Technical Diving Instructor Survey

[Scuba-licia]

Hi All,

As a somewhat new tech diver (first certified April 2024) , a recreational scuba instructor for 20 years, and user experience designer by day, I am struggling to find a mental model across different types of technical diving (e.g: cavern and open water extended range) to get a better sense of what what what must absolutely must differ based on certain conditions as opposed to what can be carried through to all types of tech diving. As an example: All tech diving requires a primary mask and backup light, but cavern diving requires and additional backup light.

I put together a survey to kick off this project, first focused on gear with the hopes of expanding to other considerations and would love the input of technical dive instructors and course directors.

The UX of Scuba

forms.gle

Thanks in advance for your help on this!
Alicia

 

[Nick_Radov]

You don't need to waste time with a survey for this. Every technical training agency publishes their standards online including minimum equipment requirements. Here are the standards for GUE.

Standards and Procedures | GUE

www.gue.com

 

[Wibble]

Technical diving is not about the training Ponzi scene, but about having the right skills and experience to understand the diving you intend to undertake. It’s the experience that directs one’s planning and preparation. It’s experience that drives one to do early season build-up dives and get the equipment ready, maybe arranging some mentoring.

Kit and planning totally depends upon the dive you’re aiming to do. Sidemount OC for awkward overheads maybe with a difficult carry to dive base. Backmount CCR with appropriate bailouts for deep. DPV with trimix CCR around large wrecks…. All that kit needs the skills (and experience) to be able to safely and effectively utilise it, including the planning, preparation and logistics.

Even planning varies according to your own preferences and habits. Some people are very team oriented, others are highly independent even when diving with others. Technical diving is not prescriptive, you have to be able to monitor, analyse and adapt — especially during the dive.


BTW - your survey has a multi-choice selection that isn’t complete. There’s many agencies missing, not least ‘other’.

 

[FF / EMT]

You don't need to waste time with a survey for this. Every technical training agency publishes their standards online including minimum equipment requirements. Here are the standards for GUE.

Standards and Procedures | GUE

www.gue.com

Hang on a sec!
My light cord goes over my long hose?!
Shouldn’t my long hose be unobstructed?…

 

[Scuba-licia]

Technical diving is not about the training Ponzi scene, but about having the right skills and experience to understand the diving you intend to undertake. It’s the experience that directs one’s planning and preparation. It’s experience that drives one to do early season build-up dives and get the equipment ready, maybe arranging some mentoring.

Kit and planning totally depends upon the dive you’re aiming to do. Sidemount OC for awkward overheads maybe with a difficult carry to dive base. Backmount CCR with appropriate bailouts for deep. DPV with trimix CCR around large wrecks…. All that kit needs the skills (and experience) to be able to safely and effectively utilise it, including the planning, preparation and logistics.

Even planning varies according to your own preferences and habits. Some people are very team oriented, others are highly independent even when diving with others. Technical diving is not prescriptive, you have to be able to monitor, analyse and adapt — especially during the dive.


BTW - your survey has a multi-choice selection that isn’t complete. There’s many agencies missing, not least ‘other’.

Thanks for your reply.

As an example of what I'm trying to get at: I have been at 2 different TDI shops that have very different ways of teaching basic sidemount skills and require different gear configs. One is cave focused, the other open water... I understand some of the differences due to environmental considerations (sidemount cave vs sidemount open water on a dive with the same lift capacity requirements shouldn't require a completely different harness and wing. Yes, cave will need more lights while open water doesnt) but published standards don't go into the level of detail I'm looking for. I'm being told to completely change my sidemount rig and the way I put a reg on a tank to meet a specific shops standards, as an example.

One shop didnt teach me failures for the full system, things like tank band failure... again its not listed in standards. I'm here for learning new methods of doing things but this level of inconsistency of basics is incredibly frustrating and it seems as though the bigger picture isnt being considered or at the very least, explained. Thats what I'm trying to uncover. Its unrealistic to need completely different gear set ups for different dives... Some things do carry over and some things do need to be different, especially the more advanced the dives.

Thanks for the survey note! Ill change that.

 

[Scuba-licia]

You don't need to waste time with a survey for this. Every technical training agency publishes their standards online including minimum equipment requirements. Here are the standards for GUE.

Standards and Procedures | GUE

www.gue.com

Thanks but not everyone publishes standards and definitely not to the level I'm looking to get at. I'm not looking for minimum. I'm looking for realistic. See my reply below for more context.

 

[Pavao]

Hang on a sec!
My light cord goes over my long hose?!
Shouldn’t my long hose be unobstructed?…

If run under the long hose, you’d have to pass the light under it every time you clip off the light, which happens often at any given dive, if you don’t, then you’d be really trapping the long hose.

Besides, the emergency is out of air, not out of full length hose, get the reg donated and the OOA diver calmed and reassured they have something to breath, only then the full length hose can be deployed for convenience/logistics.

 

[crofrog]

Go dive with the GUE Seattle crew on wed nights

Wednesday Night Dives - GUE Seattle

Events

gue-seattle.org

 

[J-Vo]

There are at least three distinct fairly popular sidemount "standards". All can be used in any environment and have there pros and cons. Sounds to me you found two shops that simply do it differently.

 

[J-Vo]

The What, Which, and Why of Sidemount

Passionate Greek-Italian photographer/filmmaker, author, and cave and sidemount instructor Stratis Kas reviews the nuts and bolts, err the what, which and why of sidemount diving. In fact, everything you need to start your journey. Is there a sidemount rig in your future?

indepthmag.com

I've seen enough divers using kit that I believe Toddy style should be in the conversation as well.

System – TODDY STYLE

toddy-style.com