Dive instructors

[Shooter]

IMHO it would be more like the polar opposite ;D

[mcdiver]

I believe the "GUE guys" coined the phrase to try to set them apart from the rest of the divers.

I met a guy and his wife while diving at Ginnie Springs back in 2000, he was a Halcyon dealer from California. I purchased my first Halcyon "setup" from him, I bought the whole nine yards, backplates, wings, lift bags, surface markers, reals, jump spools, ballcap, etc.

Nice bunch of guys and very knowledgeable.

Diving "any way you want" is fine, it is just nice to know that during an emergency, there should be no hesitation as to how your dive buddies gear is rigged and what you have to do to save either yourself or him. That is why I believed they came up with the phrase "DIR."

If you insist on diving "any way you want", please take me off your "short list" of dive buddies.

[DiveCaptDean]

You mean you dont even introduce them to other options in diving?....and if you did, and they chose to not dive  HOG...would you dump them as a student?

If this is the case, or close to it, I would find this to be very irresponsible on your behalf.  Dont you think that you as a MSDT have the responsibility to inform your students of the different philosophies of diving as opposed to only introduce them to the one that you choose to follow?  I could most certainly understand you having this frame of mind if you specialized in only technical training, but  according to your signature, you are a MSDT...a recreational instructor...Being that you are instructing students that are new to the sport, i feel you need to inform them of all options of their future in the sport.  If you are in fact good at what you do, then they will follow your beliefs and your end result would be the same...

[scubadoll]

OK, mcdiver I just took you off my short list of dive buddies. Men, always telling women what to do.  ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

[mcdiver]

Dive Captain Dean, what exactly are you getting at here?

What are the other options that you speak of? Please be more specific.

The bottom line is this, once you become certified and purchase your own dive gear, you will probably rig that gear the same way your instructor did, right or wrong. When you are a student, there is just so much information to absorb, you do what you know worked, and that is what your instructor did.

There is no ISO Certification in scuba diving, is there really a set standard? We know that regulators should come over your right shoulder and under the arm. But guess what, there are BC's where their Octo is part of the inflator. Has that violated a standard?

The point is that during my dive classes, each student gear is rigged the same so that when you do the BWRAF, you know exactly where to look for the octo, the weight pouches, the buckles, etc. It is a set standard that PADI has endorsed and if I do not follow these set standards, my liability insurance will not protect me. What the student does after leaving my class is his/hers business, all I can do is make recommendations to them, what has worked for me, and what is working for those divers I choose to dive with.

Please do not take this as a personal attact of any Instructor, I think you read-into the comment "Since when is DIR an option?" It was suppose to be taken as somewhat of a joke. I do not agree with everything they stand for, but hey, if it works for them, God bless them.

I don't need to hide behind anything, that is why my name and contact information is always posted on a blog.

Thanks Scubadoll

[DetectorGuy]

Hey Scubascooby,
  I too want to take my AOW this summer. I am kinda partial to NAUI myself as that is the organization I started with and I agree with their promotion of safety. I need the AOW under my belt to get to the next few levels. I want to eventually get certified in Nitrox, Drysuit, Ice, Cave, Wreck and Master-diver. I have no intentions of going any further than that. I don't want to take pictures underwater or do any marine biology but hey, thats just me. As you can see by reading this thread there are a lot of different styles that are out there. Like a few people mentioned, it all boils down to what do you want to learn and how do you intend to use what you have learned. Are you going to stay at a recreational level? Are you going to become "pro" like: Safety-Rescue, Dive instructor, or Divemaster leading tourist by the hand? The only advice I can give you is to collect as much info as you can until that time and glean out the bad advice and keep the good info.

[wtdrm]

Finally we are getting a topic with some meaning. I have read most of the posts. I Will re-read them before I post some thoughts I have on the topic. I am a Divemaster and have worked with 2 stores. I will not name them. But I want to thank you for posting this topic. Stay tuned Bat Friends. Because of time I cannot continue.



To the original poster: Send me a P.M. and I will send you my thoughts that I do not want to go into detail here.
I started out as a` PADI diver, Through D.M. and am considering changing that to a different agency.

Talk at ya later.

[SmithDiving]

Scubascooby, perhaps you've made your decision already, but if you're still looking for input...  We would of course love to have you consider crossing-over to NAUI as some of the previous posters have done.  I would suggest that no matter where you go please ask to talk or email the available Instructors.  We all have areas that we are really interested in and you should try to get your training from someone who fits your idea of someone who would be a good mentor for YOU.  Some of our female customers really want a female Instructor and some guys (and women) really want someone with a rigid (public safety style) background.  Keep in mind that you sometimes learn more by being exposed to different ways of doing things.  I try to tell all of my students that they can learn things by just watching other divers, this is after all the way diving got it's start.  I've learned a lot over the years by watching divers who are doing the "new" thing.  Sometimes those lessons are negative (I'm going to remember to never do that) or positive (I think I'll steal that configuration).  I sometimes wish I could do 150 dives a year with 150 different divers.  I'd probably learn 150 new things.  Congratulations on your commitment to diving and learning.

[mcdiver]

Thanks Smith Diving, comments well respected.

When I started my diving years ago, I never intended to go as far as I have, I just fell in love with the sport. So seak an Instructor that shares the same desire and passion as you do, it might just be a female, you never know. Just make sure you are comfortable with them, for you may very well create a lasting bond.

[Shooter]

A note on gear set-up.

I was fortunate enough to take my open water with an instructor who subscribed to the DIR set up.  I took my open water in South Padre Island, Texas with Timothy O'Leary, who happens to be the head guy for technical diving operations of NAUI.  The gear was a little more expensive than I had planned on, but do not for a minute regret making the decision.  At the time, I didn't know how far my diving was going to go.  It has progressed into cavern and cave diving, wreck penetration, advanced Nitrox and stage decompression diving, ice diving, diving with doubles, etc. etc.

I have been able to use my initial gear set up for all these different diving activities and can regularly change back and forth the components to accommodate my level of diving.  The initial basic appeal of this set up was to streamline approach minimizing drag saving effort and air to get longer dives and enjoy them more. I do not follow all recomendations for this set-up, and have changed it a little to accommodate my personal needs. It is what works for me.

Even though Smith does not cater to this type of diving,  I have been very satisfied, especially with their commitment to training and would highly recommend them to anybody seeking to further their education.  They gave me the initial confidence to pursue the path I am now taking.  They have also trained or are training,  The other six members of my family 8)