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How deep?
- Thread starterclogz
- Start date
Thread Status: Hello
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It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
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My first???
I don't know if my memory is that good, but here in No Cal, CW means diving for abalone, see the ab grab thread in U/W Hunting, and it's all CW, except for the way back up, when you hopefully are carrying dinner.
The first dives were in the 70's, about 10-15 feet max, as I was struggling with a suit, weights, fins, a mask that leaked and a snorkel that just kept the ocean in.. and damn, that Ocean's salty! By the end of the season, I was pretty comfortable in my own gear, having said screw the rental stuff, and was doing 20 foot runs of maybe a minute. Nothing to boast about, but fine by me; ya gotta start somewhere and I made it back to the beach every time. And that's the final grade.
I tell new divers that it takes about a year of diving and goofing around with the gear until you catch that one day when the water is nice, the gear fits, the fish are out, the car starts, the bills are paid - everything works. Then on, it's gravy.
Just go at a pace you're comfortable with and relax.
sven
I don't know if my memory is that good, but here in No Cal, CW means diving for abalone, see the ab grab thread in U/W Hunting, and it's all CW, except for the way back up, when you hopefully are carrying dinner.
The first dives were in the 70's, about 10-15 feet max, as I was struggling with a suit, weights, fins, a mask that leaked and a snorkel that just kept the ocean in.. and damn, that Ocean's salty! By the end of the season, I was pretty comfortable in my own gear, having said screw the rental stuff, and was doing 20 foot runs of maybe a minute. Nothing to boast about, but fine by me; ya gotta start somewhere and I made it back to the beach every time. And that's the final grade.
I tell new divers that it takes about a year of diving and goofing around with the gear until you catch that one day when the water is nice, the gear fits, the fish are out, the car starts, the bills are paid - everything works. Then on, it's gravy.
Just go at a pace you're comfortable with and relax.
sven
My first summer of freediving was actually in March, working on a liveaboard dive boat on the west coast of Canada. I was getting sick of the twin steels, and thought "Hell, why don't I just try freediving off the main boat when there's an hour to kill".
I had seen "The Big Blue a few years before that, but somehow it never even dawned on me to try it in cold water (8C). I knew nothing about breathing, but did know some yoga, so that helped. Naturally I was by myself too!
Of course, I didn't even own a wetsuit, just a crushed neo drysuit, and I had scuba fins to go over the big boots. I needed a 30 LB BELT just to get down, even with the suit empty of air, and when I hit 10 metres I would sink FAST! Luckily my ears were good. The deepest I went was about 17 metres, but I'm sure I nearly killed myself a few times, as my scuba fins seemed to not have any effect at all as I turned and kicked like a maniac to get to the surface!:hungover
Once I was out of the water and took the suit off, I would be greeted with hundreds of suit compression marks all over my body that looked like I just came out of a Dominatrix's parlour
:waterwork
I know a few other well known freedivers that have very similar first-time stories....solo, huge weight belts, no knowledge, and near death experiences...LOL. Makes a good argument for education, yes?
Cheers,
Erik Y.
I had seen "The Big Blue a few years before that, but somehow it never even dawned on me to try it in cold water (8C). I knew nothing about breathing, but did know some yoga, so that helped. Naturally I was by myself too!
Of course, I didn't even own a wetsuit, just a crushed neo drysuit, and I had scuba fins to go over the big boots. I needed a 30 LB BELT just to get down, even with the suit empty of air, and when I hit 10 metres I would sink FAST! Luckily my ears were good. The deepest I went was about 17 metres, but I'm sure I nearly killed myself a few times, as my scuba fins seemed to not have any effect at all as I turned and kicked like a maniac to get to the surface!:hungover
Once I was out of the water and took the suit off, I would be greeted with hundreds of suit compression marks all over my body that looked like I just came out of a Dominatrix's parlour
:waterwork
I know a few other well known freedivers that have very similar first-time stories....solo, huge weight belts, no knowledge, and near death experiences...LOL. Makes a good argument for education, yes?
Cheers,
Erik Y.
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Ihave been snorkeling most of my life, but the first time i really tried freediving to any kind of depth was about 18 years ago. I was teaching the snorkeling segemnt of openwater dives when I moved my class over to the drop off of the quarry. We all had on 6mm wetsuits,but no weighbelts. I was finally able to make it down to 50' with no belt on in a 1 piece suit. The ride back up was great!
A few years later I learned that it was safe to decend with a belt on. I could get down a lot futher with a lot less effort. :head
I went very slow at first because I didn't want to be too negative on the bottom. At the time I taught students the basicis of shallow water black-out, but not many people really knew anything more about it- at least not around here. I wanted to make sure that I would have plenty of floation at the bottom.
It sure got easier with a thinner suit and a "small" weight belt.
