Top 10 "Don'ts" for Newbies
- Thread starter Curiousite
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These are just things that I have found when learning to dive (in no particular order)
1. don't trust your initial weighting. If your instructor did not do a proper weight check during your OW, do one now. I left OW 10lb overweighted, it made a huge difference to eventually get rid of all that weight
2. don't worry about your SAC, most likely it will drop (mine more than halved in my first six months of diving)
3. don't buy your gear until you've had a chance to try out various styles to see what you like. Don't trust anyone who tells you there is only one piece of gear suitable, work out what you like for yourself
4. don't necessarily trust your LDS, no matter how nice they seem at the start. Make sure to cross check prices of the gear they sell and try to do classes with different instructors. You'll get more than one perspective on things.
5. don't be afraid to ask more experienced divers to dive with you, most won't mind. And don't be afraid to ask them to borrow gear so you can check out different things before you buy. The worst they can say is no, and most of the time they will say yes.
6. don't ever worry about calling a dive. Every diver should feel comfortable to call a dive at any point for whatever reason. Don't worry about cutting someone's dive short or whatever, these things happen.
7. don't ever put your safety in someone else's hands, such as a DM or buddy. You are entirely responsible for your own safety and you should never become complacent. See this thread: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ne...ering-diving/283566-who-responsible-what.html It is an important read for new divers in my opinion.
8. don't rush things, be it underwater or training wise or pushing your limits. When diving, take it slow, you'll see more and your gas will last longer. Don't rush into advanced classes or diving early on (like starting your DM at 20 dives or whatever), get the basics right first.
9. don't just sign up to classes such as AOW, or Master Diver or whatever. Most PADI-style specialties are quite bare of information and generally unnecessary. You'll often learn more diving unsupervised with a buddy or with a mentor. Just dive as often as you can and it always helps if you are enthusiastic about local diving.
10. don't worry about stupid questions. Yes, some questions are stupid (despite what people say) but that doesn't mean you should keep them to yourself. Everyone has stupid questions at some time or another so ask away on forums, buddies, instructors, etc.
Anyway, there's a lot more I am sure, but those are the big things for me and it is all just my opinion so take it with a grain of salt if you want
This is a great list ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
piikki
Contributor
Not maybe my Top 10 because a lot of good things have already been mentioned. I scrambled for another ten though:
Don’t try to act something you are not, be honest about being a newbie
Don’t do trust me dives (if you do not know what it is, ask)
Don’t ever think that if a person says they have more experience than you, it automatically makes them smart, safe and/or someone you can rely on under water
Don’t dive tired, dehydrated, poorly fed, hung over, or cranky
Don’t get into water without talking with your buddy, especially a new buddy
Don’t let little problems grow into big problems (stop and solve or abort in time)
Don’t wholeheartedly trust people who are selling you stuff, don’t trust one source only
Don’t forget to practice skills you were taught, they won’t magically stay with you
Don’t be afraid to ask others what things they have found useful in improving them as divers
Don’t stop diving, dive dive dive, there is no other way to learn this thing
Don’t try to act something you are not, be honest about being a newbie
Don’t do trust me dives (if you do not know what it is, ask)
Don’t ever think that if a person says they have more experience than you, it automatically makes them smart, safe and/or someone you can rely on under water
Don’t dive tired, dehydrated, poorly fed, hung over, or cranky
Don’t get into water without talking with your buddy, especially a new buddy
Don’t let little problems grow into big problems (stop and solve or abort in time)
Don’t wholeheartedly trust people who are selling you stuff, don’t trust one source only
Don’t forget to practice skills you were taught, they won’t magically stay with you
Don’t be afraid to ask others what things they have found useful in improving them as divers
Don’t stop diving, dive dive dive, there is no other way to learn this thing
narcossis
Registered
Dont forget to cheak you cylinder has been filled befor you leave the filling station.
(from experiance, had to cancel the dive out on the boat as had 70bar)
Dont dive because you feel you have to.
Dont get arrigant with your/ others safety.
(from experiance, had to cancel the dive out on the boat as had 70bar)
Dont dive because you feel you have to.
Dont get arrigant with your/ others safety.
DeputyDan
Contributor
piikki
Contributor
And
Don't pee on the boat deck!
That's maybe #98
Don't pee on the boat deck!
That's maybe #98
BettyRubble
Contributor
Saspotato and Slonda, great posts!
My list:
1. Don't sit at home with dry dive gear. You have your cert -- get out and use it! Diving is a lot like skiing: the better you are at it, the more fun it is, and you only get better through practice.
2. Don't be afraid to approach experienced people and ask them to go diving with you. Some will want to do that and others won't, but you may well hook up with people who can really shape you as a diver.
3. Don't stop learning. An OW cert is the barest toehold on diving. Although further and specialty classes (except Rescue) are pretty variable in the value they offer, there's plenty of FREE or inexpensive information you can acquire. Buy the PADI Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving and read it -- there's lots of good stuff there. Watch the 5thD-X videos on YouTube, and try to emulate the quietness in the water that those divers show. Go through the Near Misses and Lessons Learned forum and read the stories and the comments. Find some posters whose writing you respect, and "stalk" their past posts and threads. Expand your universe of understanding -- it will make you safer, and help you have fun.
