What's your vision?

[rjack321]

That quite a few people view the system as something you have to pay your dues to be part of.

1) money for standard equipment,
2) time, (often) travel, and money for common training,
3) more time and dedication for continuing+recent experience

Put in those three pillars and you're paying your dues. Skip one, the system breaks down, and you aren't DIR.

 

[Adobo]

Just curious . . . What's your vision of the utility of DIR diving? Is this something that should be the province of an elite few, or a philosophy that "ordinary divers" should be encouraged to take up? Should we be doing everything we can to encourage new divers and make the path to DIR easy for them, or should this be the province of those with the perserverence and intelligence to figure out how to get their on their own?

Just asking to get a reference point for where most people "in the fold" are coming from.

Hmm, let's see. The choices are, it's for an elite few or push it on everybody.

I've seen both approaches in action and both seem to alienate people equally well.

I don't see DIR diving as any different than any information one wishes to share with other people. I offer it if the audience seems interested. As soon as there is an indication of disinterest, I move on to something else.

In my experience, the ones that latch onto it are ones who know about it and are seeking that knowledge anyway. Those who subscribe to the personal preference approach cannot be pushed in the DIR direction. They either get it when the time is right or they never get it. No amount of pushing by anybody gets them there faster (if at all).

Incidentally, I feel that it is perfectly okay that there are many many divers, recreational or otherwise, that do not dive DIR.

 

[lamont]

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.

i think you've got a typo. fourth word there should be something like "rscheeahcr"...

 

[TSandM]

Adobo, I didn't mean push it. I meant, when somebody comes to you and says, "Boy, I read about this on the internet, and I've gone DIR," and they mean they bought a BP/W and put on a long hose, do you say, "That's great, want to go do some diving and see how the whole thing works?" Or do you say, "YOU'RE not DIR; you haven't even started, and you're full of it." See the difference?

 

[rjack321]

Adobo, I didn't mean push it. I meant, when somebody comes to you and says, "Boy, I read about this on the internet, and I've gone DIR," and they mean they bought a BP/W and put on a long hose, do you say, "That's great, want to go do some diving and see how the whole thing works?" Or do you say, "YOU'RE not DIR; you haven't even started, and you're full of it." See the difference?

Actually I would 1st ask if they planned on taking a class or if they had a buddy they were doing this with? (aka why?) I find that question tends to bring out people's misconceptions.

I don't really feel the need to go diving and be an ambassador to everyone who decided to buy a BP/W and a long hose. Based on the previous posts I suspect most folks feel they shouldn't be ambassadors either. I guess (for me) this partly comes out of GUE's distinct lack of "advertising". I'm not really willing to go a whole lot further than the grand mucky mucks do. I try not to 'actively' discourage in the process.

 

[Adobo]

Adobo, I didn't mean push it. I meant, when somebody comes to you and says, "Boy, I read about this on the internet, and I've gone DIR," and they mean they bought a BP/W and put on a long hose, do you say, "That's great, want to go do some diving and see how the whole thing works?" Or do you say, "YOU'RE not DIR; you haven't even started, and you're full of it." See the difference?

Oh, I think this question is different than the first one you asked.

I do the former. Everyone has to start somewhere.

 

[jeckyll]

I'd probably do a combo of both.

I used to have people at the LDS talk about 'you should dive with so & so, they're all DIR too" before I ever took Fundies. I made it a point to reply that I wasn't DIR (I at least knew that much ).

I'm more than happy to dive with people who want to improve their diving.