Jon
A few years later I learned that it was safe to decend with a belt on. I could get down a lot futher with a lot less effort. :head
I went very slow at first because I didn't want to be too negative on the bottom. At the time I taught students the basicis of shallow water black-out, but not many people really knew anything more about it- at least not around here. I wanted to make sure that I would have plenty of floation at the bottom.
It sure got easier with a thinner suit and a "small" weight belt.
Jon
way back
Aloha J
Just thinking about it is a fun trip. Never mind what year. Dave and I had jobs for the summer. A couple of 10 year olds, rolling in money. We made a little over 25 cents per hour but the Canadian dollar was worth $1.05 American.
There was a place in Santa Monica, CA that sold us fins and mask for $5 and the exchange paid the shipping. We didn't need 'no stinking snorkel'. The end of the pier at the 'waterworks' was about 12 feet deep with a hole that you could swim through. By the end of summer we were chasing fish at 7-8 meters.
Next year we jumped in Lake Simcoe on the 24th of May weekend and even pushed a little ice around. Not for long in a bathing suit, even at that age.
Thanks for asking
Bill
Aloha J
Just thinking about it is a fun trip. Never mind what year. Dave and I had jobs for the summer. A couple of 10 year olds, rolling in money. We made a little over 25 cents per hour but the Canadian dollar was worth $1.05 American.
There was a place in Santa Monica, CA that sold us fins and mask for $5 and the exchange paid the shipping. We didn't need 'no stinking snorkel'. The end of the pier at the 'waterworks' was about 12 feet deep with a hole that you could swim through. By the end of summer we were chasing fish at 7-8 meters.
Next year we jumped in Lake Simcoe on the 24th of May weekend and even pushed a little ice around. Not for long in a bathing suit, even at that age.
Thanks for asking
Bill
My first dive was on a scuba course, about a year before I learnt that there was such a thing as freediving. So I didn't have any problems that I was awaire of back then, but looking back I was so very lucky to still be around! After that the real problems were finding a place to dive and a buddy to dive with. How I resolved those problems... I was very lucky to meet a guy who freedives at the weekends, so both of those problems have turned into two new ones, trying to find the time and the money to dive ;-)
Sam
p.s. J nice diving!
Sam
p.s. J nice diving!
My first summer as a constant weight diver was last summer. I was in pool all winter working on my static and made a few dives in the sea per month untill the summer.
When summer came I practiced two or three times a week. By August I hit -51 meters.
But I had problem reaching 40 m mark. I made a lot of dives between 35 and 39 meters and that went on for a long time. And then I hit 42 and after that it was easy...
My first recreational dives I don't really remember since I was diving before I started swimming
I do remember making 20+ meters dives as a little kid.
When summer came I practiced two or three times a week. By August I hit -51 meters.
But I had problem reaching 40 m mark. I made a lot of dives between 35 and 39 meters and that went on for a long time. And then I hit 42 and after that it was easy...
My first recreational dives I don't really remember since I was diving before I started swimming
I do remember making 20+ meters dives as a little kid.This will be my first summer at it, I'm very conservative, and I'm currently down to 24.1 meters. I will make 30+ meters. My personal goal is to go deeper freediving that I have ever been on scuba (~33m), and doing it comfortably.
Deeper freedive then scuba
Hey Andrew,
I'm aspiring to do the same, to have dived deeper freediving then Scuba. The deepest I've scuba dived in Australia was about 41m, so I've beaten that but...
3 Years ago I dived in Vanuatu, on a shipwreck called the Coolidge, it was the best diving I've done. We were doing full deco dives, did one dive down to 51m !
so anyway I've still got a bit to go to beat that...
I am definitely keen to break the 50m mark this year though.
Hey Andrew,
I'm aspiring to do the same, to have dived deeper freediving then Scuba. The deepest I've scuba dived in Australia was about 41m, so I've beaten that but...
3 Years ago I dived in Vanuatu, on a shipwreck called the Coolidge, it was the best diving I've done. We were doing full deco dives, did one dive down to 51m !
so anyway I've still got a bit to go to beat that...
I am definitely keen to break the 50m mark this year though.
First summer...
I can not say for sume but I remember diving in Greece with little scuba fins and probaply went around.... -15m... but I didn't have a anything to measure my depth then.. problems...yes those fins...power..what power..
One other thing when I went diving first time "really" freediving I had bit too much weights and when dove to -25m I paniced because I was sinking WAY TOO FAST and my fins seemed to just use oxygen instead of pushing me up... check your naeutral was the lession...(learned??)
Good diving Juha! I'll join you guys soon...
I can not say for sume but I remember diving in Greece with little scuba fins and probaply went around.... -15m... but I didn't have a anything to measure my depth then.. problems...yes those fins...power..what power..
One other thing when I went diving first time "really" freediving I had bit too much weights and when dove to -25m I paniced because I was sinking WAY TOO FAST and my fins seemed to just use oxygen instead of pushing me up... check your naeutral was the lession...(learned??)
Good diving Juha! I'll join you guys soon...