mattwave wrote:
Seriously though, I know many divers who's opinions of DIR divers stem from being called a stroke or an abortion, many times publically.
Any thoughts out there supporting that this might be the reason DIR divers get negative press?
Yes and no ... the problem with the perception is that it's based on a stereotype that was created by people who, in many cases, don't understand what they're talking about (no offense intended, just not a more diplomatic way of putting it).
Here's what I mean by that ... first, ask yourself what constitutes a "DIR diver"?
Is it someone who has taken DIR Fundies, and is still struggling to get his (or her) skills up to the point where they can actually pass the class?
Is it someone who has gone out and purchased all the gear, read everything George Irvine ever wrote, joined every DIR forum on the Internet, and speaks authoratively about minute details that, frankly, most of the diving world doesn't give a crap about?
Is it someone who's initial training was just adequate enough to scare them half to death, and who got into DIR because it gave them some extra tools to make them more comfortable underwater?
Is it someone who ... no matter what they do ... are attracted to a high level of performance, and seek out training and methods that allow them to dive to the level they desire?
The answer is that it's these and a lot more.
Like any other aspect of diving, people are attracted to it for a variety of reasons, use it with varying degrees of competence, and represent themselves to the community at large in ways that are more due to their personality than their training. Frankly, I've met assholes with C-cards from every training agency out there. In fact, some of the most arrogant people I've run into were recently-trained NAUI Techies.
It's a mistake to judge any group of people by the actions of a few.
Relating this to DIR, Calvin may not have realized that more than half the people on the Sechelt trip were DIR divers ... and I think he had a great time diving with and interacting with them. They didn't make a positive impression of DIR because it never came up as an issue ... we were just there to dive and have fun. But let one guy say something off-hand in a parking lot and it colors his impression of DIR ... because that one guy made DIR the issue. Does he speak for all DIR divers? Certainly not.
Another example ... about three years ago I was at Cove 2, gearing up to do a dive with Randy Williams. Those who know Randy know he's one of the most experienced divers in the area. An experienced DIR guy many of us know ... David Kertzmann ... pulled in next to us and came over to talk to us while waiting for his dive buddy to show up. Those who know David can attest that he's one of the most friendly people you'll ever run into at Cove 2 ... always with a smile, and never judgmental about anyone. He's also Tech 2 trained, and one of the more experienced DIR divers around. So eventually his buddy pulled in ... a guy who had recently taken the Fundamentals class and, if I recall correctly, had enlisted David to help him work on skills so that he could go back and pass the class. He comes over and right away starts "correcting" Randy with respect to how he's got his gear set up.
So which one of these guys is the real DIR diver? The experienced, affable, non-judgmental guy ... or the relative newbie who's acting like he just discovered religion?
Which one made the biggest impression with respect to what DIR is all about?
See my point? You can't judge a whole community by the bad actions of a few ... because they're the only ones you'll ever notice. The majority ... the ones who are friendly and helpful ... will only ever strike you as other divers out there sharing the dive site with you. They won't change your impressions of the "DIR community" because for the most part you'll never notice them as DIR divers. You'll only see the loudmouths and arrogant few ... because they reinforce a preconceived stereotype.
We used to have some real "wars" on this topic over on the northwestdiver.com board ... and if you go back about 4 or 5 years, you'll see that I had some of those same preconceived notions. I felt they were valid ... because I had run into a few of the assholes that made them so. It wasn't until later ... when I started to realize just how many of the people I dive with had DIR training ... that I had to change my mind about what the "DIR community" was really all about.
Fact is it ain't any different than any other community ... it's made up of all kinds of different people. Some of them are very likeable and helpful ... some are people you just don't want to be around ... and the majority are somewhere in between. Most just want to go out, dive, and have fun.
In other words, not much different than the rest of the diving community.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
