CCR Solo Diving

[CCRDIVER]

What does everyone think about solo diving using ccr?  My thoughts are that as long as you have the correct training, adiquite dailout, and exercise discression then it is ok.  I also have my pilots license, and if I am flying around no one can land and plane, or prevent the plane from crashing.  Even if I have a passenger they wouldn't be able to help enless thay are able to fly the aircraft.  however most times only one person has the ability to land a plane, in general aviation.
I dive solo quite a bit, and find that as long as I feel conforitable with the conditions and the dive profile I will go.  What are everyone elses thoughts. 
By the way I dive the KISS CCR and love it. 

[ghosch]

I have personally never done a solo dive on my CCR.  I have done a couple on an SCR.  The discussion is really no different than arguing the safety of OC or SCR solo diving.

I do typically plan team bailout when performing deep dives, and therefore solo diving isn't an option, but that's driven by the type of diving, not the fact that it is CCR.

I guess it all really boils down to your personal risk tolerance.  I would contend that diving solo is more risky than with a well trained and competent buddy.  Personally I also find it more enjoyable!

[CCRDIVER]

I do agree that having a buddy is for more than just safty.  I like diving with a buddy because its more interesting than diving alone. 
Just wanted to know what people thought. 
I dove yesterday for over an hour solo. 

[john j]

I do occasionally solo dive with my CCR and have done all different kinds of solo diving like shallow dives, very deep dives, wrecks, ets.

Since in all of those cases, I was choosing by my own free will to perform these tasks, I think it is OK for me in my case.  I do not encourage others to solo dive, nor do I generally discourage them either unless I know of a reason why I believe they shouldn't.  It's a decision you have to make on your own, based on your own value system.  You also must consider that if you are killed or need assistance on the dive, there are others affected like friends, family, rescue/recovery personnel and the dive industry legal shenannigans that will occur.

It can also be argued that on a technical dive (like a CCR), if your skills and confidence aren't up to solo diving, you probably shouldn't be diving even with a buddy.  I don't mean that to be arrogant, but my point is that there is a lot of extra complexity with a CCR or any technical dive and it requires a high level of training and practice.  To some extent, all dives are solo dives and especially so in technical diving.  For example, on a long non-solo decompression dive, if someone gets an O2 toxicity hit or passes out while deep, there isn't a whole lot that can be done  to help the distressed diver without putting someone else at a major risk.  To the distressed diver, it is a quasi-solo dive.   To what length would you expect your buddy to go to try to save you?  Again, a personal judgement that you must decide and discuss with your buddy.   If I was in a situation where I had hours of decompression ahead of me I wouldn't necessarily expect my buddy to bring me straight up to the surface if I passed out or whatever.  Not only is my chance of survival nearly zero, now his is as well. 

If on a dive, you get completely separated from your buddy and cannot find him, you are now on an unplanned solo dive.  An unplanned solo dive is a very bad situation.  Much worse than a planned solo dive in my opinion.  You do have enough gas to do a full deco on your own don't you?

I always prefer to dive with a buddy because I agree that it is a more enjoyable experience.  It is also statistically safer based on data published on Inspiration CCR accidents.  However, a buddy can give you false confidence too.  Did you ever feel "ready" for a more advanced dive simply becasue you were going with a really good buddy that day?  I've been there and that's dangerous too.  Perhaps more dangerous than solo diving where a person is probably more apt to dive conservatively.

The Europeans generally have a less conservative view on diving risks like solo diving, etc. 

[CCRDIVER]

Some of my best dives are solo dives.  Its not because I dont want to dive with a buddy, but instead because I cannot always find a buddy to dive when I am ready.  I have also dove at times when a buddy was unable to dive.  For example I dove the Congdon Bow solo because my buddy could not get to the down line in a current.  The dive was not that deep max depth about 100' and no current on the wreck. 
I am not looking for anyone to say one style of diving is the only way that one should dive.  I think that risk assesment is key, and if you dont have the equipment, skills, and self-contained bailout then its a bad idea to even be in the water.  To reley on a buddy to save your A-- in a emergency, is at best a dangerous proposition, and at worst a two man panic situation. 
I dive with full bailout and I always assume that something can and will happen on every dive.  I do checks methodicly and often correct wouldbe problems before they even happen. 
Just wondering if people think Im nuts for getting into the water solo. 

[MAXFACTOR]

John J.  Deep Wreck and  Ghosh,  thanks for all of your thoughts.  I agree with all of the statements.  I have only did 2 solos in OC  but    I would alway prefer to have a buddy, and think....... that the reasoning is more sound then not.
\

of course we've all been there with a dive buddy that was a pleasant experience.  but  demms  are the risks we take with dive buddies,  especially when you get on a boat in the key's etc. and they pair you up with a total stranger.

Hope to join you guys down deep sometime.

MaxFactor.

[john j]

Please refrain from personal attacks and discuss issues objectively.

[mrweekend]

I think a person needs to start looking at the benefits of diving with a buddy vs. solo.  If you are diving CCR and trained accordingly and so is your buddy. Then you should also both be versed in bailout and safety procedures to help out in an emergency situation.  I'm not sure what benefits other than solitude are achieved in Solo diving.  Maybe scheduling.  But the Risks seem to outweigh the benefits.

Regarding the pilot comparison,  I would think the correct comparison would be a two pilot such as a commercial airline where if one pilot had a problem, the other is there to safely deliver the package. While Pilots can fly solo, as in general avaiation, there is a certification for that as well.  So that seems to me to follow the OC certification. 

THe biggest concern I feel would be the boat operator, The increase in Liability because of Diving Solo without a certification. I can see the Lawyers now.

Lawyer   “SO ,  You knew he didn’t have a SOLO certification card for CCR Diving.”

Boat Owner,   “ Well,  They don’t have a certification for that yet, but they have one for OC”.

Lawyer,  “ But you let him Dive Solo Anyway”?

Boat Owner,   “ Well,  ah  Yea…”

Lawyer,  “ So if you had someone that wasn’t certified for Nitrox want to Dive with a mixed gas tank you had on board,  You’d let him?”

Boat Owner,  “  Well, no,”

Lawyer.   “ Why’s that?”

Boat Owner,  “Well, without proper training, he could end up diving at an incorrect depth and end up with Oxygen toxicity, which could be fatal.”


I'm not sure if you have been in any emergency situations,  Hopefully not. But I can yell you that I know someone is walking this earth because I dove with a buddy and all the training kicked in. SO I for one will never DIve without a buddy.

On a final note,  Without posts or conversation, good ideas can't be furthered and bad ideas can't be shot down.

[JoelW]

Most of the waivers that I have signed sure look like they would exempt the boat driver for whatever I decided to do.  I think of some of the operators that I have gone out with on the East and West coast and they are only there to get divers to the site.  They won't help with dive planning, the DM stays on the boat, they don't assign buddies if someone is single and unless they are providing the gas they don't check any certification other than c-card.  The general scenario is one of "The gates is open, it will close in an hour, don't kill yourself.  The boats leave the responsibility for safe dive planning and execution to the diver.  I distinctly remember one trip north of Boston one winter with a group going out scallop diving.  I went with a friend, but when the gate opened, the twelve divers went in separate directions, came up in twelve different places and the boat did live pickups.  If I had wanted to go solo noone would have stopped me, definitely not the boat operator.


Joel