The average scuba student of yore was often a robust male with pulverizing pecs & a penchant for doing pushups on the side of the pool...with a tank on his back for good measure.
Nowadays the pendulum has swung, again on average, to a considerable distance the other way. Diving is no longer the preserve of the barrel-chested bucks; we now have the young, the older, & that great, multitudinous heap in the middle. Okay, as long as they meet standards & are medically fit to dive, we give them our best shot at learning to swim with the fishes. Dropping the old standard of having washboard abs has its drawbacks though...I refer to the "bb's, nh's, nb's" diving candidate, or...
"Big Belly, no hips, no butt"
Now don't get me wrong, individuals with such anatomical traits can become exceptional divers...but how do we keep their weight belts on them while we train them?!?
I remember one such gentleman. All through his course I had reminded him to keep his weight belt snug to prevent it from slipping off his body. Now on his o/w checkout, he had just completed a reasonable stride entry & moved to pair up with his waiting buddy. I followed him in & as I turned to face him some 8 feet distant I noticed a look of concern on his face & he was sculling his arm's quite rapidly on the surface. I made a bee-line for him & as I drew closer I noticed his legs were bent 90 degrees at the knees as his weight belt hung from his calves! No way was he going to lose that belt!
I have further witnessed similarly proportioned would-be porpoises finning merrily along with their belt riding halfway down their butts. If it wasn't so dangerous, it could almost be funny.
The simple answer is weight-integrated b.c.'s, but how many dive shops provide such gear as rental equipment? Perhaps it is time they did.
Anyone else seen or experienced such a problem?
Regards,
D.S.D.
Nowadays the pendulum has swung, again on average, to a considerable distance the other way. Diving is no longer the preserve of the barrel-chested bucks; we now have the young, the older, & that great, multitudinous heap in the middle. Okay, as long as they meet standards & are medically fit to dive, we give them our best shot at learning to swim with the fishes. Dropping the old standard of having washboard abs has its drawbacks though...I refer to the "bb's, nh's, nb's" diving candidate, or...
"Big Belly, no hips, no butt"
Now don't get me wrong, individuals with such anatomical traits can become exceptional divers...but how do we keep their weight belts on them while we train them?!?
I remember one such gentleman. All through his course I had reminded him to keep his weight belt snug to prevent it from slipping off his body. Now on his o/w checkout, he had just completed a reasonable stride entry & moved to pair up with his waiting buddy. I followed him in & as I turned to face him some 8 feet distant I noticed a look of concern on his face & he was sculling his arm's quite rapidly on the surface. I made a bee-line for him & as I drew closer I noticed his legs were bent 90 degrees at the knees as his weight belt hung from his calves! No way was he going to lose that belt!
I have further witnessed similarly proportioned would-be porpoises finning merrily along with their belt riding halfway down their butts. If it wasn't so dangerous, it could almost be funny.
The simple answer is weight-integrated b.c.'s, but how many dive shops provide such gear as rental equipment? Perhaps it is time they did.
Anyone else seen or experienced such a problem?
Regards,
D.S.D.
KC_Scubabunny 
