Rebreather training question

MarkZ

J,

I am not sure that anybody either instuctors or users can give a specific list of what type of person makes up a good ccr diver in advance. I know some of the worlds foremost divers and have experienced some who have failed in the most final of ways. I have noticed a few tendencies in the better divers and users of ccr's.

First and probably most important is common sense and the ability to reason without losing composure. With rebreathers things happen above and below the water that need thought out in a common sense fashion without going to pieces. If one is the type of person who goes into a rage or depression when things don't always go their way they probably should not go near a rebreather.

Second I believe that a rebreather diver should have a better then average mechanical sense coupled with a fundemental understanding of computers and processing. You don't have to be able to rebuild cars with a blindfold on or be a hacker that warrants being on a national security watch list but if you are the type that needs to take a regulator in to a LDS to get your hoses switched then you should think twice about a rebreather. Also is true if you have to get your neighbors kid to hook up your printer cable. With rebreathers being a bit anal equipment wise is not a bad thing.

Third and certainly not least on the list is a proper attitude. A person must accept the fact that despite whatever experience is brought to the table initially you are starting over. Every rebreather diver is told that in the beginning but only the successful ones come to understand its truth. There was a comment that sticks in my mind and I apoligize for not remembering who said it but essentially that after a 100 hours I thought I was an expert and after a 1000 I realized how little I knew. I think anybody with at least a few hundred hours on their units will tell you how very true that statement is. You can never close your mind and must accept that you must continue to seek out knowledge from every available source and apply what you learn when appropriate to the use of the unit. Again here is where common sense comes into play as everybody has an opinion of what works best. It is up to the individual to use common sense to determine what will work best for you.

Included in attitude is patience. There is a learning curve and that must be accepted. When you first get your unit you will experience frustration both with the operation and also with the fact that you are not going to be able to use it at the level you may have been on open circuit and that may be true for some time to come. The diving characteristics of a rebreather are different from OC, not necessarly harder, just different. Accept that to dive one successfully for many years to come that comfort will take time. Personally there is nothing more frightening to me then to follow posts that start in January asking which rebreather is best, seeing in April that I just bought my xyz unit and it is so cool then in August seeing this same person posting that they have their 50 hours, MOD 3 trimix cert and are looking for other people to join them on a Doria trip in October. It is simply delusional to believe that a person with a only a few hours on their first unit is anywhere near ready for more extreme dives.

Last but not least I will suggest that in addition to the above a successful ccr diver must have what I will call a certain strength of character. You cannot get rattled when the others on the boat are jumping in and you must wait a few minutes to finish your checks. If you with your knowledge do not feel something is working as it should then you should not dive. It is often said a good diver "MAY" call a dive a great diver "WILL NOT HESITATE" to call a dive. Peer pressure or the desire to do a dive can never be an overriding factor to common sense and safety.

silent running

[quote=jepuskar;84210]Hey Andy,

I often think about whether or not I'm cut out for CCR diving. That is why I am a seeker now. I want to gather the basics and specifics involved with this venture. I've read the Evolution manual cover to cover, and have the TDI training manual for it coming tomorrow. This is how I will draw my conclusions on whether or not to pursue this more...ofcourse a pool session is in order.

There is a link on APD's website that takes you to a web page written by Richard Pyle...here it is:

http://www.bishopmuseum.org/research...tz97/lgrb.html

Towards the bottom of this article is a section names Lessons Learned. It is commendable that he shares these stories with us and there are lessons to be learned, but I was surprised at some of the obvious human errors. From someone in my position this was helpful to read.

J[/QUOTE


Hey Jason, you're doing your homework, good for you. If you find anything you don't quite understand, feel free to pose the question, no matter how it sounds. IMHO opinion/musical attack, human errors are at the root of most CCR accidents, even when many close calls have been documented... -Andy