I wasn't trying to resurrect the thread, It was just meant as a joke for Kathy after the recent thread it was referenced in. I honestly didn't think anyone but her would read it.
What do you call the 1 ft metal pokers divers carry?
- Thread starter kathydee
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What do you call the 1 ft metal pokers divers carry?
I don't know, but usually I'd call it a lack of buoyancy skills.
I don't know, but usually I'd call it a lack of buoyancy skills.
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... and you would be wrong ... the dive guides I saw using them in Indonesia had pretty darn good buoyancy skills. They weren't using the sticks to compensate for a lack of skill, but rather to point out critters that we otherwise would not have been able to see. Sure ... they could've used their fingers to point ... but in reality that would've been more intrusive than the way they were doing it ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
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OK, we'll exempt the Indonesian dive guides, most people I've seen with those poles were using them to "rest" on the bottom. Beats kneeling, I suppose.
Some old threads never die. 
So Kathy, did you ever get a long metal stick thingy?
Or, did you get one and lost it in the last three years since the original post?
So Kathy, did you ever get a long metal stick thingy?
Or, did you get one and lost it in the last three years since the original post?
OP
Ha, it's fun to see this thread again. Thanks Tom for resurrecting it.
Having just returned from 10 weeks of diving in SE Asia, I revisited the world where divers carry pokey sticks without the scorn of Scubaboard on their shoulders.
At the time of this thread all my training and most of my 100 dives had been logged in SE Asia where pokey sticks are common and fully acceptable. The stick is used by dive guides to point out and uncover small critters, however, it commonly becomes a crutch to replace buoyancy skills that new divers have not learned in training.
When this thread was posted, I was very new to scubaboard and eager to learn more about diving from "the experts". Many of you ruthlessly flamed this thread, which nearly sent me running away from this rude opinionated website.
Bob's kindness and understanding encouraged me to stay around long enough to understand the value of DAN Insurance, rescue class, more advanced training, to learn about safe equipment, transition from a warm vacation diver following a DM to an independent cold water year round diver, to a cave diver, and to make scuba friends around the world
.
Fast forward 3 years and 600 dives since this thread was posted... Thanks to so many supportive friends/instructors/dive partners on scubaboard and beyond... no, I don't think I need a pokey stick to help with buoyancy anymore
. If you need proof, here is recent video:
So please rethink the next time you step up to flame a new diver. A bit of compassion can make a huge difference both here and with their future diving. Bob is still a very dear friend today & a great dive buddy!!
To those of you struggling with buoyancy, please know that it doesn't need to take hundreds of dives to achieve this type of control. With good training I've seen divers master similar in less than 50 dives.
And Tom, I've seen hundreds of divers sporting pokey sticks over in SE Asia - but none of them died while I was watching.
Having just returned from 10 weeks of diving in SE Asia, I revisited the world where divers carry pokey sticks without the scorn of Scubaboard on their shoulders.
At the time of this thread all my training and most of my 100 dives had been logged in SE Asia where pokey sticks are common and fully acceptable. The stick is used by dive guides to point out and uncover small critters, however, it commonly becomes a crutch to replace buoyancy skills that new divers have not learned in training.
When this thread was posted, I was very new to scubaboard and eager to learn more about diving from "the experts". Many of you ruthlessly flamed this thread, which nearly sent me running away from this rude opinionated website.
Bob's kindness and understanding encouraged me to stay around long enough to understand the value of DAN Insurance, rescue class, more advanced training, to learn about safe equipment, transition from a warm vacation diver following a DM to an independent cold water year round diver, to a cave diver, and to make scuba friends around the world
. Fast forward 3 years and 600 dives since this thread was posted... Thanks to so many supportive friends/instructors/dive partners on scubaboard and beyond... no, I don't think I need a pokey stick to help with buoyancy anymore
. If you need proof, here is recent video:So please rethink the next time you step up to flame a new diver. A bit of compassion can make a huge difference both here and with their future diving. Bob is still a very dear friend today & a great dive buddy!!
To those of you struggling with buoyancy, please know that it doesn't need to take hundreds of dives to achieve this type of control. With good training I've seen divers master similar in less than 50 dives.
And Tom, I've seen hundreds of divers sporting pokey sticks over in SE Asia - but none of them died while I was watching
.
... beautifully said, and wonderfully illustrated
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Nice video, Kathy ... it's awesome being one of the fish, ain't it ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
eelnoraa
Contributor
so my question to Kathy is: did you end up buying and using one of this pockey stick at all? Just wondering.
OP
To answer your question, I did purchase one when passing through the Philippines not that long after this thread.
But by that time, a few dives with mentors had helped raise dive skills to where the stick was more of a hindrance than help.
So it was never used.
I spent some time recently at a beginning dive site in Indonesia (which probably sees 50+ divers a day).
I can easily estimate that 30% had pokey sticks dangling off their BC's and at least 60% were struggling from being grossly over weighted.
The whole experience just added to my enthusiasm to help others.
But by that time, a few dives with mentors had helped raise dive skills to where the stick was more of a hindrance than help.
So it was never used.
I spent some time recently at a beginning dive site in Indonesia (which probably sees 50+ divers a day).
I can easily estimate that 30% had pokey sticks dangling off their BC's and at least 60% were struggling from being grossly over weighted.
The whole experience just added to my enthusiasm to help others
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