Taking Rescue Course and I don't think the conditions are good to dive in.

[broncobowsher]

I just got back from the rescue class. I knew the conditions were not going to be very good when I could hear the waves 2 blocks away and it started to sprinkle.

That was all I needed to read to know you screwed up.

Don't know what instructor pushed you to go through with it, time to find a new one.
We all said you should check the conditions and call it if need be. You checked the conditions, knew they were bad, and made the bad decision to go through with it anyway.

I can see where you had a crappy time. That was self induced. I hope that was part of the lesson you learned from taking this class.

OK, with that out of the way, I still want to know if there were any other divers out there? I'm just curious if that was a sign that you should have stayed away (no or very few) or if there were a bunch out there (it wasn't that bad and maybe I can see where you thought it would be fine. Maybe the signs were not saying it would be that bad? But how you describe it the beach would have been better for surfing than for diving. I've done both on that same beach, on different days.

 

[tursiops]

Seems like the OP made two decisions, one Bad and one Good.
The Bad: do the dive even though it was way outside his comfort zone and capability, and against the advice of all those from whom he asked for advice.
The Good: don't even dive again. Every post from the OP has been about some fear, some problem, some worry....this is not an attitude that will allow for happy diving. He doesn't need this in his life, and I can't imagine anyone who would like to have him for an insta-buddy.
This is a harsh judgement, I know, and I DO admire his perseverance, but he also needs to know when to call it quits.
Prediction: he'll be back on soon talking about the next class he is going to take.
Oh, and now that he has "completed" the Rescue class, is he still going to post in the New Divers forum?

 

[Ukmc]

Rescue Course should not be another card to collect. It was the most difficult course I have taken. If diving in unsafe conditions makes you want to sell your gear, you should not be taking this course. Twenty dives are not even close to enough experience to be training to rescue another diver. I would continue diving, learning to enjoy diving, and being comfortable in varying conditions. It may take a few dozen more dives. It may take a few hundred more dives.

The best lesson not taught in Open Water courses is when not to dive. I would not dive in six foot surf in San Diego, but there may be times when the surf comes up during a dive. That is the time when being more experienced comes into play. You may not have to rescue anyone but yourself, but having the confidence to exit the water in those conditions can save your life.

Sign up for a different rescue class when you feel you can safely manage another diver in bad conditions.

I agree whole heartedly. This course is not just another card. When I was finished with mine I was both physically and mentally exhausted. i also did not feel like getting back into the ocean. However, I thought of it as a good thing. And I felt like instructor did her job, and in retrospect I would have not changed anything. Outside conditions are not always going to be perfect when your rescue skills maybe required. I agree that if the dive conditions are not right - call the dive. course or not. However, if a student keeps calling a dive… At some point re-scheduling fee may need to be charged.

 

[flyboy08]

I just got back from the rescue class. I knew the conditions were not going to be very good when I could hear the waves 2 blocks away and it started to sprinkle. We started out with the carrying the diver out 3 different ways. It was pretty bad, whenever a wave hit us my buddy would go flying over my head and we would both tumble under water.

The current was very strong with a rip. Before we could even get to the float the majority of the class was about 100 yards off course. So much that the dive master had to assist in towing two students to the float before the class started. The class went though the same skills we went though in the pool. It was a constant struggle to stay in the area of the float because of the current. I ended up finishing up the class but it felt like I was in a rescue panicked situation the entire time.

During the entire class I was thinking about how much I could get for my dive gear and selling it all. Based on what happened today, I don't think I am going to dive anymore. I used to not be afraid of the ocean and enjoyed it, but having a constant struggle and using all of my energy to just stay near the float then practicing the skills was not fun. Even during the CPR part when getting my head dunked with waves was horrible. It was such a good feeling once my feet touched the sand and I was out of the ocean. I was relieved and grateful to get out of the ocean!

I have a deep diver class scheduled for next week and I am going to cancel it. I have no desire to go in the water anymore. Even swimming with my head above water I don't want to do.

The main problem I see is that you took this class with minimal experience under your weight belt! As I highly recommend diver's taking the RC, I believe it would have been much better suited had you done OW and accumulated 100 dives or so! This is an enjoyable hobby, not one that should be a burden....

So I say RELAX! Dive in better conditions like 100 ft viz and 80 plus temps and work on the basic skills initially taught.

I took my RC 25 years after getting certified and with 500 plus dives and I purposely seeked out marginal weather and a green lagoon to boot to get my cert!

