

A technical diver will — or should — find completing a solo diver course pretty easy and a lot of fun demonstrating their existing skills. There’s very few new skills for a technical diver to learn, pretty much only learning the content of a solo diver information sheet and letting others know when you’re in and out.

A recreational diver may find completing a solo diver course quite challenging especially if they’re not familiar with alternative gas supplies. This is why you need a minimum of 100 dives and have the right attitude to diving. If you’re used to delegating planning and decisions to a DiveMaster, then you shouldn’t bother with solo diver.

 

[Wibble]

anyway, it got me to thinking....
all the skills that are required to be demo'd were covered and practiced in a much more hardcore way through my journey through IANTD's technical diving courses (adv nitrox, tech diver, deep air, full Trimix diver) I've gotta believe that same thing tracks through everything in the course....pretty much everything was covered and then some....

swim without a mask.... sure thing.....but lets do it by compleley ditching ALL my gear (mask, all tanks, the whole rig)...and following a cave line some long distance maybe 60ft? away to buddy breathe...then leave him and return and re-don all my gear....at depth in 40-Fathom Gratto..not in some swimming pool!​

Yep. As a technical diver, you should be able to do all of that blindfolded.

Actually I did do that lot blindfolded in my Solo Diver assessment. It was a massive hoot to be blindfolded, entangled (where did that rope come from!), loosing a fin, suddenly bubble-gunned (shutdowns), keeping my buoyancy, doing an ascent blindfolded including shooting up a SMB and doing a 3 min safety stop at 6m/20ft...

I think I've seen mentioned in other threads here, about showing the solo certification card and some dive operators will let you go solo without getting forced onto an insta-buddy.
SO I was wondering...if a person had some advanced technical certifications would that be considered equal for solo? (assuming of course you showed up properly equipped)

Alas many operators just don't care. You will be "buddied" up by them and you *really* need to kick off if they've given you a novice: I'm not there to do your work for you Mr DiveMaster unless you're paying me.

The only time the Solo card comes out is if diving in a lake/quarry that allows solo diving. There's one in the whole of the UK!

Dive boats don't care: they're basically a taxi service and if you say you're a skilled independent diver that's good enough for them. If you're stupid enough to say that and you don't have sufficient skills and you die, tough luck. And long may it remain like that. RIP to the guy who was next to me on the way out and didn't come back.

 

[tursiops]

Dive boats don't care: they're basically a taxi service

Depends on where you are; not always true. In fact, I'd guess it is the least likely dive boat attitude.