What should I have done?

[Peter Guy]

So today I accept The Borg Queen's invitation to do a skills dive with her buddy (both just finished Rec-Triox) and a Tech 1 diver friend. The Tech 1 diver is designated as my buddy while TBQ and her buddy make the 2nd team. The plan is to swim out, do a coordinated descent, then ascent, then descent -- then the fun is supposed to begin with valve drills, bag shoots and who knows what else. (I thought I was going to get some sight-seeing in -- was I ever wrong!)

Anyway, after doing the valve drills my buddy (who has sort of become the master leader) decides we need to do another team ascent -- so up we go. On the way from 30' to 20' I see The Borg Queen (aka my wife) seemingly start for the surface and just as she gets out of my view my buddy throws an OOA at HER buddy -- who smartly donates his reg and gets ready to do the air sharing ascent with my buddy. I'm hanging there looking at the two of them and periodically looking around trying to see TBQ and thinking, "Hmmm, MY buddy is pre-occupied with her buddy, I'm watching my buddy but she IS my wife -- what's happened to her?" A minute or two later I see her light coming down to the 15' level where we are now hanging.

In the debrief it is clear TBQ's buddy never saw her leave -- I didn't have a chance to talk with my buddy what he wanted me to do (if anything).

So, great ScubaBoard BORG, what SHOULD I have done in this situation? Should I have done what I did (stay with my buddy) OR should I have followed TBQ up to the surface and abandoned my buddy? (BTW, she left BEFORE the OOA drill.)

What say y'all?

(Note -- as it turned out her ascent was NOT deliberate -- she was trying something out and lost control and corked.)

 

[Rick Inman]

(Oh, this is going to be fun! )

 

[Fat]

you should have called the dive anyone ont he team can call a dive at anytime

 

[Rick Inman]

you should have called the dive anyone ont he team can call a dive at anytime

No, no. Let her answer.

So, great ScubaBoard BORG, what SHOULD I have done in this situation?

 

[dsteding]

 

[AXL72]

ummm, do summersalts on the way up while holding your breath and making the hand signal of, "look what I can do"?

-or-

Snack your buddy upside the head really hard with the hard surface of your octo and signal to him, "Hey tard, I am right here, signal the OOA message to me, and by the way, here is my octo"?

-or-

smack your buddy upside he head with the hard surface of the octo like Mr Wayans (Homey the clown) from living color and signal to him, "Homey Don't play dat"?


I don't know

 

[SparticleBrane]

This should be good.

 

[TSandM]

Why do you guys think I'm going to say anything amusing here?

This dive pointed out how unworkable teams of four are, and how artificial skills dives are.

Through the whole dive, there were issues with who was in charge, and how to keep track of one's assigned teammate when the person directing the dive was a member of the other team. The descents and ascents weren't terribly well executed for this reason.

I did find it interesting that, when I blew my 20 foot stop and ended up on the surface (a long story having to do with kicking myself out of BOTH drysuit boots and effectively rendering myself finless), nobody appeared to notice or come looking for me. Peter clearly noticed I was gone, but stayed with his assigned teammate (appropriate, I think); my teammate didn't notice I was gone, nor did the person directing the dive.

Failures of protocol, failures of situational awareness, failures of buoyancy control . . . Shall we go on? This is why we DO training dives, because people are going to make mistakes, so you make them when you're shallow and the stakes are low.

In a real dive, you have teammates, and they're YOUR teammates, and nobody else is on your radar screen. The dive leader would have signalled OOA to his teammate (Peter) and not to mine. My teammate would have come up to make sure I was okay. Problem solved. It was the artificiality of the drill situation that even raised the question of what should have been done.

 

[Ben_ca]

I see 3 options







:sofa:


okey seriously.... Should have been 2 teams of 2...

We often do this when we have 4 or 6 (2 teams of 3) people...

The teams are the primary unit.. you stay with your team... no cross team drills...

if your team looses track of the other team so be it and carry on. Each team is independent... Now if you loose your teammate then you initiate your 1 min then ascend procedures

 

[dsteding]

Why do you guys think I'm going to say anything amusing here?
. . .

Darn it, I'm taking my popcorn and going to bed. Lynne, that was a way too sensible answer.

:shakehead