What does "Tech" mean to you?
- Thread starter DCBC
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OP
In 1993, Michael Menduno's aquaCorps journal published an article that defined technical diving as:
"A discipline that uses special methods and equipment to improve diver safety and performance enabling the user to conduct dives in an environment and perform tasks beyond the scope of traditional recreational limits."
Technical Diving is Recreational Diving.
We were there as private contractors, without helmet capabilities, performing a specific set of tasks which had never been done before to the best of anyones knowledge.Thanks Tim, one would have thought that the Georgia Aquarium would have followed the Occupational Safety and Health Standards for Commercial Diving as this type of work is exempt from the Scientific Diving definition (OSHA standard 1910.402). The diver should have been properly equipped for the job i.e. surface supply and a proper dive helmet, so that these problems wouldn't have been an issue.
It does certainly sounds like it was a challenge to do with scuba! Like you said, a learning experience. That which does not destroy us.....
It was quite challenging for sure, but we were incredibly meticulous & successful and the end-result shows it.
Aside from the GA project where I was working directly for SeaJay, my only experience in any commercial or technical capacity would be cleaning large aquariums via a Hookah... The skills I've learned along the way however, should do well to assist me in Fundies and beyond.
-Tim
DCBC:
I agree with them. The term is useless, in my opinion, except to stroke egos.
It's one of those things that's tough to define, but you know it when you see it.
At the extreme ends, it appears easy to delineate. A 40 foot reef dive on air from a liveaboard in 84 degree F water, 80' viz within NDLs. That's a recreational dive. A cave penetration 2000' back into the Devil's system at Ginnie. That's a technical dive. A wreck dive to 100' on EAN32 in 50' viz, 75 degree F water and a mild current. That's a recreational dive. A 300' dive in the Great Lakes using a rebreather in 38 degree F water. That's a technical dive.
It's the dives that fall into the gray area in the middle that make it tough to define. What about a dive to the Dunderburg (150' to the mud) in 40 degree F water, in a drysuit with a single 130 , a 40 cf pony bottle and less than 5 min of deco? What about a dive to the Dunderburg in 40 degree F water, in a drysuit, double 100s and 10 min of deco using O2? Are both of these technical? Are both recreational? Is one rec and one tec? It's the dives that approach the gray area that divides rec from tec that make this a topic that can be debated all day long.
At the extreme ends, it appears easy to delineate. A 40 foot reef dive on air from a liveaboard in 84 degree F water, 80' viz within NDLs. That's a recreational dive. A cave penetration 2000' back into the Devil's system at Ginnie. That's a technical dive. A wreck dive to 100' on EAN32 in 50' viz, 75 degree F water and a mild current. That's a recreational dive. A 300' dive in the Great Lakes using a rebreather in 38 degree F water. That's a technical dive.
It's the dives that fall into the gray area in the middle that make it tough to define. What about a dive to the Dunderburg (150' to the mud) in 40 degree F water, in a drysuit with a single 130 , a 40 cf pony bottle and less than 5 min of deco? What about a dive to the Dunderburg in 40 degree F water, in a drysuit, double 100s and 10 min of deco using O2? Are both of these technical? Are both recreational? Is one rec and one tec? It's the dives that approach the gray area that divides rec from tec that make this a topic that can be debated all day long.
and
That's gotta be right. Next month I am off to Cyprus to dive the Zenobia. It it sits at about 137 feet, and we will using single tanks, Nitrox, and no planned deco. Going off the PADI definition, they will be "technical" dives (over 130 feet), but no one could sensibly describe them as such.
OP
They may be both technical, but they are definitely both recreational.
Absolutely! All of the dives I listed are actually recreational, when compared to professional diving (commercial, military, scientific).
I prefer the designation Sport vs. Technical, not Recreational vs. Technical. There is a difference between the two, and I believe there is some value in separating the two. However, rather than a sharp line between the two, it's really more of a continuum, especially in the middle ground.
OP
I agree; this makes much more sense.
The definitions that I have found to be the most useful are that Recreational Diving is the term coined for the standard open circuit scuba diver as trained by PADI/NAUI/NASDS/SSI/YMCA and that Technical Diving is a sub-set of recreational (or sport) diving that uses advanced techniques, exceeds restrictions or creats an overhead environment that is out side of the reccomended limits for basic scuba certified divers.
A Recreational Diver (i.e. basic scuba diver) is typically restricted to diving an open circuit scuba system, in the environment that they were trained in, to a depth not to exceed 130' (or 100' for the ANDI/SSI crowd), that is within the limits of the No-Decompression Table that they were trained to use (reference the PADI limits). Therefore, any dive that is outside of these reccomended restrictions, such as a 150' dive, or using heliox, would be considered Technical Diving, but it is still a recreational/sport pursuit if one is not getting paid, doing research or in the military (PSD diving falls under either paid or professional services and is an OSHA regulated group).
Now for the rub, there is a very large gray area that has been created in the last five or so years by a few rather new certification agencies that are training new/basic scuba divers in the use of NITROX, rebreathers, double cylinder and multiple regulators and gas switching as or imedeately after their introduction certification course. I think that is where everyone is getting confused and wants to get into heated discussion about where the line of demarkation is located. I was trained through the PADI system, followed by the NAUI system and I have a few NASDS and YMCA manuals that all support my previous statements. It could be a misuse of the term "Recreational", but it is the term most often used and therefore we are kind of stuck with it.
A Recreational Diver (i.e. basic scuba diver) is typically restricted to diving an open circuit scuba system, in the environment that they were trained in, to a depth not to exceed 130' (or 100' for the ANDI/SSI crowd), that is within the limits of the No-Decompression Table that they were trained to use (reference the PADI limits). Therefore, any dive that is outside of these reccomended restrictions, such as a 150' dive, or using heliox, would be considered Technical Diving, but it is still a recreational/sport pursuit if one is not getting paid, doing research or in the military (PSD diving falls under either paid or professional services and is an OSHA regulated group).
Now for the rub, there is a very large gray area that has been created in the last five or so years by a few rather new certification agencies that are training new/basic scuba divers in the use of NITROX, rebreathers, double cylinder and multiple regulators and gas switching as or imedeately after their introduction certification course. I think that is where everyone is getting confused and wants to get into heated discussion about where the line of demarkation is located. I was trained through the PADI system, followed by the NAUI system and I have a few NASDS and YMCA manuals that all support my previous statements. It could be a misuse of the term "Recreational", but it is the term most often used and therefore we are kind of stuck with it.
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