What to watch out for on my first holiday dive?

[grover]

I Just started diving, completed my PADI OW course last week, were going to cuba (Guardalavaca) in a few weeks and plan on making about ten dives there, what do i have to watch out for there? My local dive school is taking us on a few dives before our holiday, to get used to our equipment ( we bought our own and are going to take it with us to cuba.)

greetz fromm the Netherlands
grover

 

[pasley]

1. Drinking and Diving do not mix. That includes the night before. Alcohol dehydrates and dehydration is one risk factor in DCI.
2. Stay well hydrated.
3. Fatigue, another risk factor for DCI
4. Check your own equipment before every dive. Do not rely on the hired help and count on them having refilled your tank, Sometimes they miss one.
5. Diving on the day of arrival is often not recommended if you are flying due to dehydration (airplane air is very dry) and fatigue.
6. Do not dive for at least 24 hours before flying.
7. You do not say how many days you will be there. In any case, multi day diving does change the mix for DCI risk. Do your tables and calculate your residuals. On day three, or 4 you might want to sit out the day and take a break.

Thats my $0.02.

 

[miketsp]

I Just started diving, completed my PADI OW course last week, were going to cuba (Guardalavaca) in a few weeks and plan on making about ten dives there, what do i have to watch out for there? My local dive school is taking us on a few dives before our holiday, to get used to our equipment ( we bought our own and are going to take it with us to cuba.)

greetz fromm the Netherlands
grover

Don't be afraid to ask a lot of questions.
There are some deep dives and the operator will not always evaluate your experience level. I remember when my son was recent OW at 16 with only a few dives under his belt a DM took him on a wall dive at 43m where good buoyancy control was vital and then admitted having lost (dead) a couple of clients at the same location. The wall continued down way beyond 43m.
Make sure you understand the briefings - especially given language differences.
Some Cuban operators use steel cylinders instead of the AL80s you may be used to. Watch your weighting & buoyancy.
So just make sure you stay in your comfort level and you'll have a great time.
If you don't have a computer, get one to help control multi-day diving.

 

[louisianadiver]

I Just started diving, completed my PADI OW course last week, were going to cuba (Guardalavaca) in a few weeks and plan on making about ten dives there, what do i have to watch out for there? My local dive school is taking us on a few dives before our holiday, to get used to our equipment ( we bought our own and are going to take it with us to cuba.)

greetz fromm the Netherlands
grover

The most common mistake made by new divers in my experience is that they get lost, which renders all dive plans useless. Make sure that you know exactly where you are and how to get back to the boat or exit point. Do not rely on your buddy to keep track of your dive. -Clay

 

[Charlie99]

Watch out for "trust me" dives --- as in "trust me, you'll be ok".

Don't let peer pressure or ego get you into situations beyond your skill and experience level.

Really, really, truly understand the dive plan -- to the level that you would feel competent to lead the dive.

Be open with others as to your experience level and any concerns, worries or fears. If your concerns are dismissed with a "don't worry, we'll take care of you", then you really DO need to be concerned about what is going on.

If it doesn't "feel" right, then don't do it!.

Enjoy!

 

[Scuba_John]

Travel notes make copies of you personal documents un case your get lost. IE: Passport and things of that nature.

 

[Web Monkey]

If you can, bring all you own equipment (except tanks and weights). Even if the rental equipment is good (which it may or may not be), you don't want to have to start re-learning how everything works.

Don't trust anybody to setup your equipment.

Just before you put on your BC, make sure your tank valve is all the way on, then back it off a 1/4 turn.

Just before you enter the water, look at your pressure guage, make sure the tank is full, give your BC inflator a good long squeeze, take a few breaths off your primary regulator and backup (Air-2 or Octopus) and make sure your pressure guage doesn't drop much (a pound or two is OK).

You need to do this just before you enter the water, even if you did it when the boat left the dock, since there are a lot of "helpful" boat hands who will turn things on and off and adjust things (not allways correctly or to your liking), and you might not even notice that they did anything.

Doing this makes sure that you have a full tank, and that it's turned on, that your BC is inflated so you don't sink like a stone, and that you can breathe on both your second stages.

Also, don't be afraid to take the time to make sure you're weighted properly. Being overweighted or underweighted makes everything more difficult, and will make you burn your air much faster. being underweighted will make your 3m (15') safety stop very difficult.

If the DM tells you that you have to enter the with your BC deflated or do anything special because of a significant current or other conditions you're not used to, it's probably not the right dive to be going on right after certification.

Also, as several other people have said here, if anything doesn't feel right, don't dive. This applies if you know what's wrong and especially if you don't. There's always another day and another dive. Don't let peer pressure get you in the water when you don't feel right about it.

If you read the "Accidents and Incidents" board here, you'll noce that a lot of the start off with one form or another of: "Something didn't seem right".

Other than that, relax, and enjoy!

Terry

I Just started diving, completed my PADI OW course last week, were going to cuba (Guardalavaca) in a few weeks and plan on making about ten dives there, what do i have to watch out for there? My local dive school is taking us on a few dives before our holiday, to get used to our equipment ( we bought our own and are going to take it with us to cuba.)

greetz fromm the Netherlands
grover