#3720
tstormdiver - 6/17/2015 5:12 AM
Unfortunately Bill, the threat of lawsuits is a very real reality in today’s world. Why do you think you have to fill out so much paper work whenever you dive with any operation (unless a standing waiver has been signed). Why do you think it stops an honest discussion? I opened this thread to conduct just that type of discussion.

Believe it or not I totally get why grandpa wants to take his kids diving in a pool. Most divers are excited about the sport & want to share it. Nut the issue is that most regular divers are not aware of the "what if’s" that could potentially occur. It is rare, but possible that if someone breathing compressed gas, freaked out, held their breath & popped up to the surface holding their breath, they could experience a lung overexpansion injury in only 3 ft (1m) water. Sorry, but that is simple gas laws & human respiratory physiology. This can cause serious injury or even worse.

Case in point, I had an 11 yr old boy in a recent class. He had been doing very well & was solid in his skills. On the last night, while clearing his mask, he didn’t tuck his chin while drawing a breath to complete clearing his mask. As a result, he took a big snoot of water. I saw his eyes go wide & instantly grabbed his BC,... I knew what was going on. He bolted for the surface & spit out his regulator (holding his breath). I Took his regulator, pushing the purge button , giving it back to him, he took it. We made a slow,controlled ascent to the surface. He coughed a few times to clear his air way,.. settled down & we dropped back down a couple minutes later & he had no further issues. It was a text book panic. Do most regular OW divers know how to handle such a situation or detect stress in the novice diver? A panic attack can be VERY violent. I’ve been punched, kicked, shoved, had my mask ripped off, regulator ripped out. Can any regular Open Water diver handle all that at 1 time? No, instructors & professionals are not magical beings with super powers, but we have been (or should be) well trained to handle such situations.

Would you trust someone (even your own parent) who wants to do something good, but has not kept up his own skills, using vintage equipment (that in our case was not functioning properly) to take your own children into a an environment that, while fun, is not a human’s normal environment? I am not saying there are not OW divers that could teach others to dive, but under the circumstances,... would you be willing to risk the safety of your 5, 7 & 8 yr old children?