Posted by Eins on September 25, 2000 at 13:37:46:
The solo diving debate has gone on for a while now. It has brought priceless awareness of a problem and at the same time it suffered from heated defenses of polar points of view.
While it is not denied that someone near by to help in case of an emergency can save a life, it has also been proven time and again that the mere fact of being part of a buddy team is not enough. Just as the mere fact that someone dives intently solo is not a death sentence.
After following the lively discussions and understanding both sides, IMHO what it boils down to is the diver’s attitude. Some have used the term “complacency” to describe a state where one may feel invincible. This kind of attitude is what turns problems into fatalities.
With the confidence of being fit to solo dive, for some divers happens to come the feeling of being invincible. If one is so over-confident, s/he may be better advised to think again. Unfortunately, we seem to find more over-confident solo divers amongst us than such buddy divers, which may be one reason for solo dives causing more deaths than other forms.
But just as over-confident is the buddy diver who believes that the mere fact that he is not diving solo is going to save his life if need be. That’s also an attitude of invincibility, and recent statistics prove that just as fatal.
Nobody likes to be told that his favorite form of diving is now expelled, illegal, ousted, whatever. It is more effective to fight the cause: complacency.
I read this somewhere else: “Stay alert! Stay alive!” and I would like to see this attitude be adopted for diving at all times. Let us not condemn a form of diving per se, but the attitude that’s behind most of the fatalities, not only in this sport. Instructors, don’t wait for your agency demanding that this point be stressed.
Eins
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