too cold for OW course dive?

[gurumasta]

i am supposed to dive this weekend out of gloucester for my OW cert. i will be in the shops rental suit which is a 7mm wetsuit. is it too cold? should i hold off? i have never dove outside of a pool. thanks.

 

[Ber Rabbit]

There are a bunch of threads about the tips and techniques for diving cold water here on the board. With the proper preparation you will be fine and have a good time; without it you will be hating diving. Make sure to bring plenty of warm clothes to wear between dives, that's when you get the coldest. A container of warm water to dunk your hood and gloves in before putting them on for the second dive is a good idea as is some warm water in containers that you can pour inside your wetsuit immediately prior to entering the water. Pre-warming the top of your wetsuit with some warm water before donning it for the second dive feels nice too.
Ber :lilbunny:

 

[crlavoie]

i am supposed to dive this weekend out of gloucester for my OW cert. i will be in the shops rental suit which is a 7mm wetsuit. is it too cold? should i hold off? i have never dove outside of a pool. thanks.

You'll be fine. The water temp this past weekend was around 45F which is not that bad around here. There was a group of about 10 OW divers at Niles beach in Gloucester, all in wet suits and they seemed relativeley undeterred. I also had a guy in my AOW class that was diving wet and he said he was pretty comfortable. We were in the water for about an hour.

Go for it and get it done now so you don't miss out on all the early season diving before the crowds. If you plan to dive in NE, you just gotta deal with the cold.... OR get a dry suit.

 

[PaulChristenson]

There are a bunch of threads about the tips and techniques for diving cold water here on the board. With the proper preparation you will be fine and have a good time; without it you will be hating diving. Make sure to bring plenty of warm clothes to wear between dives, that's when you get the coldest. A container of warm water to dunk your hood and gloves in before putting them on for the second dive is a good idea as is some warm water in containers that you can pour inside your wetsuit immediately prior to entering the water. Pre-warming the top of your wetsuit with some warm water before donning it for the second dive feels nice too.
Ber :lilbunny:

Great suggestions...

Your other option...is take a trip south and do your dives as a referral...

 

[paulthenurse]

Ask your LDS about a shorty to wear over your wetsuit. Every little bit helps. And be sure you have THICK gloves. None of that 3mm tissue paper, you'll be miserable. And a hooded vest makes all the difference. MY GF hated early spring diving until she put one on, now she loves it. And a good attitude helps, hey, your diving!!! If you wanted to be on the couch, you could be nice and toasty warm.

 

[decapoddiver]

Your other option...is take a trip south and do your dives as a referral...

Sort of like teaching your child to drive during a dry, warm, sunny Summer day and then expecting them to know what to do in snow at night on icy roads.

Want to dive in New England? Learn to dive on New England.

Here endeth the rants of someone coming off a very long paramedic shift. Nighty night

 

[PaulChristenson]

Sort of like teaching your child to drive during a dry, warm, sunny Summer day and then expecting them to know what to do in snow at night on icy roads.

Want to dive in New England? Learn to dive on New England.

Here endeth the rants of someone coming off a very long paramedic shift. Nighty night

They can always learn to dive in cold water...after they learn to dive...
An elimination of a distraction...such a the concern about being cold...allows for a better transfer of skills...

This is merely an example of graded exposure...This is the way we went thru our Confined Space Class...
1st 36" and 24" pipes above ground via straight crawl in...
2nd 36" and 24" pipes underground via tripod thru a manhole...lights on and lights off
3rd various CSs at the Burlington Power Plant

I'm sure that when you initially learned to operate your emergency equipment it was not at Code 3 at the height of rush hour in a blinding snow storm... ...though I could be wrong...

 

[SteFord]

Scuba, sleeping, sailing, skiing, suds, supper, sex... How come all the really good things in life start with S?
PTN

Thanks for noticing!

 

[jchaplain]

Ask your LDS about a shorty to wear over your wetsuit.

I assume you mean under? I would look pretty silly having a shorty over a 7mil wetsuit!:shakehead

 

[large_diver]

The hot/warm water idea is a good one. During the winter, I bring a big thermos full of hot water and a bucket. After dive 1, I put the water in the bucket with the gloves and hood. Another idea is to have 2 sets of gloves, so you don't have to put on wet gloves.

Bring a ski hat and warm dry-land gloves and put them on between dives -- this will help as well. Even if the air temps are relatively warm, the gloves will really help keep your hands in "working order" for dive #2

Good luck and enjoy.

Chris