Frustrated Divemaster

[Spiderfish]

I'm a Divemaster. I have my Insurance and I'm starting to lose steam.

I got certified in Ft. Lauderdale, FL and I dove with the guys from ProDive just about everyday for a month and a half.

I came away with a ton of certifications, great diving experiences, and some pretty cool memories and stories.

I came back to my home town in Pensacola, FL and I'm just bummed out.

I want nothing more than to work as a Diver, but the problem is that I'm having a huge dry spell and it just plain sucks.

I was thinking that I could work as a DM until I get enough dives to meet my prereqs for Instructor. I can't relocate until my wife graduates in Dec 08.

I'm contemplating setting aside my dreams of becoming a Dive professional full time and picking something else up until we can relocate to a place where I can dive year round.

I'm not familiar with how much diving goes on around here when the season is in full swing, so maybe this summer will refuel me.

Anyway, any insight, advice, or words of encouragement would be great.

[Linda]

Poor soul! You sure got my compassion! I completly understand the feeling since my ears been messing with me for 3 months so I've been unable to dive. Really annoying when I got the ocean 1,5 h drive away and my buddies report good viz, a lot of nice things to see that only com up during winter and cocktaildivers doing their first winterdive (some surpriced sceems was reported *L*) Hope you soon find someone to dive with!

[Jon]

I'm sorry, but your going to have to explain something to me. If you live in Florida, why can't you dive year round? I've dove down there in December and have plenty of friends who travel down there in the winter to do some "warm" water diving- or at least diving that doesn't require a chainsaw to cut through the ice.

I have a feeling that there is plenty of diving to be done if you search it out. I have found some great divng spots in places that i would have never guessed had I not checked it out for myself- like in the mountains of Idaho for example.

Jon

[Spiderfish]

I could dive year round no problem.

My concern is WORKING year round as a dive master, and later an Instructor.

I guess I just need to step up and start diving on my own more often until I can get enough dives to meet the prereqs for my Instructor's cert.

I've talked to alot of divers in the area, but the majority of them are more like glorified underwater fisherman than divers. I don't really enjoy spear fishing.

I'm really close to Alabama and I tend to think of these guys as underwater Deer hunters.

It's just a really different atmosphere than it was in Ft. Lauderdale.

I think that this will be the first summer since the Oriskany has been sunk so maybe as it gets warmer I'll start getting some more phone calls.

I guess I should just try to find a job that I can do when no one needs a DM or Instructor.

[Spiderfish]

Oh yeah I left out my first experience as a Divemaster which really bummed me out.

There's only 3 dive shops in my immediately surrounding area (withing 30-40 mins drive). The first shop I went to seemed great. The guy that runs the shop talked to me about being a Divemaster for over 4 hours in one sitting.

He talked about how he'd send me to get certified to service regulators and things of that nature. He also talked me into buying a dive package with the shop. I dove with their captain and the divemaster that he was working with and both of them gave me their seals of approval.

Let me back track a second. I was in constant email contact with the guy that runs that shop for a solid few months before I moved here and then went to the shop in person. He emailed me constantly.

I felt like a nuisance everytime I called the shop after that, which was strange because I thought I had a job. I finally get to help out one of the instructors and I'm really excited. During introductions I introduce my self as the divemaster with the class and let the students know that I'll be there to help out anyway that I can.

After 3 straight days of the class, the instuctor informs me that I'm "auditing" the class.

I was shaken and really disapointed. I felt cheated.

Anyway, after the class finished I haven't heard from the guy who runs the shop or the instructor. It's been a few months since then I feel lied to and cheated.

As for the other 2 shops in the area, one is an SSI shop and the lady that runs that one says she wouldn't work with me unless I got SSI certified as I'm PADI. The other shop's captain said he could use me everyday this summer when the season starts. We'll see.

[Kars]

Well having such a stong passion is a curse and a blessing

I'm sure you'll find a way and learn the the diving business like any is very compeditive, monopolies and ego's run the show. I hope you remain loyal to your heart instead of selling out to the 'shark like behaviour'.

