In a perfect world, we all would work hard to improve our diving skills and we would always dive with more experienced divers. Unfortunately not everyone takes diving seriously; many divers get the quick three-day vacation/resort certification and never consider expanding their training.

Once I actually overheard a diver bragging about how his air consumption was so bad that he routinely cut his buddies; dives short. This wouldn’t be a big deal if not for the fact that sooner or later you or I might end up diving with this irresponsible diver.

I can remember a trip to the Bahamas when my buddy had equipment problems. She asked me to go on the first dive while she worked on her problem, and then she would join me on the second dive. I was quickly buddied up with a single diver and started the dive. We were supposed to follow the Divemaster, first to a small plane, and later to a wall. In no time we had lost the group. As we followed in their general direction, we found the plane. After that we attempted to get to the wall. As the time for the dive was nearing the end, I gave him the signal to start heading back to the boat and he agreed. As soon as we made the turn to go back, he started heading in a 90 degree angle away from the boat. I made all attempts to communicate that he was going the wrong way but he wouldn’t listen. Now I had to make my decision: be a good buddy and get lost with him, or not.

This is a good example of an overly confident diver that is willing to put himself and others in danger. He had not idea of my experience level. What if I had panicked or was unable to physically return to the boat from longer surface swim.

In the past couple of months I have heard from two other Instructors in the area who were diving with unfamiliar buddies. These divers responded completely wrong to simple problems underwater. Both of my friends had their air shut off at depth, for some still unexplained reasons, while they were trying to resolve a minor problem. Fortunately both of my friends are fine, but I would love to know how these two individuals thought that the correct response to a problem underwater is shut off tanks!

Many of these inept divers are quick to blame others for their problems; claiming it was a bad instructor or a bad agency that made them bad divers. Every time I hear this complaint I like to ask these divers just how much research they did on the course they were signing up for. Did they bother to research their Instructor’s credentials? Remember that the open water class is not designed to cover emergency procedures in depth. You may practice a few scenarios, but you are lucky if you have your buoyancy under control at the end of the class. It is YOUR job to practice!

So, just how do we all protect ourselves from these dangerous divers? Talk to potential buddies, ask about their dive and training experience, and even check their log book. Check the divers equipment, make sure it fits the local conditions (tropical vs. cold water diving.) If you are uncomfortable with any buddy assignment, or the dive plan, talk to the Divemaster in charge and get a new buddy. The most important thing you can do is continue learning and practicing. The better diver you are, the better chances you have to survive “the buddy from hell”.

It really makes me wonder if these divers may be the reason why SOLO diving seems to have become more popular in the last few years. Some Agencies are actually now offering SOLO diving certifications.

Last but not least, consider these statistics:

40% of dive accidents happen to Open Water certified divers;
30% of dive accidents happen to Advanced certified divers;
6% of dive accidents happen to Rescue certified divers;
2% of dive accidents happen to Technical certified divers.

Never stop learning! If taking classes is not your thing, read books, talk to more experienced divers, and work on your skills.