4. Don't stop with "back on the boat with 500 psi". Gas is your life expectancy underwater. Learn some gas management.
5. Don't discard the good habits you were taught. I see many divers who chucked buddy checks the day they got their card -- they are there for a reason, and you can save yourself anything from embarrassment to inconvenience to real life-threatening danger by doing them. Have a dive plan, even if it's a simple one. You were taught some good things, don't let them go.
6. Cautiously expand your limits, but don't overface yourself, and don't ignore the little voice that says, "I probably shouldn't be doing this." There is always another day to dive.
7. Don't discount dull dive sites. A lot of people don't have access to exciting, exotic diving on a regular basis. A quarry or a lake can be great fun, if you make it so, and time spent underwater is all learning time. Salt water sites that are used for training can still offer up great surprises. I've seen the biggest octopus I've ever seen and my only six gill shark at one of our silty local training sites.
8. Don't have a closed mind. Your instructors or diving friends may say, "Well, you don't have to know about that," or, "Those guys are crazy," or "That's overkill for recreational diving." Explore things for yourself, and make your own decisions.
9. Don't pick up a camera until your basic diving skills are very solid.
10. Don't fall into traps. Traps are things like never leading, because you have an assertive or more confident buddy. Or sticking only to the most familiar and comfortable sites, because you're a little apprehensive about doing anything else. These are easy to fall into, and if you do, you're slowing your evolution into a capable, independent diver.
On the "do" side: Keep it fun! Whether it's practicing basic skills or looking for mantas, diving is something we do for fun. If you find yourself losing the fun, ask why, and figure out what you can do about it. Try a new skill, or a new site, or new buddies, or buy yourself some new gear, or change something. For me, a big one was taking a Marine ID class that helped me understand much more of what I saw. A lot of people get certified and don't dive. Some of them I think scare themselves, but others fail to find a reason why diving is worth the effort. Figure out what gets your adrenaline going, and go for that.
My list:
1. Don't sit at home with dry dive gear. You have your cert -- get out and use it! Diving is a lot like skiing: the better you are at it, the more fun it is, and you only get better through practice.
2. Don't be afraid to approach experienced people and ask them to go diving with you. Some will want to do that and others won't, but you may well hook up with people who can really shape you as a diver.
3. Don't stop learning. An OW cert is the barest toehold on diving. Although further and specialty classes (except Rescue) are pretty variable in the value they offer, there's plenty of FREE or inexpensive information you can acquire. Buy the PADI Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving and read it -- there's lots of good stuff there. Watch the 5thD-X videos on YouTube, and try to emulate the quietness in the water that those divers show. Go through the Near Misses and Lessons Learned forum and read the stories and the comments. Find some posters whose writing you respect, and "stalk" their past posts and threads. Expand your universe of understanding -- it will make you safer, and help you have fun.
4. Don't stop with "back on the boat with 500 psi". Gas is your life expectancy underwater. Learn some gas management.
5. Don't discard the good habits you were taught. I see many divers who chucked buddy checks the day they got their card -- they are there for a reason, and you can save yourself anything from embarrassment to inconvenience to real life-threatening danger by doing them. Have a dive plan, even if it's a simple one. You were taught some good things, don't let them go.
6. Cautiously expand your limits, but don't overface yourself, and don't ignore the little voice that says, "I probably shouldn't be doing this." There is always another day to dive.
7. Don't discount dull dive sites. A lot of people don't have access to exciting, exotic diving on a regular basis. A quarry or a lake can be great fun, if you make it so, and time spent underwater is all learning time. Salt water sites that are used for training can still offer up great surprises. I've seen the biggest octopus I've ever seen and my only six gill shark at one of our silty local training sites.
8. Don't have a closed mind. Your instructors or diving friends may say, "Well, you don't have to know about that," or, "Those guys are crazy," or "That's overkill for recreational diving." Explore things for yourself, and make your own decisions.
9. Don't pick up a camera until your basic diving skills are very solid.
10. Don't fall into traps. Traps are things like never leading, because you have an assertive or more confident buddy. Or sticking only to the most familiar and comfortable sites, because you're a little apprehensive about doing anything else. These are easy to fall into, and if you do, you're slowing your evolution into a capable, independent diver.
On the "do" side: Keep it fun! Whether it's practicing basic skills or looking for mantas, diving is something we do for fun. If you find yourself losing the fun, ask why, and figure out what you can do about it. Try a new skill, or a new site, or new buddies, or buy yourself some new gear, or change something. For me, a big one was taking a Marine ID class that helped me understand much more of what I saw. A lot of people get certified and don't dive. Some of them I think scare themselves, but others fail to find a reason why diving is worth the effort. Figure out what gets your adrenaline going, and go for that.
piikki
Contributor
Somehow I have never had so much trouble between women, newbies or not newbies. Most trouble, unfortunately, I have encountered when it's been newbie-guy and more experienced female diver... You guys gotta get over this!
I have tried to be very sensitive, then I have tried to be more proactive, and I don't know why it is so hard. I am not gonna grab your valves but I am gonna look at your goodies!!! I am interested in what you have anyway, not just because you are newbie. That's the point of going for the dive anyway - that we go through the checks that you have not gone through so many dives, eh!
Don't be offended if someone wants to see what'ya got!
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