Suggetions for choosing an excellent tech diving intructor

[Caron]

Hello, I wil be moving to the Washington D.C. area in about 6 months and am interested in learning more about technical diving (wreck penetration, decompression diving, advanced Nitrox and Trimix, etc...) I am interested in any advice on how to find a good technical instructor or recommendations for instructors in the Maryland, Virginia, Delaware area. Also, other than keeping up diving, what else can I do to prepare for this type of dive instruction?

My background so far is Naui Master Diver, TDI Nitrox Diver, and Naui Wreck Diver- external survey. I started diving in the cold waters of San Diego, learned basic wreck diving in Virginia and now live on Guam. I've only been diving for little over two years and have just under 100 logged dives (I usually dive every other weekend, but I had a two "dry periods" of about 4 months (Winter 2000) and 3 months (Winter 2001) each when I was on the East Coast of the Mainland.

Thanks in advance.

Dive safely.

 

[100days-a-year]

Caron,try going to some local shops and they'll point you in the right direction.The guy who tought me tri-mix was from Virginia and he told me there is a big tech community there.Try the GUE,IANTD,TDI websites for contacts in the area,that worked for me .My instructor went far beyond the standards to insure my training was as good as he could teach.good luck

 

[techdiverKP]

The key here being look for an instructor who will go above and beyond standards to make sure you are properly trained. The GUE program (of which I admittedly don't have much knowledge) appears to do that as part of the minimum requirements for course completion. I believe I received excellent training from a Tech instructor who is not GUE, but spent the time with me to ensure I was fully competent in all the critical skills. Later on, I bought a DIR-F book out of curiousity, to get a glimpse of what all the hubub was about... and horror of horrors, I found I was alot more DIR than I thought :wacko:

All kidding aside.. the point I'm making is... nothing replaces training time IN the water and an instructor who demands/expects precision diving that will prepare you for just about every conceivable emergency sitch. Dedication like that CAN be found in Instructors from almost any agency, but don't judge by price (either high or low).

You can expect to pay more than you originally thought, both for gear and training... I've known some people who claim they have spent more on dive training and gear than they spent on a good college education.

 

[Tekkie]

I believe that there is a dive shop that teaches TDI Nitrox through Trimix in Fairfax Va. You might want to also ask o-ring about instructors because he lives in that area. There are like 19 dive shops in that area and I herd from my dive shop that there are only like two or three that offer trimix. Hope this helps.
Tekkie

 

[DIR Tec Diver]

I would like to add that it is a good idea to get an idea of the types of diving your instructor does in his/her free time, as well as how many dives total in a year and non training. People that spend all their time teaching tend to slip out of the routine of bettering themselves, increasing their own training and skills etc. Some of the best instructors from all agencies regularly post articles, are seen on expeditions and are involved in pushing things to the next level. If they don't fit into that category then they may need to be skipped.

 

[boomx5]

techdiverKP once bubbled...
The key here being look for an instructor who will go above and beyond standards to make sure you are properly trained. The GUE program (of which I admittedly don't have much knowledge) appears to do that as part of the minimum requirements for course completion. I believe I received excellent training from a Tech instructor who is not GUE, but spent the time with me to ensure I was fully competent in all the critical skills. Later on, I bought a DIR-F book out of curiousity, to get a glimpse of what all the hubub was about... and horror of horrors, I found I was alot more DIR than I thought :wacko:

All kidding aside.. the point I'm making is... nothing replaces training time IN the water and an instructor who demands/expects precision diving that will prepare you for just about every conceivable emergency sitch. Dedication like that CAN be found in Instructors from almost any agency, but don't judge by price (either high or low).

You can expect to pay more than you originally thought, both for gear and training... I've known some people who claim they have spent more on dive training and gear than they spent on a good college education.

Where in California are you located?

 

[Braunbehrens]

If you can manage to do a class with Andrew Georgitis you will not regret it. He travels a lot, so that may be a possibility. I took two classes with him and learned more than I thought possible.

I'm not so sure that talking to local shops is a good idea...won't they just push their own instructors? You really want a bit more unbiased opinions, I would approach divers who look like they have their stuff together and ask them who taught them. Also ask on line.

 

[VaJames]

There is a Tech group out of Lynnhaven in Va Beach that regularly does some pretty interesting dives. Lynnhaven teaches all TDI classes. (Everybody breathe and relax...DIR folks no need to panic). One of the TDI instructors is a GUE Cave diver and another one of the regulars is a GUE trained cave diver also. They have their stuff together down there. PM me if you want more info. Something to think about.

James
:getsome:

 

[WJL]

VaJames once bubbled...
Lynnhaven teaches all TDI classes. (...DIR folks no need to panic).

[PANIC] Ahhhhh! You'll DIE!!! RUN AWAY, RUN AWAY!!![/PANIC]

 

[VaJames]

I knew that was coming. lol

James
:getsome: