On July 5, 2009, I conducted a buoyancy course at Haigh Quarry in Kankakee, IL. The proceeds from this course were donated to ST.A.R.S. International. S.T.A.R.S is a charity that uses scuba diving to help at-risk youth re-focus and get direction in their lives.
Participants in the buoyancy course were: Amy, Doug, Ron, and Drew. All four were from Indianapolis with Amy and Doug coming all the way from Ft. Wayne, IN and spent a couple of days diving at Haigh Quarry after the class.
Amy, Doug, Rod, and Drew after a successful buoyancy class
The class started talking about the STARS mission and how I became associated with the organization. All of the students were surprised at how scuba diving could be used to change the lives of the STARS participants.
After discussing STARS for about an hour we moved into the lecture portion of the class. Here we talked about propulsion techniques. During this portion of the class we discussed the flutter and frog kicks and their pros and cons. All students were surprised to hear that the flutter kick is the most inefficient kick in scuba diving. The discussions moved a little off-topic as we talked about carbon dioxide retention. However, this enabled the discussion to move towards how to establish proper breathing patterns to maintain buoyancy and remove the carbon dioxide build up.
In addition to propulsion techniques and breathing patterns, we discussed equipment considerations and how equipment can greatly influence a diver’s buoyancy. We spent quite a bit of time discussing how to create a balanced rig. That is, how a diver can create a balance between the negative equipment a diver carries and the things that are positively buoyant. This allows a diver to be able to swim up, from depth, if their BCD were to fail.
In the water, we focused on hovering, practicing the frog kick, correct breathing patterns and trying to remain in good horizontal trim at all times. We utilized the buoyancy course at Haigh Quarry to practice moving up and down in the water column just by using breath control instead of swimming. We conducted three dives during the course of the day. All dives were video taped and reviewed to show areas of good diving form as well as areas for improvement. This was very useful for the students.
By the end of the class, all divers were able to hover at 10 feet with no air in their BCDs and near empty tanks. All students were able to remove weight off their weight belts. Two of the students were able to take 10+ pounds off their weight systems to be able to dive more safely and comfortably. One student said that she learned more in one day with this class than she had in her year as a certified diver. Everyone had a great time and looked forward to utilizing their new buoyancy skills.
Dive Safe,
Duane Johnson
Precision Diving
Technorati Tags: frog kick, flutter kick, buoyancy, balanced rig, BCD, Haigh Quarry
About Duane Johnson
Duane….I just saw this on your blog…and once again, I have to tell you thanks, I learned TONS…I have dove about 15 times since the class and I am really close to being able to hover for a long time. The weight belt on the tank solved many of my upside issues. And I know it did always look like it but I did become a better diver that day.
I even give that frog kick a try every once in a while
Hi Amy, thank you again. I’m very happy that you are putting into practice what you learned in the class. Please keep me updated on your progress.