That weightless feeling......?

[strfsh]

I don't get it. ok....I know I'm "floating". I'm not on the bottom and I'm swimming easily, but I don't feel weightless. I feel very constrained and it's difficult to move around. I love diving, but I wish I could have the feeling of when I'm not wearing all the gear. I can swim much more gracefully....LOL....ok, maybe it's because I'm wearing a 7mm wetsuit, weights , BC and tank. Although it does feel lighter in the water....I still can "feel" exactly how much equipment and weight there is. So, whats this weightless feeling like and do you only get it in warmer water when less gear can be worn?

 

[DiveTub]

Str Fish

The best weightless diving we have done was up in the Solomon Islands. Fins, mask, shorts, tank under the arm regs and in the mouth.

Diving along the side of the Toa Maru Cargo Ship.
150Ft visability in 100ft of water 84 degrees water temp.

No weight belts or wetsuits.

This is just how weightless and like flyng scuba diving can really be.

Cheers
Chris

 

[SCUBAKristey]

GRRRR......I wish I could feel that weightless! Maybe it's because I'm so new to it myself????

 

[chiara]

You don't say how much experience you have, but I'd say the feeling of flying is not very different from peak buoyancy.

Even in a drysuit, with 10-12 kgs of lead, a 15lts tank and all, there are certainly moments when I feel as if I were just wearing my bathsuit.

 

[jbd]

when you can stop and hover motionless at any point in your dive and you are comfortable enough to not notice all the gear.

 

[JDostal]

Yeah, just give it some practice. I didn't have that feeling either when I first started. I had a wetsuit on and a shorty, and part of all that neoprene meant tons of weight. I had so much gear on I was a little constricted.

But, I got my own gear, dived a LOT, and now I feel better. I hit the water and I'm free

Try turning some somersaults, bobbing upside down (always good for a laugh underwater) and a few other tricks. Start playing w/ your neutral buoyancy and you'll "feel" it.

 

[voidware]

With bouancy practice, you too can feel weightless with all your gear on. There is nothing better than to float around effortlessly, through swimthroughs, wrecks, etc.

The most wonderful thing is to swim over a sheer wall on a gin-clear day. Swim over the edge and look down into the abyss. It is awsome--in the most literal sense of the word. Looking over the edge of the grand canyon is nothing compared to the edge of a wall.

brandon

 

[JDostal]

Truer words were never spoken.

The first time I did it, I was kinda freaked out - I kept thinking "I'm gonna fall off!". Heh.

Then, you swim out over the edge, and just hang there...nothing below you, you can see the edge of the cliff...give a quick whip kick and you're crusing along the edge. It feels like you're an eagle soaring above the ground.

Awe inspiring.

 

[CuriousMe]

....it's a lot of the reason I dive. Yeah sure, it's beautiful and you can see cool things.....but that's not always worth the hassle involved.

However, there's no stress releiver I've found that is like flying effortlessly through the water. It's the free-est (is that a word?) feeling I've ever experienced. Trust me, everyone on the ship is happier when I dive often <big grin>

Like others have said...there came a point where I stopped noticing the gear, and it was probably right around the same time that I stopped fighting for my boyancy. I also agree with Omicron....play a bit...play with your boyancy...do some flips (I often amuse my buddy during safety stops with flips around the morring line <grin>...but hey, I get bored just hanging <big grin>)

Now I do dive in warm waters....so I have a minimum amount of neoprene (if any on some dives)...but due to my own ...uhmmm fluffiness I do use a good amount of lead....once I got my weight intergrated BC and got rid of that *#%@& weightbelt....I was much more comfortable. But really, I started enjoying flying before I ever got my gear!

Peace,
Cathie

 

[SCUBAKristey]

I will admit that by my fourth dive down there, I was feeling mighty A.O.K., BUT...there was the matter of my first night dive...in choppy waters and it almost got to the point where I jumped out of the water. WHY??? All of a sudden my gear weighed 84,000 pounds. My sister grabbed me, looked me in the eye and said "YOU'RE FINE!!!!! CUT IT OUT OR YOU'RE NOT GOING!" So, I cut it out (I guess she could tell I was stressed) I went under and I was pretty fine. I managed to slow my breatjing and made it into the boat with PLENTY of air left over. BUT...I felt me gear the entire time. On the day dives I was bobbing along, even tried a back flip and hanging upside down over the corals to get a good view at things.

So, to make a short story longer....I agree...It HAS to have a lot to do with the comfort level. (Can't wait to take a peak buoyancy class now!)