I can swim 300 yards using a side stroke; I’m just not very fast. If using a back stroke, thirst and hunger are more of an issue then distance. Did the mile swim thing in Boy Scouts years ago. I don’t consider myself to be a strong swimmer, but strong enough for the diving I do.
A friend of mine had an ex-navy seal as an instructor. What he described for the swimming requirements for this instructors class seemed to be completely unreasonable for a recreational diver. Sure military divers are involved in missions that involve dealing with extremely unfavorable conditions and the mission objective maybe worth risking lives, but I don’t think I need the same skill set.
The one “swimming” skill that applies to swimming, snorkeling and scuba that doesn’t seem to have been mentioned is recognizing when the conditions exceed your abilities. No human is stronger then the ocean and knowing when to stay out seems more important to me then some of the swimming requirements I’ve read here.
A friend of mine had an ex-navy seal as an instructor. What he described for the swimming requirements for this instructors class seemed to be completely unreasonable for a recreational diver. Sure military divers are involved in missions that involve dealing with extremely unfavorable conditions and the mission objective maybe worth risking lives, but I don’t think I need the same skill set.
The one “swimming” skill that applies to swimming, snorkeling and scuba that doesn’t seem to have been mentioned is recognizing when the conditions exceed your abilities. No human is stronger then the ocean and knowing when to stay out seems more important to me then some of the swimming requirements I’ve read here.