First Person SWB

[blaiz]

I thought long and hard on wether or not I should post this. I have decided to post this for a couple of reasons. One, to show the importance of the 1 up 1 down rule, IMHO the most important rule, and two, it was my first video with my new GoPro :lol: . Now whether the later was a coincidence... I don't think so.

My younger brother has been getting into diving recently and due to the fact that he is a pro surfer and has grown up in Hawaii he is very comfortable in the water. Though this is a blessing it is also a curse as I think he tends to feel overconfident and "invincible," just like I did while starting out. I have not had many opportunities to dive with him but the more I talk to him over the phone the more I realize he had been practicing some bad dive habits. These habits included diving alone, diving with buddies who "take off" during the begining of the dives, pushing depths (with enexperienced divers) and so on. I could talk about safety until I was blue in the face but it never seemed to hit home.

So, the good thing that came from this experience is that he got to see a SWB first hand, to someone he respects (atleast I think), and see the buddy system in perfect form. I hope this experience hit home 8)

Keep in mind, I am not a newbie. I have been comfortable diving deep for a long time and take safety very seriously. This day was nothing special. I was diving well within my limits, and on top of that I felt really good. It was a humbling experience all the same, as it really shows that these things can happen very unexpectedly.

So a little history behind this dive. It was later in the afternoon, I had had plenty of rest all day. Ate a healthy lunch and stayed hydrated. I even drank my "magic potion" (kambucha) a while before the dive. We hit one of my spots and found the water to be a little rough and a little murky. I made a few drops on the way out but since it was later in the afternoon and time was running short I dont think I gave my self ample time to warm up and rushed out to our grounds that tend to hold nice uku. I was feeling awesome, I was hitting some pretty good bottom times and surfacing with plenty of air in the tank. What I didn't realize was that I was taxing myself a little too quickly. When we reached the grounds we began to palu and I breathed up for a drop. Made the drop, realized we had drifted a little off point so it was a bit deeper than I anticipated. I hit the bottom and quickly noticed a small uku (6-8lbs) eating the falling palu. After a little time I headed back to the surface. Apon surfacing I felt a little light headed, I brushed it off thinking I hadn't given my self enough time to breathe up after the swim, that drop was about 20 seconds shorter than my previous one.

I decided to do a nice long, proper breath up, and spend the time watching my partner and younger brother as they made there drops ONE at a time. This was the deepest my brother had been to this point so he was only heading down 50ft or so into the chum line and hanging for a bit and coming back up. I made sure that he wasn't pushing himself too hard and kept a close eye on him.

After about 10 minutes of relaxing on the surface and watching the other two I decided to get ready for a drop. Did my breathe up and started my decent. I hit the bottom, dusted, and took a long shot on an uku. The drop was quite a bit shorter than my 2 previous drops and I let the reel take the fight out of the fish so the trip to the surface should have been a cake walk. About 2/3 of the way up however, my contractions became pretty severe and if it wasn't for the music you can actually hear them in the video. Ill let you watch the rest.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNleMlmIEUU]YouTube - Uku on GoPro[/ame]

Dive Safe!

 

[Unclejake]

It is you that is coming to NZ in November isn't it Blaiz?

 

[Anders]

Thanks for sharing Blaiz, definitely a reminder for me to watch out for my buddy and have him watch me.
And a great shot on that uku, I never even saw it...

 

[blaiz]

It is you that is coming to NZ in November isn't it Blaiz?

Yeah, its me, does this mean I can't dive with you guys anymore?

In all seriousness, Im really excited about getting down there, and more so the prospect of not having to go so deep to get quality fish:blackeye

 

[Unclejake]

Oh, I think you can still come dive with us. We have a spare seat on our RIB for you already.

I recall from your posts on fishing.net.nz that you have been here before, so perhaps you will not be surprised with the slightly reduced visibility we enjoy (my recollection could be incorrect).

The buddy system is not practical is poor viz, so we normally dive quite conservatively if it is dirty.

Right now the south coast of Wellington offers about 7 feet, but it will clear up soon.

 

[foxfish]

Good decision to post blaiz, how did you feel on the way back home?

 

[Anders]

The buddy system is not practical is poor viz, so we normally dive quite conservatively if it is dirty.

Where I dive the visibility can be quite bad sometimes too, but you can still keep an eye on your buddy when he surfaces and for how long he's been under. In this case the diver blacked out while on the surface and therefore the buddy system would have worked just as if the visibility had been the equivalent of pea soup. I also think it's a good idea to use a float line attached to your weight belt when diving in bad visibility, that way you buddy can pull you up if you're over you normal dive time..

 

[Unclejake]

. I also think it's a good idea to use a float line attached to your weight belt when diving in bad visibility, that way you buddy can pull you up if you're over you normal dive time..

Whilst I see the merit in this plan, I would suggest that is also a good way to drown yourself (caught on a rock etc.)

Perhaps B/Os are more common in the way people outside of New Zealand dive, and I do not wish to sound foolhardy, but for us; in a normal day's spearfishing or abalone gathering it is not realistic to be able to watch your buddy or always be less than 15 meters of where they surface (if the water is murky).

For these reasons we dive conservatively. It is much better than not diving at all

Regards,
UJ

 

[Anders]

Diving conservatively is always a good idea and it will decrease the risk of blacking out, but it does not remove the risk completely. As Blaiz said in his post, his dive was well within his capability and shorter than his previous dives. I'm just saying that the float line can save your life when your buddy can't see you. It is a pain when your line gets stuck, but that's when you drop your belt. Very simple and very efficient.

