Going Scuba Diving on Your Vacation? Helpful Hints They Don't Tell You About in Class (part 1)

As a veteran Scuba diver, dive master and dive instructor, I have witnessed countless diving incidents where a little preparation could have prevented an unsafe or uncomfortable situation for the (certified) divers involved. Unfortunately, most open-water certification classes have neither the time nor the resources to cover every single situation a diver may face.  I have also seen way too many certified divers get into trouble simply because they were afraid of "looking stupid" by asking questions.

Sadly, I have also heard many certified divers decide after a few dives that Scuba just isn't for them. These poor souls spent time and big bucks to become certified and equip themselves, went on their first dive vacation and had a rotten time due to stress, equipment failure, poor conditions, etc. 

If any of the above describes you, don't Ebay all that Scuba gear just yet..

When I first learned how to Scuba dive in 1986, I was in the Navy. My instructor was a tough, extremely macho Navy SEAL. His techniques for teaching were none you would experience as a civilian; he had very strict high standards, was very hard on the class and did not hesitate to fail 12 students out of the 20 in our class. The course was 3 months long, with four 2-hour classes per week and 25 shore and boat dives until he deemed the remaining 8 of us competent enough to be certified as Open Water Scuba divers. Although this may seem like overkill compared with today's methods, that SEAL gave me an invaluable lesson: Scuba diving is serious business. If you're not 100% sure of what you're doing, you're asking for trouble. "Only a**holes think they know everything. If you're not sure or have a question, you ask. If you don't and get into trouble, you're outta my class. Or dead." Bless you, Bill!