Posted by Wayne on August 15, 2001 at 11:21:03:
In Reply to: to begin your diving career ... posted by CalAbDiver on August 15, 2001 at 08:16:18:
You said:
"your OW1 C-card is nothing more than an air card and the credentials to follow a divemaster or A/I on a resort tour dive. dont kid yourself. or else youre gonna die, or kill somebody. "
While I think everybody should hire (and tip) divemasters, I think you are worng in what you say. I suspect you misread his post and think he has a resort diver certification. He clearly said he has an openwater card -- not the SCUBA DIVER card which is the PADI card that has a restriction that requires DM, AI or above as a buddy.
As an open water diver newbie he should limit is dives in depth and difficulty, I have said before that it woudl be a good idea to dive with locals at the start to get oriented as well. Hiring a divemaster for a "discover local diving" experience (comes with a sticker! LOL) is a good thing, but not necessary.
I still think my suggestion of hanging out with Rich, Ting, and the gang from South Coast Divers for a Saturday morning or two would be great idea. And the only reason I say this is such a great idea for this newbie is that he did his O/W dives in Hawaii rather than locally. He grew up by our beaches here in so cal, so he si aware of water temps and all that. I thought he could benefit from doing some local dives with some experienced folks to get a feel for how we do it here. This would get him up to speed much faster.
Wayne