Perhabs consider finding your own spot? To have some more security consider a diversified busines of for instance: a motel, shop, divingschool, an fishing boat trips? There are many bordering oppertunities. Perhabs you envision a nice family business?

Perhabs you even may want to venture off into freediving? It may give you an edge over the regular diving schools, providing people with a special experience called freediving.

Best of luck!

Kars

[Jon]

You only need 60 dives to be a Padi instructor these days so I would think you would have had those logged by now.

If you head east a bit you could start out taking some cave diving courses, if your not into the spearing thing but still want to dive year round.

Don't expect to get rich in this buisness, but you can have a lot of fun. Sorry to hear about you r experience with that one shop, but there are ALL types in this buisness, as there is in any business. With a bit more digging I'm sure you'll find somewhere to work if your willing to drive a bit.

Good luck,

Jon

[Spiderfish]

Originally Posted by Jon

You only need 60 dives to be a Padi instructor these days so I would think you would have had those logged by now.

If you head east a bit you could start out taking some cave diving courses, if your not into the spearing thing but still want to dive year round.

Don't expect to get rich in this buisness, but you can have a lot of fun. Sorry to hear about you r experience with that one shop, but there are ALL types in this buisness, as there is in any business. With a bit more digging I'm sure you'll find somewhere to work if your willing to drive a bit.

Good luck,

Jon

Are you sure it's 60 dives? I was told it was 100 logged dives. I may all ready have enough. I'm off to check up on that.

And thanks.

[Spiderfish]

Holy crap! I all ready have over the amount of dives I need to start an instructor course. YES!!

Jon, you are the man. Thanks again for bringing this to my attention. If I can find a class that starts soon, I can have my Instructor's cert before the season starts up in earnest here.

[spider55]

spiderfish, you needed 60 to finish divemaster ( presently in process myself), you can start your instructor class, but you are correct when you indicated you needed 100 to complete instructor

spider55

[Spiderfish]

Originally Posted by spider55

spiderfish, you needed 60 to finish divemaster ( presently in process myself), you can start your instructor class, but you are correct when you indicated you needed 100 to complete instructor

spider55

Ouch. That sucks. I got really excited. Oh well.

[sitdown248]

well, that sucks. keep trying, diving's worth it.

[Spiderfish]

I love diving. The only catch is that I'm having a really hard time finding a way to get paid to do it.

I have tons of C-cards that are worth squat insofar as how much they mean towards getting me a diving job.

Everytime I go to a shop to try to get a job as a Divemaster they always end up trying to sell me a dive package or a class. I have just about every certification that PADI offers below Instructor.

I think I just live in an area that has a small diving community. The jobs that are here are all taken by people who have been here for years and they aren't about to come off them.

I even talked to a NAUI Instructor that said he'd wave the 100 dives prereq in lieu of my "equivalent diving experience". As stoked as I am about trying to find a full time job as a Dive professional, I'm not too keen about cutting corners and taking short cuts. I told him I'd think about it, but I'm not going to compromise my morals or self respect. I'll just keep on keepin' on until I get my 100 dives. I guess it'd be alot easier if I could find someone that could I could dive with on a regular basis.

[sitdown248]

why don't you just go diving and get the 100 dives. if you've reached divemaster you have over 60 so you're not that far away. i live in michigan and obviously i don't dive in the winter and i am still racking up dives fairly quickly.

[Spiderfish]

Originally Posted by sitdown248

why don't you just go diving and get the 100 dives. if you've reached divemaster you have over 60 so you're not that far away. i live in michigan and obviously i don't dive in the winter and i am still racking up dives fairly quickly.

My wife is pregnant and can't dive with me and all my friends and close family are holding their damn breathes until I can get my Instructor's cert so I can certify them. Basically, I have no one to dive with. Sure I could fork out $80 to go out with a local shop and get 2 dives in but that's just too pricey for me. I found out today that even if I had my Instructor's cert that I wouldn't be able to get a job at any of the shops because they can't fit anymore Instructors into their rotation.

That would leave me in a position where I would have to compete with the local shops and that just isn't going to happen.