Who is responsible for what?

[claudine]

Jim,

Heartfelt thanks for your post! I'm a newly certified OW diver and the strong emphasis in your post on safety really made me sit up, take note and ink it into my head! Diving has long been a hobby I wanted to pick up and I'm really glad I did. As many of the experienced divers have said, the real training starts after the OW certification and I'm keen to learn as much as I can while keeping these important lessons on safety ingrained! Thanks again!

 

[bowlofpetunias]

For some unknown reason, I just found this thread. It is wonderful.

The thread forced me to think about skills and instructors and dive buddies in a new way:

To read Jim's essay and other comments and many other of his posts on SB, it would appear that he is a top notch diver and instructor. My gut tells me that he is just that, if not better. (The same goes for many others on the board.) However, I've never dived with Jim. So, I can't be sure about his actual skills in the water. And, even then, I may not be qualified to judge someone else's skills. The reason I mention this is that it applies to EVERY diver. It is easy to talk the talk. Just because an instructor or insta-buddy talks the talk, that does not mean he or she is skilled. Just because someone has posted a lot on SB does not mean the person is a good or knowledgeable diver. Make your assessments on a case-by-case basis and on actual performance as you see it. Be a critical evaluator at every stage of your dive.

And, to anyone who does not personally know me, take what I've just said with an appropriate grain of salt.

That is why the Dive Operators that I respect the most have a policy of "In water assessments before determining how challenging they will allow your first dive with them to be" They give a good dive brief explaining plan A and plan B. They assess you in the water at the beginning of the dive and indicate which dive you will be doing. The subsequent dives are then planned accordingly.

When going on an expensive dive holiday I also appreciate operators who ensure there are adequate DM's so paying customers don't have to do any more babysitting of less skilled divers than the paying customers want to. Everyone should get value for their holiday dollars. Some people enjoy taking a new diver "under their wing" because it helps make the experience new and fresh for them others do not. Some shouldn't be allowed near new divers. It is all about balance and taking responsibility in the end.

 

[ItsBruce]

That is why the Dive Operators that I respect the most have a policy of "In water assessments before determining how challenging they will allow your first dive with them to be" They give a good dive brief explaining plan A and plan B. They assess you in the water at the beginning of the dive and indicate which dive you will be doing. The subsequent dives are then planned accordingly.

When going on an expensive dive holiday I also appreciate operators who ensure there are adequate DM's so paying customers don't have to do any more babysitting of less skilled divers than the paying customers want to. Everyone should get value for their holiday dollars. Some people enjoy taking a new diver "under their wing" because it helps make the experience new and fresh for them others do not. Some shouldn't be allowed near new divers. It is all about balance and taking responsibility in the end.

I've never really thought about either of these points, but they are very good and I adopt both. Thanks.

 

[DougieIL]

Nicely written and important to understand. I'm grateful I had a good instructor and I have even better dive buddies in our group. One of the guys in our group who has something over 2,000 dives told be that training teaches you basics and to not panic. A C-Card is a license to start to learn to dive. It doesn't mean you know what you're doing. I continue to take courses on each trip which I find to be a lot more fun in the Carribean. And I learn something new on every dive. And after the last couple trips, thank GOD I don't hang with hot dogs!

 

[rodman4085]

Thank you Jim for that essay, and to all of you that have added to the last 9 pages of responses...I read them all. This is my 2nd post on this board. 54 years old.....did school and pool in Jan 08 in Wisconsin, and OW cert dives in Cancun 2 weeks later.....I did a rewind to my highschool days in the early 1970's.......I was a Red Cross certified Lifeguard at a YMCA indoor pool.....and I watched a number of Scuba classes go diving in the Y pool in Rochester Minnesota.....I look on, and thought about doing the course, I should have , but it took me 30+ years to do it....
I did a local PADI weekend deal, and the instructor was ok, but .....he was a relatively new diver too, and was determined to do the teaching thing.....! He was a couple of years older than me, but.....?
I went to Cancun, and did a Trip Advisor search.......found a small dive school/shop that would certifiy my open water dives, and the man I did my open water cert dives was what you want out there doing what he does.....he stresses fun, safe, know your limits....when your air is low, time to go up, and if you are uncomfortable, time to go to the boat.....I had some surface anxiety issues....he got me calmed down....and due to past lifeguard training, I did not bring either of us to the bottom....stuff happens, and you have to know when it is time to surface, when to quit a dive, when to not start a dive.....lot's of things affect a dive, and it is up to the diver to determine his or her dive....whether to go, or not.....
I am very happy to have found this dive location.....I will be back.....and I thank all of you for being there for me....you have re-inforced my decision to become certified Open Water Diver, and I will try my best not to die on any of your watch!

