Posted by Jusfer aka Eins on August 19, 2000 at 20:04:12:
In Reply to: Re: Several lessons to learn posted by Joseph H. Catmull on August 19, 2000 at 14:57:01:
Thanks for the comments, Joseph. You are perfectly right that ditching weight and inflating BC is the last resort--in an open water dive. Not at the beach in heavy surf. If you bob, you get pounded and eventually drown. You want to dive under the breakers to survive! Of course, this requires that you have air to breathe.
Remember, waves will only break when it gets too shallow for them to roll. That means, there is ground beneath you to stop a descent. Being heavy gives you a chance to 'crawl' underwater or swim/crawl under the breaking waves.
J1