when to do AOW class?

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by alexeames
I fully agree that anyone who dives past their training limit is a fool

Alex, like most universal/absolute statements, yours might be a little hyperbolic...

I have already come out as an advocate for AOW however I feel that I need to add that most of the AOW card holders I meet do not have what I would call AOW skills...

A certification neither confers nor proves competence.

Perhaps a slight modification of your statement - with your kind permission:

"...anyone who dives beyond their skill level needs to be very lucky..."

 

[alexeames]

Originally posted by Uncle Pug

Perhaps a slight modification of your statement - with your kind permission:

"...anyone who dives beyond their skill level needs to be very lucky..."

Yes I agree, it's better than mine

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by alexeames
Yes I agree, it's better than mine

You're too kind...
And thank you for not being offended with my massaging your missive....

 

[ScubyDoo]

Originally posted by Wendy
Someone asked which I'd rather buddy up with, someone that is just ow and just follows others blindly or one that went ahead and did their AOW. I just don't dive with anyone. I have to know your skill level prior to the dive. I only cave dive with DIR buddies and usually ow dives as well unless I know you very well and you. So that question really doesn't pertain to me since I wouldn't put myslef in the situation you came up with.

It was intended as a hypothetical question. Okay, in reality you would never be in that position, but WHAT IF you were? You are the one who started this thread questioning the skill level of OW students who take thier AOW soon after thier OW certification. Since you dont dive with this level of diver, and you wont consider a hypothetical situation where you would......I can only wonder why you entertained the question to begin with? Do you have a friend or family member who is doing thier training this way that you are concerned about?

 

[DiveRite-SW]

Let's not lose sight of what we talking about here. Some AOW agency-courses are just an extension of the OW-guided tours that we went on as part of our basic certification.... "Ok, I got 4 hand-hold dives in with my Instructor in OW, and now I'm going to get 5 more dives in with her/him and do my AOW. Yup, I'm really expereinced".

Please understand, there's nothing wrong with AOW courses (in fact, as taught, they should be mandatory IMO), but do they really truly make us ADVANCED divers? I submit that they don't, only maybe that we learn to keep a diveleader in sight.

Far better for us to just go on a buncha dives, in conditions "similar to what we learned in" and experience all the zillion things we zoomed right over in OW. Get real clear in our mind why we need to change weights when we put on the 3mm wetsuit top (and forget to do it a couple times). Remember again about clearing ears every foot/half-metre as we descend (and what happens if we don't). Have a tank O-ring leak bug us the entire dive, til we remember to add a couple extra in our save-a-dive kit. Get the idea?

We don't learn those things in an AOW class (well, they're not usually part of the agenda anyways). We learn them when we go DIVING!

Take a look at SSI and SDI AOW course programs, for example. Doggone it, we can't even start the program til we got 10-15 fun-dives under our belt first! And then we take honest-to-gosh courses (not sample-dives) in topics that really interest us (or that we want to learn more about when we ran into trouble when we were 'fun-diving').

Now, I'm an advanced diver, and proud to admit it!
I learned the material first, and got the c-card as the after-thought.

 

[dkerr]

For a long time I believed AOW was some pretty highly elite divers. I have been diving for 3 years and consider myself to be beginner to intermediate though I only have my OW cert. Yes, I would like more training, but I dive with DM's and instructors that I am friends with who teach me along the way. Does this make me less of a diver if I dont have AOW stamped on my card? Put Another Dollar In!

 

[alexeames]

I have PADI AOW but only 12 dives.

I am under no illusions that I am an advanced diver. It's just an attractive course title (marketing).

I live in the UK but have not yet dived here. I took up diving for fun. From what I hear of UK diving, it is fairly crap visibility on the whole, rather cold water unless you have a drysuit, and really only much good if you are into wreck diving.

Perhaps I will get into wreck diving so I can dive more often.

But for me the fun at the moment is seeing all the pretty colored fish and coral in warm clear water.

I also work hard for a living and it's a great reward to go somewhere warm on holiday where I can dive. It's a good incentive for me to force myself to go on holiday at least twice a year.

The AOW course is just a step on the training ladder. I did it straight after Open Water because I did not feel well enough trained.

I plan to go on and do rescue diver, but now I want to do some pleasure dives first.

People put a lot of emphasis on titles. It's not what matters.

Nearly everybody has "executive" or "manager" in their job title now. It just makes people feel good without giving them any more money.

The PADI system, where you can learn a bit more each time you put another dollar in suits me quite well.

It must suit others too, or why on earth would they be so succcessful?

 

[Rooster1]

I think you need to spend time diving getting used to different experiences such as...current, visibility, cold, all within the ow level and lets not forget bouyancy. If you feel pretty good about your skills then move on. Remember there is whole lot of good diving under 60 feet, not to mention more bottom time.

 

[ScubyDoo]

Originally posted by alexeames
I have PADI AOW but only 12 dives.


The AOW course is just a step on the training ladder. I did it straight after Open Water because I did not feel well enough trained...............People put a lot of emphasis on titles. It's not what matters.

Amen to that! What matters is training. Train, train, and then train some more. Practical experience is important. You should do OW dives a much as possible, but I see no reason to halt further training if making OW dives is not feasible at the time (i.e., due to weather, finances, etc.)

How do you think our military operates? Obviously they cant go out and start wars all the time, so during peacetime they train, train, train. When a war comes along.....they are ready!

 

[CuriousMe]

I'll be doing my AOW on a Blackbeard liveaboard. I'll only have my OW 4 months by then, but should have 30+ dives under my belt, and I figure that it will enhance my liveaboard experience as well to have some skills to work on with all that diving

I'm totally excited....I can't wait!!!