Thinking to solo dive ???

[limeyx]

I have in fact thought about 2 DPVs, but thought this would be viewed as overly conservative for a single diver.

I would guess it would depend on how long the walk/swim home was!

 

[VooDooGasMan]

I'm always interested to hear how a diver ran into trouble, chamber ride, Hospitalized, and live to tell about it. It answers the questions I ask myself, Or a post question I guess asked.

When a diver dies, It makes me Happy that he died in what he Loves doing. This recent one here in seattle is'nt really that different than diver deaths around the world.

Last week me and my wife was gearing up, A lady come out on her deck and shouts your not thinking of diving here are you, Only 2 divers ever dove here and they both died.
She was'nt just bitchin, She was truely concerend. My wife was amazed I answered her back.
My motto is once started gearing up, SHUT-UP, check youself, get in water,make sure all gear is ready, OK sign, Ascend and hit bottom what ever the depth, OK sign again, begin dive. Theres plenty of time to talk between dives or boat ride home. When pedestrians speak, dont communicate back or you will most likely _ _ _ _ up.

My reply was Thank you for your concern, But apparently you dont know there is no current under the surface, you can only see the rip current, She say's are you going deep,
I said, You can bet your sweet ass we are or else the surface current will take us out to the shipping lanes, You will see us in a little over an hour, BYE-BYE now.

This lady in her robe was grinning ear to ear when we were doffing are gear.

The divers that die, yes, are uninformed of conditions, Have faulty gear, Unaware of dive practices, medical issues, out of shape, etc. This is 2008 It has'nt changed in 50 years.

Weather on shore or in the water the humane race will always face these problems.

It has nothing to do with diving, It's the individual knowledge of taking a chance doing something that is dangerous, Every certified diver Has signed a liabilty release form.
I'm sorry, But divers are always going to die under water Weather buddy diving or solo diving.


As I said above as long as they died what they loved doing thats all that matters.

 

[DeepBound]

As someone who often dives solo, I agree completely that it is not something that should be taken lightly. You must understand all of the things that can go wrong and be prepared to handle them.

It's not enough to just carry redundant gear. You need to practice constantly with the skills you will need until they are second nature. I spent many dives in shallow water practicing causing a freeflow then switching to a stage bottle and making a safe ascent. It's not as easy as it sounds, and you need to practice it.

You also need to be able to do these things without a mask. Because when things go wrong your mask will probably flood, and you won't be able to see. You should be comfortable switching to your bailout gas supply and making a safe ascent immedately after losing your mask or having it flooded or losing all visibility from a freeflow.

Also, you should know how you'll react if you find yourself alone, tangled in line, then your mask floods. Will you be able to calmly get out one of your knives and cut yourself out of the situation without being able to see? Knowing that if you fail you will drown? Those are the kinds of things you really have to consider before solo diving.

You might ask why I would solo dive if its that serious. It's mainly because I have my own weird way of doing things and find it hard to communicate with a buddy. Because of my own particular circumstances (basically it boils down to poor people skills) I find buddy diving can often add more confusion and danger than it could prevent. This can be overcome by diving with the same person all the time, but I've found it difficult to find someone like that whose interested in doing the same dives as me. So my situation isn't typical, and solo diving really shouldn't be a consideration for most people.

 

[Rick Murchison]

As someone who often dives solo, I agree completely that it is not something that should be taken lightly. You must understand all of the things that can go wrong and be prepared to handle them.

Do you understand and acknowledge that there are things that can happen to you when solo - because you are a human being - that no matter how much training, preparation, redundancy etc you have, only someone else can get you back to the surface and ashore?
In balancing the solo decision it is critical that the reality of the "swimming alone" risk be accepted.

Rick

 

[nereas]

Do you understand and acknowledge that there are things that can happen to you when solo - because you are a human being - that no matter how much training, preparation, redundancy etc you have, only someone else can get you back to the surface and ashore?
In balancing the solo decision it is critical that the reality of the "swimming alone" risk be accepted.

Rick

In the Illiad, ascribed to the Trojan War in the year 1250 B.C., and transcribed by the Athenians around 500 B.C., Achilles says, "Everyone dies, whether now or 50 years from now, what does it matter?"

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

In the Illiad, ascribed to the Trojan War in the year 1250 B.C., and transcribed by the Athenians around 500 B.C., Achilles says, "Everyone dies, whether now or 50 years from now, what does it matter?"

It matters to me ... I don't expect to ride this train forever, but I'm certainly gonna put effort into making sure I don't fall off quite yet.

On the other hand, the sweetest experiences in life all involve certain risks, without which life itself would hardly be worth living ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Rick Murchison]

In the Illiad, ascribed to the Trojan War in the year 1250 B.C., and transcribed by the Athenians around 500 B.C., Achilles says, "Everyone dies, whether now or 50 years from now, what does it matter?"

More apt than you might imagine... When he said it, with a knife at his throat, that was particularly easy for Achilles to say - he believed he was invulnerable, and was genuinely surprized to bleed to death through the heel later.
As I've said before, I have nothing against solo diving - just realize - and accept - that there is additional risk to it, the risk of needing help when none is available. Those who don't believe those situations exist are just revealing a lack of experience .
Rick

 

[nereas]

...
As I've said before, I have nothing against solo diving - just realize - and accept - that there is additional risk to it, the risk of needing help when none is available. Those who don't believe those situations exist are just revealing a lack of experience .
Rick

I completely agree regarding the additional risk, since there is no one to help you when you solo dive, if you end up in a situation where mere self sufficiency alone cannot bail you out, such as being trapped or becoming injured.

 

[DeepBound]

Do you understand and acknowledge that there are things that can happen to you when solo - because you are a human being - that no matter how much training, preparation, redundancy etc you have, only someone else can get you back to the surface and ashore?
In balancing the solo decision it is critical that the reality of the "swimming alone" risk be accepted.

Rick

I've heard stories of people becoming paralyzed whie diving, or typically as they surface from an AGE or DCS. I try to minimize that possibility by doing very slow ascents and not going into deco when alone.

Other than that, I guess the risk is having a heart attack? But I'm only 36.

 

[texdiveguy]

Other than that, I guess the risk is having a heart attack? But I'm only 36.

Kidding right??