women's opinions wanted

[another mike]

As a DM candidate; I was hoping to hear from as many of you as possible about things they loved/hated/wished they had seen in the DMs they have encountered. My wife had an unpleasant experience with a DM who seemed to think his card was a liscence to grope (you get the picture).

Any suggestions, comments would be greatly appreciated,


thnx in advance,

mike

 

[Dee]

It's not that I don't believe you, but make sure it was actually 'groping'. As a DM, you sometimes have to grab whatever you can to get hold to a student who's bouyancy is out of control. And we will commonly grab and hold onto a students shoulder strap for control and in order to watch their face. I always address this issue during the briefing to let students know what to expect.

Now, having said that, if your wife is sure it was inappropriate touching, the DM needs to be reported to the Instructor and the dive shop owner. If they do not take appropriate action, report it to the certifying agency. Unfortunately, it will help if any other woman in the class can verify the same thing or if your wife had witnesses. Even without verification or witnesses, there may have already been complaints against the DM in the past and the shop is 'collecting' evidence before doing anything.

I'm sorry she's had this experience. It gives us all a black eye. But unfortunately there are male DM's out there who take advantage of the trust given to them by their students. As far as I'm concerned they need to be keel hawled!

 

[Ontario Diver]

If the guy was out of line..... report him. No question. No excuses.

I can accept a grab to help and oops but groping is an other matter.

 

[DivingGal]

Sometimes as a DM I've had to grab (guys and gals) for safety or as part of instruction.

It's unfortunate, but I've also heard of inappropriate "gropping". If this is the case - report the person to the instructor, the LDS and the agency.

As I'm also in Ottawa, drop a PM -- and we can talk about this if you want.

 

[Starfish]

I would have liked better communication between my Instructor and the DM he was using to assist in the class pool sessions.

Example:
When I was trying the donning of a weight belt underwater (rolling in to it) I had some problems keeping myself down in the water when my weight belt was off. The Instuctor and the DM came over to help me get stabalized and try it again. The Intructor wanted me to drop the weight belt all together and the DM was signalling for me to draw it closer in to my body to help keep me down. I looked to the Instructor as "the authority" and went to comply with his/Instructors directions when the DM came up behind me and grabbed my wrist. I literally felt like I was in a bar brawl with one guy trying to knock it out of my hand and the other pulling the weight belt from my hand. I made eye contact with the Instructor and dropped the weight belt. I popped to the pools surface and they both surfaced as well. When I asked what the hell was going on, they both laughed about the miscommunication between THEM!

Needless to say, for the OW sections, I volunteered to work with a different DM.

So, please, communicate well.

 

[Walter]

Treat women as you'd like other DM's to treat your mother, wife or sister.

There will come times when you will touch women in places that are inappropriate in other circumstances because there isn't time to aim for an appropriate place. Other times in training, accidents may happen. In a recent OW course, we were working on rescue of a panicked victim on the surface. One woman made a mistake in approaching too closely before submerging. In an actual recsue situation, she would have been in serious danger. In training, she lost her mask and bikini top then was held under briefly. No one else was aware she lost the bikini top until she told us later. She made the next rescue beautifully.

 

[shellbird]

That's all, don't offer a softened approach... that's not helpful at all and it is insulting.

 

[Louie]

We can't look at the world of diving in a cultural or social vacuum. Behaviour of divemasters fit into what is acceptable or unacceptable within a particular place.
Generally speaking, I've found attitudes toward sexual harassment to be fairly progressive in the "developed " world (Western Europe, North America). Where I have encountered inappropriate behaviour is in the less developed regions where attitudes and standards are fifty years behind the more "enlightened" world. Divemasters - and men - are products of their culture. It isn't surprising to find a groping divemaster in a place where it's perfectly acceptable for a man to beat his wife. An unaccompanied female diver can be the subject of unwanted attention.
However, dive operators must realise that bad divemasters/instructors are bad business and convey this to their staff and clients should report problems to the appropriate body.

 

[Patience]

My first bit of advice -- women aren't men! Okay, so it seems as if I'm stating the obvious, but I'm not. Our center of gravity is different, and as a result, bouyancy is different.

In the first OW course I took the BC and weight distribution guaranteed that at the surface I had to fight to keep my face out of the water. It was miserable. I thought it was something I was doing wrong, and didn't realise a couple of simple adjustments to my gear would make diving a more pleasant experience. (Trying not to drown while listening to instructions is distracting and stressful.)

If the instructor or DM realised what the problem was, they did nothing to fix it. (Interestingly, not one of the women who started the course finished it.)

When I changed shops, the DM tentatively explained why things weren't working out. He was a little uncomfortable talking about female weight distribution -- I think he thought I would be insulted. But we moved the weight around and experimented a little, and I switched from a "unisex" BC to one meant for women. What a difference!

As for the groping thread -- my brother is a rifle coach. Before he touches a student, male or female, he explains what he is doing and asks permission. It's meant to avoid any misunderstandings or discomfort. If it's a matter or safety, or you're underwater, you may not be able to comment then, but you could explain in advance that some contact might be necessary.

Good luck!

 

[another mike]

Thanks to all !!!!!!!!

While most of this stuff is common sense (oxy moron...) I appreciate all of your prompt responses. I'm just about through the internship and just want to to be a great DM.....People pay a lot of money for diving and deserve value for their dollar. Fortunately I'm working for a great shop and the "negative side" of diving is something we choose to let others be a part of.



thanks again!!


mike