Better Underwater Propulsion: 5 kicks to improve your diving
To a new diver, propulsion is achieved by any means necessary. The use of legs, arms, hands, large marine animals, currents and other divers are all useful elements in completing the journey from Sponge A to Coral Head B. In defense of the new diver, rarely is propulsion explained let alone practiced in a basic or advanced scuba class. A new diver might be told to kick from the hip, point their toes, don’t bend the knees, don’t bicycle kick, etc. To a new diver propulsion means wiggling your feet until you get to the other side of the pool and if that is too difficult you can buy a different pair of fins that will be easier on the legs. For DIR education, proper propulsion techniques are an essential part. After a diver develops a solid base of buoyancy control along with body mechanics and trim, different propulsion techniques are added [...]
Rock Bottom- Rethinking the 500psi Gas Rule
Throughout the world, divers are told again and again to return to the boat with 300-500 psi in their tanks. Understandably, most competent divers stretch their bottom time out as long as they can. They smile as they show their pressure gauges to the dive master upon surfacing and then compare gauges with other divers in order to see who the closest one to 301psi is. Getting the most bottom time underwater is a fun game to play with buddies and I’m not saying that divers shouldn’t use as much of their tanks as possible. However the question becomes, “Is this the smartest way to plan gas?” What exactly is the goal of leaving some air in our tanks? To help a buddy in need, to keep water out of our tanks, to inflate our BCD’s at the surface? Many divers use the 1/3’s rule, but even this plan has [...]
Categories: DIR Tags: DIR, gas management, gas planning, rock bottom
The Law of Primacy- Kneeling on the bottom
Most scuba instruction begins with the new diver breathing from a regulator in shallow water on their knees. These are the first few breaths that transform thousands of people every year from pavement praising pedestrians into aquatic adventurers. Over-weighted, the negatively buoyant student diver begins to grow more comfortable with the workings of a demand valve regulator. It is from this kneeling position on the bottom of the pool that students are introduced to various skills necessary for learning to scuba dive. DIR education is trying to change this behavior and enlighten new divers and instructors to the logic behind neutrally buoyant skill development. For a student diver, the position of kneeling negatively buoyant on the bottom of the pool becomes a basic ready position. Stable and rooted, the student learns to remove and replace their regulator and partially flood and clear their mask. Eventually, more advanced skills are introduced [...]
Categories: DIR Tags: DIR educational Model, DIR training, Scuba Education
Introduction to DIR Education
The talk of DIR diving over the last few years has led to a masquerade of conflicting ideas. A distorted view of equipment identification and community exclusivity has given rise to many misinterpretations of a simple and effective philosophical base for improving a diver’s safety and enjoyment underwater. DIR diving allows a unified team of divers to communicate and execute a dive in a precise and logical rhythm, free from distraction, disorientation or confusion. DIR education differs from that of conventional diver training, in that DIR is rooted in a holistic system that is consistent with the students’ progression. This includes the essential building blocks of education, as well as equipment, experience and community. The idea is to “Start with the end in mind.” Too many in the scuba industry deplete the necessary ingredients of quality education that DIR finds fundamental. A quick and cheap class, the bare minimum of [...]
Categories: DIR, Scuba diving courses Tags: DIR, DIR diving, diving DIR, Scuba diving Course
