paradicio
Contributor
The wife and I are very near your level, 15 dives each. We will be taking our advanced class this weekend. Take it when you feel you are ready. 
When to take NAUI Advanced cert?
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Hey Boarder, Welcome!
My .002 is go to the shop you are going to eventually take the class and buy the materials to do some advance reading for an ability to understand some of what you will be taking part in. If you both feel comfortable and ready, jump right into the class, but as someone said, take the 'Advanced' with a grain of salt, the class is more about being exposed to different environments and situations.
If you've only dove with your hubby, i would also suggest you find other more experienced 'competant' divers that can assist along your journey for your next few dives and make the decision then.
As an added bonus and variant perspective, get yourself a copy of: Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving.
My .002 is go to the shop you are going to eventually take the class and buy the materials to do some advance reading for an ability to understand some of what you will be taking part in. If you both feel comfortable and ready, jump right into the class, but as someone said, take the 'Advanced' with a grain of salt, the class is more about being exposed to different environments and situations.
If you've only dove with your hubby, i would also suggest you find other more experienced 'competant' divers that can assist along your journey for your next few dives and make the decision then.
As an added bonus and variant perspective, get yourself a copy of: Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving.
OP
bookboarder
Registered
Sounds like some sound advice! I'll definitely look into the book as well! Thank you!
Thank you!
Illini_Fan
Contributor
Personally, I made the decision to get some experience before heading back to get my AOW - which will happen in August. I'm at 42 dives now and will be close to 50 before AOW starts.
I wanted time to work on the stuff taught in OW and get a chance to have some sort of comfort and rhythm with my dives. Then (as I'm expecting will occur), the AOW instructor will get a chance to correct the bad habits.
If I went straight to AOW after OW, I figured I'd miss out on the chance to get guidance and instruction that is based upon my personal diving experience. For me, that is the best way I learn. Get taught, go try for a while, come back for more teaching.
I wanted time to work on the stuff taught in OW and get a chance to have some sort of comfort and rhythm with my dives. Then (as I'm expecting will occur), the AOW instructor will get a chance to correct the bad habits.
If I went straight to AOW after OW, I figured I'd miss out on the chance to get guidance and instruction that is based upon my personal diving experience. For me, that is the best way I learn. Get taught, go try for a while, come back for more teaching.
OP
bookboarder
Registered
Thank you We're both stoked... Now if only we could move out of this stinky place we live in... Granted, we DO live several feet below sea level, but we'd prefer to be next to the sea, and not under it! Then, we'd be diving all the time!
We're both stoked... Now if only we could move out of this stinky place we live in... Granted, we DO live several feet below sea level, but we'd prefer to be next to the sea, and not under it! Then, we'd be diving all the time!
OP
bookboarder
Registered
Of course, in the event of another hurricane, maybe we'll just rent some tanks and scuba on out of here.
The NAUI Advanced course is all about practical skills. The shop you take the course thru has the ability to 'tweak' the course as long as it meets the minimum standards.
I actually add liftbags, dive/trip reports, reels and an intro to wreck diving as part of the Advanced course (Northeast Divers).
Of all the courses I teach, AOW is by far the funnest I think. It's great to see "new" divers come back after 5-20 dives that truly want to learn more, advance their skills and become better divers.
The math you'll learn is Air Consumption which is much more importnat the deeper you go. You got the basics of the why's and how's about air consumption, AOW gives you a bunch more of that. AOW really tries to expose you to a lot of different aspects of diving. It really is a fun course.
Good Luck!!
I actually add liftbags, dive/trip reports, reels and an intro to wreck diving as part of the Advanced course (Northeast Divers).
Of all the courses I teach, AOW is by far the funnest I think. It's great to see "new" divers come back after 5-20 dives that truly want to learn more, advance their skills and become better divers.
The math you'll learn is Air Consumption which is much more importnat the deeper you go. You got the basics of the why's and how's about air consumption, AOW gives you a bunch more of that. AOW really tries to expose you to a lot of different aspects of diving. It really is a fun course.
Good Luck!!
Steve_Dives
Contributor
Some agencies require about 25 dives before annointing you advanced (in addition to skills checks and written tests). Since 10-15 of those will be from the OW and AOW dives, there's only another 10-15 independent dives to log. You're about there. More dives are better, I think, but I earned AOW with a total of 26 dives so I don't have much room to talk.
Here's a few thought's (I numbered them so others can say I'm full of **** on number x
)
1 - Dive with different partners. If you always dive as a husband & wife pair, you may find one person always doing certain things. Diving with someone else could make it obvious.
2 - Try some different environments. Things like calm or choppy water, low vis, cold, fresh or salty, etc. Don't make huge changes from what you have experienced previously.
3 - Take a clip board, camera, or something else to occupy your attention with you on a dive. If you are all over the water column and completely frustrated, your advanced class will be like that, only someone will be there to grade you! A few more dives might be worth the time since a frustrating or tiring class might not be fun or promote learning.
Here's a few thought's (I numbered them so others can say I'm full of **** on number x
)1 - Dive with different partners. If you always dive as a husband & wife pair, you may find one person always doing certain things. Diving with someone else could make it obvious.
2 - Try some different environments. Things like calm or choppy water, low vis, cold, fresh or salty, etc. Don't make huge changes from what you have experienced previously.
3 - Take a clip board, camera, or something else to occupy your attention with you on a dive. If you are all over the water column and completely frustrated, your advanced class will be like that, only someone will be there to grade you! A few more dives might be worth the time since a frustrating or tiring class might not be fun or promote learning.
OP
bookboarder
Registered
Thank you all, again, for the fantastic advice.
You are all a wealth of information, and I'm thrilled I found this board. I was a member of another board and it was pretty inactive, so it wasn't very helpful when my husband or I have questions.
Thank you for making this my new place to chill on the web, between dives!
You are all a wealth of information, and I'm thrilled I found this board. I was a member of another board and it was pretty inactive, so it wasn't very helpful when my husband or I have questions.
Thank you for making this my new place to chill on the web, between dives!
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