Posted by Marc Hall on December 17, 2001 at 09:42:41:
In Reply to: some thoughts on DIR posted by Tecreational Diver on December 16, 2001 at 19:34:10:
1. GUE did not invent DIR. It was around before
GUE started. Actually George Irvine claims
he invented DIR and George is not associated
with GUE other then being a member as most
anyone can be. He is not a GUE officer or
instructor.
2. The gear portion of the GUE philosophy is
just a small component of the overall picture.
But it is something that is easily discussed
and described on the internet. I compare it
to Underwater Photography and UW photo email
list. The list discussions are almost always
about equipment with an occasional request
by someone to discuss composition, motivation
or some other artistic attribute of UW photo.
3. Anybody can join GUE
(https://www.gue.com/cgi-bin/membership)
and anybody can claim to be DIR even the
most arrogant bully. However I don't think
anybody would find Jarrod Jablonski the
founder of GUE arrogant, confident yes,
arrogant no. The same can be said for all
of the GUE instructors I have met and dealt
with. Just because some arrogant bully
decides to make DIR their religion, give GUE
$29 to join and spend a major part of each day
trashing everyone on net oes not mean that GUE
is an arrogant organization. I spend my time
learning about DIR diving from attending GUE
courses, reading GUE literature, communicating
with GUE instructors and seeking out other
useful literature about diving physiologly and
techniques. I read the items posted on this
bbs for amusement.
4. The DIR equipment philosophy is well thought
out. The positioning of each piece of equipment
is not some arbitrary decision. In part the
SPG is clipped off to left waist D-Ring on a
24" or suitable length hose so that it is
a. always readily available in a known
location.
b. the hose is short enought so that it does
not bow out and increase entanglement
risks.
c. On doubles rigs monitors your left post
regulator which is the most likely to
roll off in an overhead environment.
d. For singles rig sits in the same location
as the doubles rigs so that the transition
to doubles in minimal.
e. When a DIR team is diving each member of
the team knows exactly where the other
members SPG is.
5. DIR gear evolution.
DIR gear configuration is not static and is
evolving. The most recent example I can
think of is the evolution of the argon bottle
placement. DIR Cave divers typically use more
argon per dive and are less concerned about
keyholing themselves then DIR Wreck divers.
The standard DIR argon configuration is a
bottle mounted on the left side of the
doubles rig. A second DIR wreck argon
configuration has been developed with a 6cft
aluminum bottle mounted at the waist between
the left waist D-Ring and the wing. This is
frequently used by West Coast DIR divers on
ocean dives.
6. Training.
GUE has a very high standards for their
instructors and their training. They teach
fundamental skills in all of their courses.
In my own experience with over 2500 dives
and holding NAUI Instructor card 5017 and
PADI Instructor card 8540 I do not believe
that their is any other public organization
that provides training as high quality as
GUE. I have now taken, observed or assisted
in 8 GUE courses (2 Cave 1, 2 Tech 1, 4
Fundamentals) and all have been excellent.
It is very common to hear Instructors of
other agencies to say that the Fundamentals
course was the best course they have ever
taken. You hear it from experienced technical
divers as well.
Marc Hall
svcfish@yahoo.com
www.sdue.org