What happened to Cozumel?

[brsnow]

Maybe. I have witnessed a few disasters with people who had the cards but didn't have the capability.

Plenty of dive ops have issues as well

 

[BRT]

Generally I agree but most of my disasters witnessed were in cold water diving- dry suits, doubles, etc. I look at the Caribbean and Cozumel especially as kind of a giant bath tub. It really doesn’t get easier. You don’t even have to kick…

Twice I have seen divers with lots of certs run out of air almost before we looked at ours. They were just overwhelmed with dives they were not ready for.

 

[StreetDoctor]

Twice I have seen divers with lots of certs run out of air almost before we looked at ours. They were just overwhelmed with dives they were not ready for.

For all the hate GUE gets from some people around here I don’t think anyone can say they give their cards out freely.

 

[wateraddiction]

We had two different dive masters and were stuck with brand new divers on the second day. They really weren’t the excuse though as the DM was basically on a solo dive. Both new divers missed both safety stops, were at least 40-50’ apart for most of both dives and nothing was ever said. None of that really matters to me though as like I said above we are basically just looking for the boat ride and to not have the dive cut short. Which they weren’t. It’s interesting that a handful of people here seem to have objectively different experiences than us.

It's insane that a DM would not safely manage a pair of brand new divers in Cozumel. With 80' dives, strong current, walls with not unheard of downcurrent, Cozumel is not a "bathtub" the way Bonaire is.

 

[Brodydog]

Cozumel is not a "bathtub" the way Bonaire is.

Cozumel is more of a warm shower than a bathtub

 

[ggunn]

For all the hate GUE gets from some people around here...

Who are these "some people" of whom you speak? I haven't seen any hatred for GUE around here. Personally, I am indifferent to it; I had to look it up just now to see what it even is. The only issue I have with some of these organizations is when their proponents try to tell everyone else that what they are doing is "wrong".

 

[Nemrod]

I guess resorts should keep a couple of GUE divers in hibernation or freeze dry them inside their drysuits and that way when a GUE diver shows up and insists on diving only with like GUE divers using GUE methodology and only Halcyon GUE gear the resort could reanimate a couple to satisfy the GUE only customer. Just add water and they would plump up ready to go chanting Do It Right.

For me, the best thing is to be quite self reliant, myself and my equipment. Chaos and mayhem can ensue all about me and I remain a little island of comparative order.

 

[StreetDoctor]

I guess resorts should keep a couple of GUE divers in hibernation or freeze dry them inside their drysuits and that way when a GUE diver shows up and insists on diving only with like GUE divers using GUE methodology and only Halcyon GUE gear the resort could reanimate a couple to satisfy the GUE only customer. Just add water and they would plump up ready to go chanting Do It Right.

For me, the best thing is to be quite self reliant, myself and my equipment. Chaos and mayhem can ensue all about me and I remain a little island of comparative order.

Who above was asking about the GUE haters? I found one…

FWIW none of this is true. I even dove in a jacket BC and split fins… *gasp*! The only thing Halycon I own is a mask strap. My wing (which I didn’t use this trip is Deep Sea Supply. I don’t think Tobin makes them anymore though.) Is this where I’m supposed to call you a stroke or did what you said in your last paragraph mirror exactly what I said above also? Maybe there’s a fundies class in your future….

 

[Bookworm11]

I said Aldora for the most part groups divers by ability and gas. I dove on nitrox the entire time and had a number of air divers as well as quite a number of beginner divers in my groups. So, no, a number of the groups I had were not at my AOW and 242 dive level. And dive sites I was told we were going to the next day were changed to much easier ones because of the beginners being added to the group.

 

[ggunn]

I said Aldora for the most part groups divers by ability and gas. I dove on nitrox the entire time and had a number of air divers as well as quite a number of beginner divers in my groups. So, no, a number of the groups I had were not at my AOW and 242 dive level. And dive sites I was told we were going to the next day were changed to much easier ones because of the beginners being added to the group.

Any dive op's efforts to group divers by skill level is vulnerable to the ebb and flow of divers with different skill levels who have signed up to dive on a particular day. A larger op with more boats is less so than a small op with a single boat but none are immune. From a diver's perspective, one way to avoid being "trapped" on a boat on every dive with newbies aboard is to stay longer and dive more, but we have to realize that any boat going out must select sites to the lowest common denominator of divers aboard to avoid (for example) taking a new diver to Barracuda or Maracaibo where they would be more likely to get into a life threatening situation.

The good news is that even the easiest sites to dive around Cozumel are better dives than most of us have access to where we live. Paradise Reef, for example, is often looked down upon by divers as a "baby dive" but I have had some excellent dives there. It is great to be going out with a boatload of advanced divers to dive where less experienced divers should not be going, but we must accept that with most dive ops such a thing is likely not going to be possible all the time.

Each and every one of us was once a newbie to diving.