What is the deepest you can do an OOA?

[TSandM]

In the last resort, ANYTHING beats drowning. CESA is an option when all other options are gone. It's good to know it's possible, and I assume we all do, because at least my OW course taught it.

Rather than spend time practicing it, however, I'd rather spend time practicing the things that will hopefully keep me from ever needing it, including good diving practices and other emergency procedures. I might do another CESA some day, just for fun, to prove to myself yet again that it DOES work. But if I ever need to do one for real, I need to sit down with myself afterward and do some hard thinking about how I ever got into that situation in the first place.

 

[H2Andy]

you're correct, Soggy is...

he's talking about deco diving, and you have to be scared to even THINK of the surface as a solution. you just can't train your mental process that way.

in a crisis, you revert to training, and your training has to be to solve your underwater problems underwater

however, if the brown stuff has hit the fan and i have proved (again) what an idiot i am, well, yes .... getting bent beats the hell out of drowning

for me, cave diving, a CESA is not even an option. i have to put 100% of my efforts into preventing what would cause that. i just don't have the luxury to deceive myself with "i'll do a CESA if the **** hits the fan"

i guess that traning just bleeds over to OW diving

 

[Soggy]

In the last resort, ANYTHING beats drowning. CESA is an option when all other options are gone. It's good to know it's possible, and I assume we all do, because at least my OW course taught it.

Rather than spend time practicing it, however, I'd rather spend time practicing the things that will hopefully keep me from ever needing it, including good diving practices and other emergency procedures.

This summarizes my feelings on the matter.

 

[cerich]

This summarizes my feelings on the matter.

your last post made it sound like knowing the skill will work in some situations could lead one to use it on a deco dive.

Not directed to you, but any diver doing deco dives needs to have a very comprehensive understanding that what may work on a recreational dive won't work or be an option on a deco dive....

If they are having any "inkling" at all that the surface is an option they they are far from ready to be doing those types of dives.

 

[Soggy]

your last post made it sound like knowing the skill will work in some situations could lead one to use it on a deco dive.

It could...That's a big part of my point.

 

[fweber]

No, it proves that the 'skill' is unnecessary.

The last thing I want on my next decompression dive is to have any inkling that the surface is a viable option, especially when it doesn't need to be. I also have no doubt I would figure the 'skill' out very quickly if I were down at the bottom without anything to breathe.

Soggy,
You're discrediting your usually reasonable responses. If we apply your current reasoning:
With proper training, buddy selection, gas planning, and equipment maintenance, the skill of "buddy breathing or gas sharing" is unnecessary. Does this mean it shouldn't be taught, discussed and practiced? I can only assume because you subscribe to doing all that is necessary to prevent incidents from occuring, that you don't practice these sort of unnecassary skills. Afterall, you'll be able to think it through and figure it all out while faced with the situation on the bottom. I would rather have some motor memory and experience to draw from.

The OP asked for people's first hand experiences. I don't recall any of the subsequent posters implying that a CESA should be considered as part of your contingency planning. Simply, that CESA's can and have been safely performed from the maximum depth of most recreational NDL tables.

Cheers,

 

[cerich]

It could...That's a big part of my point.

then having a thinking and situational aware diver is already a moot point and anything can happen.

Just because I fly doesn't mean I deal with problems in a car the same way....

 

[cerich]

then having a thinking and situational aware diver is already a moot point and anything can happen.

Just because I fly doesn't mean I deal with problems in a car the same way....

then again if I spin out my jeep on ice maybe I can just apply opposite rudder and break the stall....

 

[fweber]

Don't forget to push forward on the steering wheel while you're doing that.

 

[cerich]

Don't forget to push forward on the steering wheel while you're doing that.

that's how to break the stall, only fighter jets get to break a stall with pure unadultrated power!