Always Dive with a Buddy?

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djmcmath
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Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by djmcmath »

The mantra of "never dive alone" and "always dive with a buddy" have been pretty well drilled into me over the years. However, some recent discussion with divers have revealed some potential exceptions, short of being formally "solo qualified." I'd like to get a community opinion on some potential practices that would involve going into the water solo, and solicit some thoughts on how to mitigate the risks.

- SMB practice (or similar shallow water skills practice). I was talking with a couple of divers about SMB deployment, and how I typically deploy my SMB at the safety stop at the end of every dive, just for the practice of it. One diver commented that he had gone out to a local dive site alone and just spent a day shooting his marker buoy and reeling it back in, over and over and over again, until he got it right. Another diver nodded and agreed that practice like that was good and healthy.
-- So the process would be to pick a site with little tidal influence, a well-known depth profile, and no boat traffic. Descend to 15 feet, where water depth is only slightly more than 15 feet, and perform whatever drills need to be done. Technically, this would work in 8 or 10 feet as well, which is only slightly deeper than a typical swimming pool. My thought is that if Bad Things Happen, I could inflate my BC and just pop up from 10 or 15 feet with very low risk of DCS. Or I could just walk out, because it's really that shallow.

- Finding drysuit leaks. I've been stymied as far as figuring out where my suit is leaking from. I definitely have a leak, but can't figure out where it's coming from using the normal DIY methods. Someone suggested a short and shallow dive, hopping in to a swimming pool or wading in to 8 or 10 feet of water for just long enough to get some water starting to leak in. As with the SMB drills, it'd be shallow enough that I could surface immediately with very low risk of DCS, at one of the local benign sites. Heck, I could probably persuade the local YMCA to let me spend 5 minutes in the pool doing a quick test to try to localize a leak.


Thoughts? Am I off the deep end? (Ha ha ha, pun intended)

Thanks,
Dan
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jmartel
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by jmartel »

Nothing wrong with solo diving if you are geared up for it and are proficient in your diving abilities. Not sure how many dives you have, so take that into consideration. Is it riskier? A bit, as there's always the unexpected medical issue that could happen. I find it way more relaxing and more enjoyable to dive solo. Since I dive with a camera rig, I'm essentially diving alone at all times anyway.

All about redundant gear. 2 is 1 and 1 is none. Spare mask, SMB, 2 cutters in different locations, 2 lights, pony bottle & reg, and limiting yourself more than you would with a buddy. For instance, as of right now, I won't solo below 60-70ft and I pick easier sites. Luckily, there's a lot of stuff in the sound to cover above there.

You will find that the majority of divers here in the PNW are more self reliant than in other locations. That probably contributes to the things you hear as well.
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Scubie Doo
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Scubie Doo »

Well said jmartel.

I would echo the importance of redundancy. You also must be an expert in deployment. Before I started solo diving I asked my buddy to watch me switch to my pony. I discovered that my hose was routed poorly and it actually got stuck. Good to practice with a buddy.

Also there is a psychological aspect too. If you are questioning the solo dive, you should not do it. Being a little nervous/anxious is fine IMO, but if it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it. My only issue with solo diving is when it flows over to buddy diving. What I mean is that because one is comfortable solo diving it doesn’t mean your buddy I comfortable with your “solo” behaviors. I make sure I tell a newer buddy, I am self reliant and comfortable solo, and I gauge if they are. If they are not, I treat the dive differently, like no camera, etc... If you are unsure about solo diving, go with a professional and have them observe your “solo” dive. They will help with gear config and safety.


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Grateful Diver
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Grateful Diver »

The mantra of "never dive alone" makes sense if you put some context around it ... things like assuming you have an adequately skilled dive buddy who would be able to help you out if you encountered a problem (many dive buddies are more a liability than an asset in times of trouble) ... or that both of you are mentally on board with the concept of "our" dive instead of "my" dive (there's more to being a dive buddy than simple proximity to another diver).

