25 replies to this topic

[WreckWench]

Kamala is the resident "compressor" on dive trips. She goes down with a half full tank and comes back up with a full one.

Well, almost!

The other Brad was mentioning something about hot air...........

Nope...just 'hot'!!

[shadragon]

The other Brad was mentioning something about hot air...........

The other Brad likes to live dangerously.

A good course with a bad instructor is going to be a bad course. The quality of the Instructor is key and I suggest you look at a combo of the course and the Instructor before making a decision.

Luckily, I had a good one and my AOW was truly memorable. IMHO taking any AOW course from any agency is better than just taking OW alone.

My 2 psi

[WreckWench]

As an aside...I took my aow within 3 dives of my ow. Why? Because I was scared shitless to go diving without an instructor and it was the easiest way to continue diving under instruction. (Think grassroots rent-a-buddy here only it didn't exist yet). Did I even pass it the first time? Hell no...but then I didn't quit either and several attempts later I legitimately passed it.

After diving with you, it's hard to believe you ever had trouble with anything diving related. You are like a fish now and could probably do 3 dives on one tank.

Thank you sweetie...in time anyone can do anything they set their mind too!

In my case it took 4 attempts to pass ow and I also had to get over being claustrophobic, unable to swim, having been a near drowning victim 3 times including a full resuscitation, blind and a few 'other' things not conducive to diving.

That is why I can sense a problem before a diver has it...I've been there...done that.

But the best part of diving is...you are not competing against anyone and if you stick with it...you will succeed!

p.s. To test your theory I carried a sling bottle for safety but I have done 3 dives on 1 tank. LOL!

[Rocky_B]

Just my opinion and experience....I did my OW cert with a very "nice" and "colorful" LDS. I watched someone who had no business getting their card without further training than a man in the moon. My training since that 3 Stooges show has been with OTW Wench, Bill. He has taken me from AOW to Trimix and I feel like I got more than just training and certification but invaluable knowledge to go along with it. Not only have I gotten the training dives but fun dives along with him that has helped in my advanced diving just by watching his motions and technique underwater. I have also had a very good dive buddy that I met years ago at OTW's shop. Hopefully I will find the same quality friends and divers in my move to Houston. Recent employment requires me to relocate to Houston and I'm really looking forward to it. Move date is Feb 8th. I really never noticed whether Bill was SSI, SDI, PADI, etc because of the sweat he makes you put into your training, but I really looked forward to the C card coming in the mail.

[PilotDiverBrad]

Just my opinion and experience....I did my OW cert with a very "nice" and "colorful" LDS. I watched someone who had no business getting their card without further training than a man in the moon. My training since that 3 Stooges show has been with OTW Wench, Bill. He has taken me from AOW to Trimix and I feel like I got more than just training and certification but invaluable knowledge to go along with it. Not only have I gotten the training dives but fun dives along with him that has helped in my advanced diving just by watching his motions and technique underwater. I have also had a very good dive buddy that I met years ago at OTW's shop. Hopefully I will find the same quality friends and divers in my move to Houston. Recent employment requires me to relocate to Houston and I'm really looking forward to it. Move date is Feb 8th. I really never noticed whether Bill was SSI, SDI, PADI, etc because of the sweat he makes you put into your training, but I really looked forward to the C card coming in the mail.

Saw something similar while doing the Enriched Air Class. 4 of the students came in without doing the beforehand course work or exercises. In the end they got certified same as me. I made a comment after the fact to the instructor that at my place of work if we came in unprepared for the course we'd get sent home. The scary part in my mind was that they had done no dives since certification over a year ago and were going on a vacation in Jan or Feb for a week of diving.

