Posted by John Walker on July 05, 2000 at 23:16:28:
In Reply to: Re: Buddy Diving - Is three a crowd ? posted by kelphead on July 05, 2000 at 16:29:37:
It has been long known in Advance diving a three person dive team is OPTIMAL. Thoughs who have trouble with it usually have little experience in the team concept. The reason three divers in a TEAM is OPTIMAL is that there are three brains, three sets of eyes, three total gas(or air)supplies, three sets of signaling devices, propelsion devises, ect, ect.
Quite often a single diver assisting another troubled diver (possibly in a two person team) has often proven to not be effective enough to successfully assist or rescue a toubled diver.
Furthermore, Advanced divers should have learned about the rule of thirds as far as gas supply is concerned. In reality the rule of thirds goes far beyond just the gas supply. This concept, even at its most juvenile levels, requires the understanding of the team concept. A dive team should develop the practices of team diving to the degree it become simalar to tactical diving (I'll cover you, you cover me methology). Once this has been practiced to the point of a transitional action, it is no longer a simple inconvinience.
On the other hand a four man team is to big. The fourth man is beyond the scope of nessesary redundancy. The term redundancy but not redictulous comes to mind. The fourth man is not required for the safe rule of thirds and therefor becomes a hazard.
If the thought of spliting a four man team into two, two man teams is the logic, well this is not a four man team. It is two, two man teams. These two teams are obviously not working together. If they where than they would be a four man team.
In the past, solo diving has gained much publicity in our community. For the most part I beleive that the term SOLO DIVER has been mistaken from a diver who is self sufficient to a diver who is diving alone. If you where to anolize the last 5 or 10 years of diving fatalities you can see that if the majority of these dead divers would still be diving with us if only their TEAM mates would have stuck with them.
I can peronally say that the last four fatalities in our local waters have PROVEN that.
JW