But I think you're choosing a bad example ... and the people who told you to practice SMB deployment alone are giving you bad advice. See here's the thing ... SMB deployment involves managing a line underwater. And those who mishandle a spool or reel underwater discover an amazing activity I call "underwater macramé" ... unless you maintain a slight tension on the line it has a tendency to develop a mind of its own, and can end up in places you'd never have thought possible.

I taught scuba for a dozen years, and one of my AOW activities involved shooting a bag from depth. There are those right here on this forum who've taken that class and experienced the wonders of underwater macramé. It's a dandy time to have someone around who can reach behind your head and untangle that line from your first stage, or wherever else you might have accidentally snagged it while you were moving around trying to untangle yourself. It's one of the LAST things I would recommend a relatively inexperienced diver to do without supervision, or at least a reasonably competent buddy who can help you out without becoming part of the same entanglement problem (I've seen that happen to a buddy pair too).

There's nothing wrong with diving alone, assuming you're appropriately skilled, properly equipped, and have a mentality that will allow you to remain calm while the poo is being flung from the fan blades. But a basic part of risk mitigation includes understanding potential risks, preparing to deal with them, and even more importantly when to just not put yourself in that position. If you're inexperienced with a bag, shooting it from depth while diving alone is one of those potential risks I'd advise you just avoid ... it's the one time you MIGHT want someone around, just in case you mess up and find yourself accidentally tied to the bag.

Oh, and I'd also recommend starting with the smaller bag ... the one that you orally inflate. It's way easier to manage your buoyancy control when you're simply transferring the air from your lungs into the bag. Once you've gotten pretty comfortable with that, THEN you can graduate to a larger bag that you inflate using your second stage or inflator hose. They're a bit trickier to manage buoyancy while filling ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)
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Scuba Swanie
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Scuba Swanie »

I'm glad I found this topic, especially jmartel's comments. I am a new diver and would not even consider going solo until I am much more proficient, but the idea of solo diving is attractive to me just for the sake of going when it's convienient instead of when your buddy is available. I also plan to make photography my main enticement to dive, so being capable and proficient in solo diving would give me more opportunity to get out there. I like jmartel's criteria for solo diving; shallower and easier dive sites.
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Grateful Diver »

Here's an article I wrote some years back for my students who were considering solo diving ... might have some info in it that's useful to those of you who are considering it ...

http://nwgratefuldiver.com/articles/solo.html

... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Threats and ultimatums are never the best answer. Public humiliation via Photoshop is always better - airsix

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Scuba Swanie
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Scuba Swanie »

Great article, Bob. Very insightful. Wish you were still teaching.
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djmcmath
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by djmcmath »

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. I really appreciate the thoughts on this topic. Bob, your perspective on SMB deployment makes complete sense. The first time I saw a diver deploy a buoy was on a tropical dive; a skilled dive master who had just conducted an otherwise flawless dive went to deploy a buoy at the safety stop in perfectly benign conditions. He failed to maintain tension and *poof* ended up with a drifting bundle of twine on his hands. Ever since watching that, I've made it a point to practice SMB deployment whenever I can. I did the oral inflation method for a while, and have since shifted to inflating off the exhaust of my second stage. Most of the time, it goes pretty smoothly, though I still fumble the double-ender, or struggle with buoyancy.

Anyway, good thoughts across the board. Thanks for the feedback. :)

Dan
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Jeff Pack
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Re: Always Dive with a Buddy?

Post by Jeff Pack »

With a bigger SMB (I use the Halcyon Big Slim) its around 20pds of lift, so I can get negative enough to not play macrame, and pull myself up the line. When I used the smaller 5-8pd lift bags, it was always a challenge to keep line tension on ascent.

As for solo diving, I tec dive and dive a rebreather, so I dont solo dive at all, unless we get separated, which is extremely rare.
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