Posted 21 December 2004 - 08:27 PM
Well, I think everyone is aware that PADI is practically everywhere, while YMCA is much smaller. It's likely that there is no YMCA instructor in her area. While the YMCA of the USA encourages YMCAs to offer Y SCUBA when they offer SCUBA, there are often not enough Y instructors to go around.
Y does offer referrals for open water training. The check out instructor must be either a YMCA Instructor or a Universal Referral Instructor. Unlike in the PADI system, the teaching instructor (not the check out instructor) issues the certification.
Y requires 5 dives - 4 SCUBA and one skin. Required (instructor is required to evaluate the student) SCUBA skills are:
Buoyancy Control, entries, exits, dive planning, navigation, surface snorkeling, snorkel clearing, regulator clearing, regulator recovery, controlled ascents and descents, underwater swimming (evaluate technique - kicking and no swimming with hands), buddy system techniques, body positioning (trim), mask clearing, octopus breathing, (buddy breathing is optional), weight belt removal & replace at the surface, SCUBA system removal & replace (no assistance allowed to pass), ESA, communications (evaluate use of hand signals) and environmental awareness.
Skin diving skills:
Must dive to 9 feet or deeper.
Of course, there are additional restrictions found in most (all?) agencies standards - no night dives, 3 max dives per day, max 60 feet (for all 4 dives - no 40 ft restriction on the first 2), at least 15 minutes, no deco, no penetrations, etc.
Usually, I tell my students what skills we'll be working during a particular dive (of course you should constantly evaluate such skills as underwater swimming, buoyancy control, trim, etc.), then we go have fun with me throwing a skill at them from time to time as we swim around enjoying the dive. I never have my students kneel in the sand anymore, I abandoned that practice years ago, although Y standards do allow it and I suspect most Y instructors still do it. I think this results in a more enjoyable dive for my students and I know it's more fun for me.
No single raindrop believes it is responsible for the flood.
DSSW,
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