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You travel to a foreign country for a dive trip. The dive shop you choose is of good repute, and asks about diving history, last dive, and checks a C-card.
On day two on the boat, while checking your gear, the diver next to you says "I dont remember how to check all this. They normally do it for me."
What would you do?
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This assumes the diver wants instruction and nuturing.I would go through assembling his rig methodically, explaining each step in the process and emphasizing that they need to know how this is done in order to protect their own safety. I'd then have them disassemble the rig and reassemble it themselves. For the 10 minutes I just spent I can then live with own conscience that I did everything I could to help this person learn something important. I'd then mention to the DM that they may want to keep an eye on this person to make sure they don't do something dumb and hurt themselves.
You're on a dive boat ... part of the experience is socializing and enjoying the companionship of like-minded people. Not everyone is built to be nurturing ... but it's in your best interest to do whatever you are willing to help your companions remain safe ... an accident, after all, is going to ruin your vacation as much as it will everyone else's on the boat. And you asked what I'd do. What you do, really, is up to you ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Imagine you are in a Cessna at 7,000' and the skydiver next to you says..."It's been over a year...which one is the ripcord again"...Mmmmm!
A lot of good replies, this one IMO maybe the best (again, assuming the laughing part is sarcastic). Definitely alert the DM (all boats I go on have always had a DM) &/or Captain. Be nice. Offer some advice on gear set up, but agree I would not touch his stuff (lawsuit for me?--maybe even if I weren't a DM). I would think it is difficult if not impossible for a dive op to know someone doesn't know how to set it up--what would they do, ask each customer to assemble some gear in the shop beforehand? Then for the dives, I would of course assume I'm diving solo, and of course keep a close eye on him (while still hunting for my shells...). Opting out of the dive and going for a beer not in the picture after I drove all that way to get onto maybe the one or 2 boats that go out in winter on the N. Gulf of Mex.Shortly after I stopped laughing, I would suggest this person get with his DM to perform the equipment check. This also serves to notify the DM he has an ignorant, under qualified diver under his/her supervision.
I guess it's more of a Caribbean thing...here in Ontario, Canada if you were on a charter and could not rig up your gear by yourself, depending on the depth, you may be asked to sit out the dive. You might get a refund...but you would be directed to take a refresher course and come back another day.
I don't often travel to dive, so I would hate to miss out on any planned dives, but my non-diving wife has sworn that she'll kill me if I do something stupid and get myself killed while diving