DIR

[JoelW]

I like the guys at both shops as well. SD&T enough that I am working on DM with Rich. I am not 100% either and probably won't get there, my fitness level could stand a bit of improvement and I am still a bit dependent on the computer.

There is also a bit of hashing out what exactly is DIR. I have seen west coast GUE differing from east coast GUE that differs from WKPP. The guys teaching it still need to do a bit of work on agreeing on the particulars. The flap last year on the GUE list about drysuits was a good example. We were told in the class that the DUI TLS-350 is not a good choice and another suit is a better choice because of some of the characteristics. The east coast chimed in a said that the west coast was full of crap. So there may be some regional variation in the end.

If planning on buying gear and a person is interested in DIR a good thing to do is find out what exactly is recommended and why. The Fundamentals book does a good job of describing what is required for a piece of gear. Additionally, talking to the guys at FifthD, Extreme-Exposure or some of the more vocal guys, Like Mike Kane, can take care of a lot of questions.

Another very good source is to spend the $29 and get onto the GUE mail list.

JoelW