| I have a huge problem with how people gauge risks from scuba diving. This stems from the fact that IMHO must divers are horribly under trained and under practiced for what they are doing and usually are not following best safety practices. For those that are, I think diver is significantly less dangerous than other accepted activities (in fact, I’d be willing to bet that my drive to the dive is far higher risk than my dive). Some examples of best practices that are not widely followed: 1. never rely on a dive buddy for air redundancy. If you are diving deeper (or longer) than you can perform a free emergency ascent safely, then you should have a redundant air source. “Two is one and one is none”. You might think that you can rely on your buddy, but unless they are literally within arms reach at all times, they are not a reliable redundancy source. 2. Skills must be practiced. When was the last time you shot a lift bag, did a valve drill, unplugged your inflator hose, manually inflated your BCD/wing, doffed your mask and donned your back up mask? 3. Do you know how to reliably navigate? How do you get back to the boat? Do you know how to safely run a reel without getting tangled up and while minimizing risk to the reel line? How about in 0 vis? 4. I love my computers but I plan out every dive manually and have a rough idea of what to do if both my computers fail. You do have redundant computers right? And you know how to use them right? I did almost 100 dives before I got my first computer. I think this is a good path since I have a solid understanding of what to expect from my computers. 5. Entry level training generally
skips a lot of these safety tools and skills. I once dove at a Padi resort and brought a pony bottle with me. They dive operator didn’t even know what a pony bottle was. Do you think they are actually teaching about redundant air supply? I’m certain that having all the right tools in your toolbox, practicing how to operate them and being mindful about how to use them significantly reduces risk. I think diving is very dangerous for un(der)trained divers and I think the dive industry does a disservice by not portraying these risks and the need for more training/skills practice. Frustratingly, my insurance says I’m more of a liability because I dive to 53m regularly (at least before kids) than the yahoo who only dives once or twice on vacation every few years to 20m. I dive to 53m with focused planning, training, and the right equipment explicitly so that I reduce risks. And I apply those same techniques to my shallower dives. |