[Rocky_B]

Just my opinion and experience....I did my OW cert with a very "nice" and "colorful" LDS. I watched someone who had no business getting their card without further training than a man in the moon. My training since that 3 Stooges show has been with OTW Wench, Bill. He has taken me from AOW to Trimix and I feel like I got more than just training and certification but invaluable knowledge to go along with it. Not only have I gotten the training dives but fun dives along with him that has helped in my advanced diving just by watching his motions and technique underwater. I have also had a very good dive buddy that I met years ago at OTW's shop. Hopefully I will find the same quality friends and divers in my move to Houston. Recent employment requires me to relocate to Houston and I'm really looking forward to it. Move date is Feb 8th. I really never noticed whether Bill was SSI, SDI, PADI, etc because of the sweat he makes you put into your training, but I really looked forward to the C card coming in the mail.

Saw something similar while doing the Enriched Air Class. 4 of the students came in without doing the beforehand course work or exercises. In the end they got certified same as me. I made a comment after the fact to the instructor that at my place of work if we came in unprepared for the course we'd get sent home. The scary part in my mind was that they had done no dives since certification over a year ago and were going on a vacation in Jan or Feb for a week of diving.

I made a mistake on the previous that my wife would kill me for doing. I meant valuable, not invaluable, knowledge. Anyone up for diving in the Houston area, please be sure and send up a marker so I can find you.

[WreckWench]

Anyone up for diving in the Houston area, please be sure and send up a marker so I can find you.

Hey darling...check out THIS THREAD HERE!! You'll find several members have already sent up a 'marker' for ya!

[drbill]

I'm entering this thread a bit late. I didn't do my AOW class until I had been diving 40 years and only did it because many in the international dive op community did not recognize my Los Angeles County c-card (which already certified me for deep diving, and was the source for the training given to many of the founding group for PADI, etc.). I went with PADI simply because I was only validating the fact that I could already do all the skills taught and because it was the most readily recognized agency internationally. The funny thing is that the PADI instructor I did my AOW with on the Great Barrier Reef not only recognized my LAC card, but called it a "museum piece."

The important thing IMHO is to find an instructor you feel comfortable with. Since you already have the skills level for AOW, you shouldn't have much problem there. Kamala's offer sounds mighty good. The other consideration is to ensure that whatever agency you choose, it is one that is readily recognized by dive ops internationally if you plan to do much more travel.

[WreckWench]

the real improvement in my diving came from doing the rent-a-buddy program with SingleDivers.com

Thank you darling...the rent-a-buddy/mentor program was created to help refine what you know and really hone in on what you need to do...throw out what you are doing that is not working for you and perhaps add a few things you did not know. I essentially created the rent-a-buddy due to my fear of diving/water/drowning that I entered the sport with. After doing my AOW within 3 dives of my OW...I then dove my next 100 dives with nothing less than a DM or Instructor. That way I could focus on me and not worry about being a good dive buddy since I knew they could take care of themselves...and well me for that matter since they were pros and I was not. I also learned to mimic them...some gave suggestions but most just dove with me. In the course of watching sooooooooo many pros dive...I learned to dive better and filter out what didn't work and what did. But since I tried it all....it allows me to see what divers are doing and how they can do it better. Hence the creation of the rent-a-buddy program.

I am so glad you found so much value to it! That makes me feel great!!! kamala

[drifter]

Kamala,

I would like to echo what you just said. I was able to refine my skills dramatically simply by watching other divers while diving. It was even more revealing when we were watching a video while on the trip to Cozumel and I saw myself diving after watching other GOOD divers and saying to myself "I LOOK like a beginner when I'm diving" It really made me aware of the things I was doing that needed to be improved. (I still have a long way to go, but that one week really helped me a lot)

Scott

[WreckWench]

Kamala,

I would like to echo what you just said. I was able to refine my skills dramatically simply by watching other divers while diving. It was even more revealing when we were watching a video while on the trip to Cozumel and I saw myself diving after watching other GOOD divers and saying to myself "I LOOK like a beginner when I'm diving" It really made me aware of the things I was doing that needed to be improved. (I still have a long way to go, but that one week really helped me a lot)

Scott

Hee! Hee! The rent-a-buddy program is sort of like a built in video camera...only I'm the camera!

But it does help and it helps to have a trained eye watching YOU for what YOU are doing and not just talking generics but SPECIFICS TO YOU!

Well I think YOU get the picture!