Dive leader training, November 2012

by Stu Bailes
Coming from a military background my diving career to date has been very disjointed. I have managed to progress through the levels quite quickly, however in the main I have not had much time to go diving. The main issue that stops me diving is the amount of time I tend to spend in the desert where there is a distinct lack of water. I have however, been lucky and dived two of the world's best wrecks, the Zenobia in Cyprus and more recently the Thistlegorm in Egyptian Red Sea; so what I lack in numbers I make up for in the quality of dives.
A few years ago I managed to get on a military run Dive Leader (DL) course, this was run in accordance with BSAC rules but both the theory and open water dives are condensed into a week long course, the only thing not covered is the organisation of a dive trip. Soon after the course finished it was off to the desert again.
Upon return I moved to Northwood and decided to resurrect my DL training and to assist me in this aim I joined BBSAC. Due to the amount of time that had passed since my original DL course I opted to go through the lessons with the other club members who were also working towards their DL qualification. So far, the lessons have been very well aught and even though I have previously done them I am still learning new things every time.
The lessons focused on Dive Management; including how to get to sites (charts and navigation) and what to do once there (shot deployment and diver management). We have also had courses on oxygen administration and, probably the best course, Practical Rescue Management (PRM). This will ensure we know what to do in the event that something goes wrong.
The main difference between DL and other courses is that you learn firstly how to be an example to other divers and secondly dive management, not only whilst divers are in the water but for the duration of a trip.
The Dive Manager is not only responsible for safety (although this is their primary role) but they will also ensure that they have organised all the dive admin right down to ensuring that divers are fed and have a bed for the night.
To ensure we were up to the required standard we were all asked to organise a number of club trips, to places including Portland, Swanage and the Sound of Mull.
So what have I learnt? Hopefully this became apparent in October, when 6 BBSAC divers set off to the Sound of Mull to carry out a week of wreck diving. It was a great trip and, I think, everyone enjoyed both the diving and the "après-dive"! If all divers had a bed for the night; were fed, the diving ran safely and everyone had a great time then hopefully I will have learnt something and take a step closer to my DL qualification.
[Ed: Stu passed the assessment and if now a qualified Dive Leader,
well done Stu!]

Swanage, July 2012

Well, where do I start....? This was my Dive Leader training trip and I wanted it to be a good one. I happened to pick the same weekend as the Swanage festival making things more challenging. 

On Saturday morning we got off to a great start diving the wreck of the Betsy Anna. This was an amazing wreck at 25 metres with so much life on it (I'm sure you've seen the video James has sent around). After a long (but busy) surface interval we went out to do our second dive on the Carentan at 30 metres. Once again we had amazing viz and lots of life (have a look at James' video). As far as I'm aware both of these wrecks haven't been dived by the club before - making it even more rewarding for me. It was a very long but also very enjoyable day. After the boats were put back on their trailers and we had returned to the camp site, we sat eating fish and chips watching the fireworks from the festival...Perfect!

On Sunday the weather was not so good (we still had sunshine but the wind had picked up) and we were expecting it to be a nightmare to get out of Swanage with the festival traffic, so decided to keep things simple. We did a lovely drift dive in the morning followed by a dive on the Fleur De Lys. This is a wreck I've dived lots of time and if I'm truthful was not looking forward to it, but 'wow' once we got into the water everything changed. The wreck was teeming with life. My favourite bits of the dive were seeing a John Dory and a massive Cuttle Fish - What a great way to end the trip.
Once safely back on land we had lunch on the pier whilst watching the Red Arrows display, which was fantastic. I really could not have asked for anymore from this trip.

I just want to add a massive thank you to everyone that came making this trip possible. Simon and Cheryl for supplying Jaffa, Towing and helping me plan, Kerry & Martin - the Coxswain's, Alex T for Prepping Elstree Diver and helping with the boats all weekend & the instructors for their time and guidance.

Bring on the next trip... what to do next???

Craig B