teddy Posted November 7, 2019 Report Share Posted November 7, 2019 Just signed up for the PADI Open Water course on our Adventure sailing in Jan 2020. I had a chance to get certified 30 years ago when I was in the service and passed it up because going out drinking was more important. I've regretted that choice for a long time. wllm1969 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted November 7, 2019 Report Share Posted November 7, 2019 Great choice. The world underwater is quite awesome and cruising and diving is usually very compatible (compared to diving and flying). teddy and melmar02 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted November 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2019 1 hour ago, twangster said: Great choice. The world underwater is quite awesome and cruising and diving is usually very compatible (compared to diving and flying). Your last part made me actually laugh out loud. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted November 7, 2019 Report Share Posted November 7, 2019 1 hour ago, teddy said: Your last part made me actually laugh out loud. Thanks. First of all thank you for your service. The part of diving and flying is aimed at the inability to fly after scuba diving for ~ 24 hours. Nitrogen levels take ~ 24 hours to stabilize after a dive so the idea of flying between islands to dive many different places can't happen. Staying on a ship at sea level and cruising between islands is perfectly fine making diving very complementary to cruising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted November 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 7, 2019 8 hours ago, twangster said: First of all thank you for your service. The part of diving and flying is aimed at the inability to fly after scuba diving for ~ 24 hours. Nitrogen levels take ~ 24 hours to stabilize after a dive so the idea of flying between islands to dive many different places can't happen. Staying on a ship at sea level and cruising between islands is perfectly fine making diving very complementary to cruising. Oh...lol I was thinking it was a lot easier to get to the water from a ship rather than a plane. That makes sense now that I think about it. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted November 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 Finished the eLearning which has made me even more curious, so I've been reading all I can find about diving. I'm very excited about the actual course and am already looking for ways to put the certification to use sooner than later. @twangster I see what you mean about diving and flying. Very interesting information about how nitrogen leaves the body. twangster and PRebecca 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allen2 Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 As a diver, there is nothing like diving while on a cruise - imagine diving in four different islands/countries in a week! There is a serious downside: if your spouse is not a diver, there may be a little friction and you may need to reach an agreement regarding how many dives per cruise! teddy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted November 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 20 minutes ago, Allen2 said: As a diver, there is nothing like diving while on a cruise - imagine diving in four different islands/countries in a week! There is a serious downside: if your spouse is not a diver, there may be a little friction and you may need to reach an agreement regarding how many dives per cruise! This was my concern before signing up for the course. My wife encouraged me to do it and, for this cruise anyway, understands that I'll be busy with the confined and open water dives. I'm trying to finagle staying on the ship for the next cruise solo to dive in Georgetown, Costa Maya, and Cozumel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ditchdoc Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 I hope you have a good experience. I have been diving for 20 years. I got started as part of a swift water rescue/dive team. The level of training was pretty demanding as most of our diving was done in zero visibility along with anyone of a number of other hazards. We started out slow and worked out way up. Even then, some people did not make it. The point is, dive schools that promise every thing in a day are rushed. If you are a strong swimmer, perfectly comfortable in deep water, have no issues with claustrophobia, no medical issues (especially respiratory or cardiovascular), don't panic easily, learn quickly, are level headed and can adapt to a totally different environment ... you should do well. In addition to learning all the mechanics of the equipment and safety rules, buoyancy control is probably the hardest to control well. Being able to finesse this in small increments with varying depths takes practice. Mostly is done with the BC and many times it can be be adjusted by small amount by how deep you breathe or inflate your lungs. I would prefer a class that is done over days, starting with a fairly deep swimming pool where you can take time to practice skills and really feel comfortable. I'm not trying to scare you, its just a bit of a reality check. Diving is fun and a great sport. Just be aware that resort courses are accelerated. If all else fails, bubbles always go the surface. Don't panic and follow them slowly. bobroo and teddy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted November 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 Hopefully this won't be too rushed. Five confined dives and four open water over 4-5 days. I went to a local dive shop that I drive by on my way to work and talked with them about getting a mask/snorkel as well as their thoughts on doing an open water class while on a cruise. They were really friendly and helpful. The consensus is that I'll have more fun taking the course in the Caribbean than I will in Maine since the water temperature will be much more pleasant. They feel that since the course is an actual PADI course, I should be good to go as far as instructors, and they are all about signing me up for Advanced Open Water up here this summer. I appreciate you sharing your experience with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ditchdoc Posted November 25, 2019 Report Share Posted November 25, 2019 Sounds good. Your own, well fitted mask will help. If you have room in your travel bags I'd even take fins. I personally take my own regulator. In part because it has a fitted mouth piece that is far more comfortable and it has the transmitter that talks to my wrist worn dive computer. I also am prone to take my own 0.5 mil shortie. You might wait awhile before you jump in that deep bobroo and teddy 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Summer Bee Sweet Posted November 26, 2019 Report Share Posted November 26, 2019 On 11/6/2019 at 6:21 PM, teddy said: Just signed up for the PADI Open Water course on our Adventure sailing in Jan 2020. I had a chance to get certified 30 years ago when I was in the service and passed it up because going out drinking was more important. I've regretted that choice for a long time. I took SCUBA diving as a PE credit in college but never got certified either. Didn’t have the funds for the winter trip to Florida and I was the only female in the class.... One year my husband and I were looking at going to one of those all-inclusive resorts with a group. He’s not a drinker and I can only lounge for a day before getting ancy. I did notice that shore dives were included in the resort. We never made it to that resort, but both my husband and I are certified and he went further and got his Dive Master certification. My favorite dive was a shark dive through Stuart Cove in Nassau. Second wan on a live aboard in Palau. Hopefully your wife would want to join you one day. Our adult daughter has no interest in diving but she will snorkel. Check out Advanced Certification after your cruise. You can get extra training on buoyancy control. teddy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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