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7 Secrets to Better Diving
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RULE #6: Buy Less Gear
We
can almost see dive retailers and manufacturers
across the land lighting their torches and
grabbing their pitchforks, but wait a minute,
guys. We happen to be in favor of divers owning
their gear, not renting it, because owners know
their gear better and take care of it better.
We think they should buy the best gear they can
afford, because there's no such thing as too
much performance. We also think divers should
buy their gear new, from a bricks-and-mortar
dive store that wants their repeat business, not
from a stranger with a web page.
That said, there are dangers to maxing out the
plastic on a whole new kit of gear before the
next dive. One is the danger of task overload.
The demands of learning a new BC plus a new dive
computer plus a new underwater camera may be
overwhelming.
The better approach is to add only one piece of
attention-demanding gear at a time. Delay diving
with the new camera until the new BC is
intuitive, until you can find the
inflate/deflate buttons without conscious
thought and can devote all your attention to the
camera.
Another risk is the temptation to seek security
in equipment rather than in technique. Anxious
divers sometimes carry so many accessories to
meet so many contingencies that they embark on
shallow warm-water dives rigged for a North Sea
wreck penetration. That risks task overloading
again. A better fix is for the anxious diver to
address directly the source of his fears, which
is usually inexperience. The most experienced
divers, dive guides and divemasters, for
example, seem minimally equipped because they've
learned to carry only the gear appropriate to
the dive. As a general rule, get more experience
before more gear.
RULE #7: Get Lost
When
we ask divers what skills they feel most in need
of improving, one of the top three is always
underwater navigation. We're land creatures and
disorientation is natural when the ground under
your feet is gone.
Lack of navigational ability is often an
unintended consequence of the structured resort
diving that so many of us do. Following the dive
guide, staying with the group and taking no
responsibility for where you're going does
nothing to develop your navigational skills. So
leave the dive guide, leave the group and
practice finding your own way.
One of the first things you'll notice is an
unmistakable directional cue. It's a "natural"
compass needle more constant than a magnetic
compass and easier to read. It's the trend of
the bottom, from shallow to deep. Since dive
sites are usually located along a shoreline,
"shallower" is the direction toward shore and
"deeper" is the direction toward the sea. So if
you leave the dive boat with shallower water on
your left, you can find it again by returning
with shallower water on your right. Putting the
wall to the left when going and to the right
when returning is the extreme case, but even the
flat area on top of the wall has a
shallow-to-deep trend, very noticeable if you
look for it.
You can estimate distance by counting fin
strokes or minutes, but cylinder pressure is
probably easier because you check that
frequently anyway. Assuming a constant depth,
you could swim out for 1,200 psi. The return
should take 1,200, leaving 600 for reserve.
You can use the depth to navigate a loop route
as well as an out-and-back. Note the depth of
the mooring or anchor before you leave it. If
it's 30 feet, it will still be 30 feet when you
return. You can drop down to 50 feet and swim
along the bottom for about half your bottom
time, then ascend to 30 and follow the bottom
back to the mooring. Other orientation cues are
the direction of the sun, the ripples in a sandy
bottom (usually they're parallel to the
shoreline) and the current.
As you strike out into the unknown, divide your
route into legs, each no longer than you can see
through the water, and pick out a memorable
landmark at each end. At the same time, pay
attention to the big picture. Try to visualize a
bird's-eye view of the dive site with you moving
across it. Sketching the site on your slate may
help, too.
By John Francis
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