Why is it so hard to find someone to dive with.

[DeusVerto]

I have a theory about diving buddies. Its hard to find them...my wife has no desire to dive but is more than willing to go with me anytime or any place and sit and read a book. (text edited for brevity)

Exactly. I tried to get PADI certified with my wife, but no-go...she can't handle her face getting wet, so mask-clearing drills are out of the question. We're in the same boat.

That said, I have typically gone the resort/cruise/charter excursion route in more tropical climes, having a sincere difficulty getting excited about diving in the low-viz, cold water of the Great Lakes region (I live in Northern Illinois near the Wisconsin border).

Sooo....I need a buddy willing to travel or who lives in the Keys.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Scubaboard has not worked for me much. The local dive shops in Dayton are to "clickish" but thanks for the advice.

I'm not sure exactly what you mean, but to be honest, I've never found a club that doesn't initially come across that way. It's a group of people who already know each other and often times come across as not very welcoming. However, I've also never found a club that actually intends to come across that way. Through making an effort to attend meetings and events, before you know it you may find yourself a member of the clique.

 

[pelagic_by_nature]

Hey elsrdiven, Weather permitting Let's dive Gilboa Sunday.

 

[lulubelle]

I felt the same way at first.

I didn't do my OW in this country, so I had no LDS affiliation, none of the shops here have very active clubs, and I just didn't know how to connect with other divers. I had one buddy from my church right out of the box,but she was tough to schedule with.

I mostly wanted buddies for offshore diving. Some divers like to hang out at the quarry every weekend, but for lifestyle or budget reasons, don't dive offshore. Some divers only take trips to warm clear water. Some divers like offshore diving but can't afford to do it very often. But I just opened my mind and started making the effort to meet divers.

Scuba board hasn't been too helpful to me yet...but I don't spend a lot of time here, and when I am here, it is in spurts. But I have met a couple of divers from SB, and more importantly, when I am diving and meet a diver I want to keep in touch with, most of the time they are here.

Here are some of my strategies.


[*]Diving at the muck hole...not my thing, I like the ocean. But divers hang out at the muck hole, so that is a good place to meet buddies. And I have enjoyed working on skills out there.

[*]Online groups...NC Divers is a non shop affiliated group here which has been a great source of quarry buddies, offshore buddies, and even a travel buddy. You probably have something similar in your area.

[*]Meetup.com had a group in my area which has produced some great offshore buddies for me, in fact, it has been the best source yet for local offshore buddies and travel buddies.

[*]Dive shop gatherings...few and far between. I've met some travel buddies this way.

I am in sales, meeting people is not hard for me. But if you are shy, trust me, a LOT of divers are. Like Sam, for instance. All you need is a smile and diving in common.

 

[TSandM]

I have severe social anxiety problems, and I was astonished, after I learned to dive, to find myself going on a dive shop e-group and asking strangers if they would dive with me. I wanted to dive THAT much.

I have attended meetings of a couple of dive clubs, and it's intimidating that everyone seems to know everybody else, and immediately get involved in conversations where it seems difficult to find an entry. But questions almost always work -- you hear someone talking about diving such and such a site, and you ask, "Where is that?" or "What days is it open?" or any other reasonable question you can think of -- people generally LOVE to give information, and then you're talking.

I've had fantastic luck with various internet forums, but then again, I have mostly gone places where the boards have a lot of members.

Did you get certified locally? If so, perhaps the shop would like someone who wants to go out with their newly certified divers? Our shops organize dives like that. You never know where you will find somebody you think is great fun to dive with. I was set up with my favorite dive buddy on a blind "date" -- we were both annoying someone, so he told us we should get together

 

[rickydazla]

You're kidding, right? Scubaboard claims over 150,000 members and doing some quick Facebookery I could feasibly connect with up to 6,000 people in Michigan and Ohio alone who are scuba divers! You're on the Internet. On a social networking site. For scuba divers!

Drive your ass out to some of the events, trips, charters, evening dives, club meets and say; "hello". Or walk into your local dive shop and explicitly ask them to hook you up with some people. That's what they do.

Seriously.

 

[nwohiodiver]

Hey elsrdiven, Weather permitting Let's dive Gilboa Sunday.

Yes! I'm running into the same problem! Trained solo, one-on-one at the local quarry and had a great experience doing that. Downside is that I have NO dive buddies locally. Find myself pleading and hoping for takers in the forums to go out on the weekends.

Hoping to finally hit the water this Sunday again...Let's do Gilboa if anybody's game!?
I'm 15min away for anyone ever in the area!

 

[Barracuda2]

I'm 67 years old and am going through my second generation of divers. The first, guys my age, quit diving long ago. Most guys and gals I dive with now are in their early 40's or thirty's and younger. When I hooked in with the GLWC group a few years back, it opened a whole new set of opportunities for diving. Before that, I was the lone diver on live-a-boards and charters. That was fine, but it's much better knowing the people you're diving with both socially and technically. You've got to take that first step and get connected; no one is going to hunt you up; you have to make yourself known. A few weeks back, I just had a blast with a GLWC group diving wrecks at Tobermory, Ontario. Besides me, the oldest was 43, and the rest in their 30's. Except for a few humorous references to my age, I was accepted into this younger group because they know me and my style. Not only that, we are already making plans for another expedition. If I can become part of a connected dive group, in spite of my age, anybody can. You come to the GLWC fall Meet & Greet on Oct. 15-17 and you WILL get connected. If you don't make an attempt, then your cry will always be "I can't find anybody to dive with".

 

[wb416]

I have a theory about diving buddies. Its hard to find them. Unless you learn to dive with a friend its nearly impossible to find a buddy to dive with. My wife has no desire to dive but is more than willing to go with me anytime or any place and sit and read a book. But that doesn't help me out much. I think I am going to have to do some solo diving. I think its easier anyways. I will love to take a trip to Mexico or the Keys to dive. But when your the only one that dives its kinda of a waste of time.

I used to just show up at White Star or Gilboa and spot a couple of divers or a group and ask if I could tag along. Then there was Diverlink, Scubaboard, or Zendiving... but you have to put out the effort to socialize, ask questions, get acquainted and before you know it, you can find someone to dive with almost every weekend.

 

[pelagic_by_nature]

Yes! I'm running into the same problem! Trained solo, one-on-one at the local quarry and had a great experience doing that. Downside is that I have NO dive buddies locally. Find myself pleading and hoping for takers in the forums to go out on the weekends.

Hoping to finally hit the water this Sunday again...Let's do Gilboa if anybody's game!?
I'm 15min away for anyone ever in the area!

I know that 4 days out forecasts aren't worth much, but right now they're calling for partly sunny with a high of 69 in beautiful downtown Gilboa. 11:00 sound OK? That way I don't have to get up at the crack of dawn to get there.

elsrdiven, you in??