Chalk this up to experience and lesson learned and go out and enjoy this wonderful sport on YOUR TERMS!

 

[Seville]

That was all I needed to read to know you screwed up.

Don't know what instructor pushed you to go through with it, time to find a new one.
We all said you should check the conditions and call it if need be. You checked the conditions, knew they were bad, and made the bad decision to go through with it anyway.

I can see where you had a crappy time. That was self induced. I hope that was part of the lesson you learned from taking this class.

OK, with that out of the way, I still want to know if there were any other divers out there? I'm just curious if that was a sign that you should have stayed away (no or very few) or if there were a bunch out there (it wasn't that bad and maybe I can see where you thought it would be fine. Maybe the signs were not saying it would be that bad? But how you describe it the beach would have been better for surfing than for diving. I've done both on that same beach, on different days.

Yup there were others out there. But I do agree surfing would have been much more enjoyable lol!

 

[Ulfhedinn]

I just got back from the rescue class. I knew the conditions were not going to be very good when I could hear the waves 2 blocks away and it started to sprinkle. We started out with the carrying the diver out 3 different ways. It was pretty bad, whenever a wave hit us my buddy would go flying over my head and we would both tumble under water.

The current was very strong with a rip. Before we could even get to the float the majority of the class was about 100 yards off course. So much that the dive master had to assist in towing two students to the float before the class started. The class went though the same skills we went though in the pool. It was a constant struggle to stay in the area of the float because of the current. I ended up finishing up the class but it felt like I was in a rescue panicked situation the entire time.

During the entire class I was thinking about how much I could get for my dive gear and selling it all. Based on what happened today, I don't think I am going to dive anymore. I used to not be afraid of the ocean and enjoyed it, but having a constant struggle and using all of my energy to just stay near the float then practicing the skills was not fun. Even during the CPR part when getting my head dunked with waves was horrible. It was such a good feeling once my feet touched the sand and I was out of the ocean. I was relieved and grateful to get out of the ocean!

I have a deep diver class scheduled for next week and I am going to cancel it. I have no desire to go in the water anymore. Even swimming with my head above water I don't want to do.

Do you dive San Diego or Orange County? I would hate to see you quit diving because of a bad experience.

 

[Seville]

I am very sorry to read this.

Give yourself some time and think about it again. You don't have to dive in those conditions if you don't want to. I know I don't want to. There are plenty of dive sites around the world where calm conditions are the norm. On those dives, you will slip easily into placid waters and drop down into a wonderland. The only time you will be fighting surface conditions such as you describe is in Rescue Class, and you are done with that.

You are right, I had no problem in the pool in nice conditions it was just a day with conditions I was not comfortable being in. If I didn't have to do the class I would have not dived but I am glad its over with and I did it.

 

[Hojo in SC]

Sounds like the instructor is one that I wouldn't want as a dive buddy.

 

[TMHeimer]

Rescue Course should not be another card to collect. It was the most difficult course I have taken. If diving in unsafe conditions makes you want to sell your gear, you should not be taking this course. Twenty dives are not even close to enough experience to be training to rescue another diver. I would continue diving, learning to enjoy diving, and being comfortable in varying conditions. It may take a few dozen more dives. It may take a few hundred more dives.

The best lesson not taught in Open Water courses is when not to dive. I would not dive in six foot surf in San Diego, but there may be times when the surf comes up during a dive. That is the time when being more experienced comes into play. You may not have to rescue anyone but yourself, but having the confidence to exit the water in those conditions can save your life.

Sign up for a different rescue class when you feel you can safely manage another diver in bad conditions.

I pretty much agree with what you say here. Only caveat for me is that I don't think 20 dives is too few to be taking Rescue. Of course it varies per individual. I did mine after dive # 26 and did OK--Great on some skills, not so good on others. But the purpose is to actually do toe skills in the presence of an instructor as well as to gain the book knowledge, of which there is a lot. After I completed mine, I mentioned a couple of skills to my OW buddy, just in case I ever needed him to rescue me. It may not be ideal to take Rescue with, like, less than 100 dives under your belt, but, you do get the knowledge. And it need not be done in 6 foot waves.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Definitely judge for yourself if you see other people having trouble. Any one can call any dive for any reason. Period. Part of rescue is doing things at there extreme but no point in taking a risk. 20 dives is a tad short to be attempting rescue but you're in it now.