 

[dpaustex]

Jim, Good post.

I tell my students that I will help THEM to become a safe, competent diver. BUT I also tell them they have work to do, too.

Sometimes, people are not cut out for diving. A boyfriend pressures a girlfriend to take a class, etc.

I recommend couples NOT be in the same class. It is simply easier to teach them apart.

I tell people that if I, and I alone, feel they are not a safe and confident diver, I will not pass them. This happens very infrequently, as it is my job to help make them that very thing.

My biggest thrill as an instructor, is to help people overcome their anxieties, and watch them bloom into active divers.

However, after the C-card is issued, I tell them that they must practice the very drills which I taught them in class. I recommend they get further training, as the C-card barely scratches the surface of crucial issues, like recognizing and dealing with stress - and what to do about it.

But it is a great sport, isn't it? Where else can you see fishes eye-to-eye, or watch a sunset from under water?

 

[frontiernurse]

I appreciate this article. I got my certification card in Mexico this January and found the dives there very easy. When I got home, I still felt really insecure thought, I still don't know how to navigate or really plan a dive. I hired a guide to take me on a shallow dive in Monterey which did not go as well as the Mexico dives. (Super Bad cramp, needed to surface during dive.) I really want to become a better diver, but I am uneasy with the idea of being someone's "buddy" at this point... I don't feel qualified. But I don't want to stay out of the water either. I'm unclear how best to get this training... do you just keep hiring guides until your skills improve? I see so many interesting looking groups on this forum who dive in my area but would not as yet be ready to dive with them... I'd feel like I was potentially holding them back as I am still taking my time with everything. Anyway... will continue to peruse these forums for more info on how to best improve my skills and confidence and feel better about joining some of my local diving groups...

 

[bowlofpetunias]

Hey there are lots of people who enjoy showing their local sites to new divers... Check out your local Dive operators and find out if they have Dive Days where the go to easy/safe sites and will buddy you up with someone appropriate.

You can do your "teething" at the "easy local sites". IMHO... all you need is time under water to develop the confidence and skills you started to gain in your course. Nothing teaches diving like diving. The key is to stay within reasonable limits but carefully extend your comfort zone!

Don't underestimate the skills you bring to the buddy team. You may not be the one to navigate and perform a rescue.. but I bet (based on your username) you would be the one to have around on shore to deal with medical emergencies!

 

[ScubaSteve]

.....but I am uneasy with the idea of being someone's "buddy" at this point... I don't feel qualified.

Don't ever feel this way. Just go into every dive with an honest approach with full disclosure and no buddy should ever feel slighted. As long as they know you are new to diving and rather uncomfortable with certain aspects, then MOST divers will gladly help you out with them. If they know up front, they also have the opportunity to back out should they not be comfortable with the situation for any reason. The trouble happens when you are not honest to your dive buddy about your comfort and skill level.

Be honest and people will pick up on your eagerness to dive and learn and improve. That is a great way to be so do not give up hope. And stated above, talk to all of the dive shops around you and see if they have any dive days or any buddy finding system. It is a small world and there are a lot of divers arond you I am sure.

Edit ******

If you feel like you are "holding back a group", the see if you can find a single diver that is comfortable taking a new diver out and working with them. That way you can be talking about gear, how to set it up, what the dive plan is, how beautiful and warm out it is (I cannot say that here ) and you gear up together. A group tends to add pressure on some people because they are unwilling (or uncomfortable) to be the last person ready. It is all about learning and building up your confidence.

 

[Edward3c]

Responsibility for ones own well being, fully agree with. And it doesn't only effect newbie divers, I know some quite experience people whom have not know when to say NO.

Regards

Edward