When to dive unsupervised? (w/o dm)

[jonnythan]

My first dive after OW cert was a shore dive at Cape Anne with my buddy from the OW class.

It seemed dangerous and scary as we geared up and got in the water, but then once in the water I realized that this is easy, I've been taught well, and we can take care of ourselves.

 

[MASS-Diver]

play it safe. Yoru training is probably not very good, although if the conditions are nice you might be OK.

One key is that diving is not a good sport to "learn on the job" afterall if you make a mistake it can kill you very fast. So, try to fit in some training dives, in pools, confined water, etc and train up so you can have fun on vacation dives and not worry about drowning.

 

[Charlie99]

MASS-Diver once bubbled...
One key is that diving is not a good sport to "learn on the job" afterall if you make a mistake it can kill you very fast. So, try to fit in some training dives, in pools, confined water, etc and train up so you can have fun on vacation dives and not worry about drowning.

I disagree strongly. "Learning on the job" is the most effective way of learning a lot of things. For example, you can dive pools and confined water forever without getting the knack for natural navigation.

The trick is to not dive beyond your abilities. The trickier part is to know when that has happened.

When possible, gradual extensions of the conditions under which you dive is the ideal way to learn.

 

[aquamarine]

BlueGirlGoes, I sent you a PM.

 

[scubaspider]

I finished my certification the first weekend in July. Monday was the first time my dive buddy and I went alone. I believe that my dive instructor would not have certified us if we werent ready to dive alone (w/o a DM). So we (dive buddy) decided to dive places locally that we know we cant get in trouble depth wise and gain some experience before going on trips and depths below 60ft. even though we have been past 60ft. with our instuctor for a fun dive on the last day of our certification dives.
So, I guess you must have faith in ur instuctor and trust him, but if you dont feel comfortable, dont do it... We felt apprehensive about it on Monday but we both assured ourselves and talked w/ our instructor the previous day about it and he reassured us that we are certified and have all the necessary OW knowledge to dive w/o him.


:spider:

 

[plsdiver4377]

My wife and I did our first alone dive 4hrs after receiving our certifications. This dive was in the same place as our certification dives so the area was familiar which helped alleviate the apprehension of being alone. Since then we have never dove with anyone else other than other certified divers. We actually did our first "alone" night dive on July 4th in the local pond. It was a blast after the initial nerves went away which happened fairly quickly.

I think if you pick some easy dives and work together the trust you already have for each other will qickly alleviate your apprehension.

Most importantly be safe and have fun.

Cheers

 

[BlueGirlGoes]

that the husband and I got our classroom and pool work done in one day. (We had the manuals ahead of time and both got 98% on our writtens.) The pool work was completed in about 2 hours because the pool was closing. I liked both of the guys, and they were accommodating my schedule so that I could take an assignment in Borneo and leave a week later. I knew we were getting a rush job.

Having said that, we both passed our check-out dives with flying colors, with a different instructor in Florida. I jumped in immediately with some intensive diving at Sipadan and Lankayan, managing to learn buoyancy control and not kill myself while I was there. But that still gives me less than 2 weeks worth of diving under my belt. My husband has his four check-out dives.

Did I get my money's worth? I got what I needed to do what I needed to do. (Dive Sipadan, for free.) Do I know everything I need to know to save my buddy's or my own life? No way. I *DO* know enough not to stupidly overestimate my skills.

We can do everything required for the check-out, perfectly. But that's ALL we can do. We know nothing about finning, or what to do if equipment goes wrong. Other than "drinking out of a flooding regulator," and how to share air, I have NO IDEA what to do if something went bad underwater. And I don't even know what I don't know.

So, maybe someone can point me to a list of things to practice while we're in Bonaire? I don't mind practicing in pretty water. I do appreciate all the advice, and the thought that went into formulating it.

 

[ScubaFishee]

BlueGirlGoes once bubbled...
We'll definitely start with a DM and buy the Shore Diving book. Wish it was available for purchase over the internet.

This is the same book I bought in Bonaire. It's available from Amazon.

Diving Bonaire by George Lewel and Larry Martin

If you get a chance, visit Angel City, my favorite. It's a beautiful double reef system where you can swim along in the channel and view the reefs on both sides at once.

Have fun in Bonaire and dive safe.

 

[Charlie99]

BlueGirlGoes once bubbled...
So, maybe someone can point me to a list of things to practice while we're in Bonaire? I don't mind practicing in pretty water. I do appreciate all the advice, and the thought that went into formulating it.

Buoyancy. Do your fin pivot as taught in class. Then do the equivalent a few feet off the bottom. With absolutely no hand or leg motion and your body staying horizontal, you should be going up when you breathe in, down when your breathe out.

At this point, the most important thing is to just dive, get comfortable underwater, and get better control on buoyancy. Work on getting your weighting right -- no excess weight means no excess air in BC, which means easier control.

After 10 or so hours in the water, then you might think about taking an AOW course. Let your instructor know that you are really looking for overall feedback on your diving skills and techniques. I figure that 10 underwater hours is enough experience that you are comfortable enough that you can concentrate on the additional skills of AOW, but not so long that you have permanently ingrained any bad habits picked up on your first dives.

Whether or not you intend to practice it, you WILL be practicing underwater navigation. Luckily, the shore is a really big target.

 

[fins wake]

We never went over any different sorts of kicks

Although it's good to eventually be able to fin in different ways (e.g. to avoid slit, damaging coral etc) this particular skill is not the most important thing for the newbie diver. Looking at a board like this might give you that impression, but you'll have plenty of time to do this stuff later. Right now you're right in wanting

to learn buoyancy control and not kill myself while I was there.

As your husband only has his four OW course dives under his belt, he's in a worse situation than you (with 15 dives after certification) and you're still understandably worried about your skills.

I think your case is clear-cut. You should both dive with a DM in a group until you feel confident.

After 10 or so hours in the water, then you might think about taking an AOW course.

Strongly seconded. In fact, you might decide on this after the first 5 hours or so of in-water time. I think it'll benefit you both to get further instruction and the AOW course is really only OW Part Two, with added experience dives.

That should answer some of your questions as well.

Other than "drinking out of a flooding regulator," and how to share air, I have NO IDEA what to do if something went bad underwater.

Those are essential skills which go a long way. (Bit puzzled by your first example, but I guess you either mean recovering a lost 2nd stage or being able to breathe of a free-flowing regulator. Both are essential skills.)

wouldn't know what to do with a leaky o-ring underwater if it bit me.

Most o-rings by far blow at the surface, when you first put the air on. If you get a leak underwater but still have lots of air, slowly ascend and calmly abort the dive with your buddy. (If diving with a DM you might want to signal him or her first.) If your air loss is rapid and severe, use your buddy's octo, slowly ascend and calmly abort the dive. (I'll stop here, this reminds me of other recent threads ...)

we both passed our check-out dives with flying colors,

You are probably good rookie divers, who will be good divers once you get more experience.

The trick is to not dive beyond your abilities.

Well spoken, Charlie! Agreed.

The trickier part is to know when that has happened.

He's right but judging by these posts, I don't you shouldn't dive without a DM yet. You seem overly worried by many things. However, you should strive to do so as soon as you feel more comfortable. Perhaps two or three dives after the AOW course?