 

[Unclejake]

I guess one would be a great deal more inclined to drop their belt if they knew it was attached to a float and line. Your idea grows on me.

For clarity: I expect most NZ spearfisherpersons are working 'alone' in depths less than 15 meters and have dive times less than 1m20s

 

[Unclejake]

Oh, and as Blaiz has already suggested, it is possible that three significant triggers for a B/O are:

An audience
A new Apnea Dive Watch
Someone with a video camera and you are the star


Lol

 

[Anders]

I guess one would be a great deal more inclined to drop their belt if they knew it was attached to a float and line. Your idea grows on me.

For clarity: I expect most NZ spearfisherpersons are working 'alone' in depths less than 15 meters and have dive times less than 1m20s

That's the situation in Norway as well, at least many places where poor visibility is common. A good float line system that attach both your gun and belt to the float line and at the same time works as a stringer is very handy indeed. Also, if set up correctly, you can easily unhook the float line from your belt if you shoot a decent size fish (not good for big game) or if your line gets stuck well before you need to ascend fast. You can even attach the belt back onto the line on the way up and have it sliding, so that if you have to surface quickly you can drop your belt without fear of loosing it. Neat system, it works well.

 

[blaiz]

Oh, and as Blaiz has already suggested, it is possible that three significant triggers for a B/O are:

An audience
A new Apnea Dive Watch
Someone with a video camera and you are the star


Lol

Not sure I follow you on this one...? I've had the dive computer for a while now and to be honest I don't really ever look at it. Especially not while on a drop. I like to use my bodies signals as apposed what my watch is telling me. I mainly use the watch to determine how my dive went overall.

The float line attached to the belt sounds good in theory but Im not sure I would ever dive like that. For one, even attached to your gun it always seems to tangle up in my feet or get wrapped up on something, two I have been ran over by boats, and have had friends guns ripped out of their hands due to a float line getting sucked up in a prop... would not want to be attached to the end of that!

I understand what UncleJake is saying about murky water. Even when our vis gets bad... say 10m? if there is any current at all, once you loose sight of your partner its very easy to drift off where you thought you saw him/her drop. This is where a hardline to your gun would come in handy though... atleast you can stay near the float.

And to answer your question foxfish, I felt fine after the incident. I didnt make anymore drops but I felt pretty normal. And no more taxed than I usually feel after a dive.

 

[Unclejake]

The audience and watch reference was not directed at you whatsoever Blaiz, but I do think guys try to 'out dive' their new watch for a while - and that can be dangerous. I kept trying to record longer dives when I first got a D4. I grew out of it after a month or so.

it was my first video with my new GoPro :lol: . Now whether the later was a coincidence... I don't think so.

I took from your initial post that you thought your new video camera may have contributed to your brief and well managed B/O. Perhaps due to additional drag?

I know this dive was a short one for you, but most of the rest of us are going to try a bit harder if we think we are on film for the first few times.

Your video and message is a solid reminder to us all. Thanks heaps.

 

[Mullins]

Blaiz, when you did the extra-long breathup in preparation for that last dive, is there a chance you could have overbreathed a little? Even if it was your normal breathing pattern, the longer duration could have pushed you further into hypocapnea than you'd normally go. Very easy to do, especially if you've had a bad dive and feel like you need to be 'more prepared' for the next one.

Like Jase says, buddy system is usually a good idea but in some conditions it is no use at all, in which case you have to manage your own safety. It's often like that here in Wellington.

 

[blaiz]

Blaiz, when you did the extra-long breathup in preparation for that last dive, is there a chance you could have overbreathed a little? Even if it was your normal breathing pattern, the longer duration could have pushed you further into hypocapnea than you'd normally go. Very easy to do, especially if you've had a bad dive and feel like you need to be 'more prepared' for the next one.

Like Jase says, buddy system is usually a good idea but in some conditions it is no use at all, in which case you have to manage your own safety. It's often like that here in Wellington.

I suppose its a possibility but during my surface intervals, between my recovery and breathe up its just normal breathing, slow, relaxed belly breathing. No quick inhales or exhales and not overly deep breathing. I dont start my "breath up" until a few moments before my actual drop. We often go 10-12 minutes or more in between drops anyways, especially while diving with more than 2 people.

What I meant by "extra long breathe up," and I probably should have worded that differently, was in comparison to the last one which was at the end of a decent swim, I didn't take as much time to relax as I thought I should have.

 

[blaiz]

The audience and watch reference was not directed at you whatsoever Blaiz, but I do think guys try to 'out dive' their new watch for a while - and that can be dangerous. I kept trying to record longer dives when I first got a D4. I grew out of it after a month or so.



I took from your initial post that you thought your new video camera may have contributed to your brief and well managed B/O. Perhaps due to additional drag?

I know this dive was a short one for you, but most of the rest of us are going to try a bit harder if we think we are on film for the first few times.

Your video and message is a solid reminder to us all. Thanks heaps.

I hear you. But surprisingly, other than the slight tightness around my head from the strap I cant even tell the camera is there. They are really small.

BTW is Jake your real name? mine too... blaiz is actually my middle name, most think its because I smoke refer. :friday nope, just too much beer:blackeye

 

[Unclejake]

No mate. My real name is Jason but Jake has long been my nickname so most of my non-diving friends call me Jake. I am rather fond of beer myself. We are going to get along just fine you and I :friday

Bring that Go-pro with you and get some good footage of yellowtail kingfish in the clearer norther waters before you get to Wellington. A big school is mesmerizing