The Beach Diver

Diving with Clowns and Cowboys

In my many years of diving, few things have disappointed and frustrated me more than diving with clowns and cowboys.  Now, before you judge me for judging others, let me say that few things please me more than diving with new buddies.  I believe the wonders of the underwater world and the pleasures of scuba diving should be available to anyone who has the desire to enjoy it and who demonstrates the discipline to obtain proper training.  Unfortunately, some divers behave in ways that diminish the diving experience for others and sometimes their behavior ranges from ridiculous to dangerous.

Let’s identify what kind of characters are involved.  Clowns seem carefree and entertaining at the circus.  Their comic expressions, slapstick routines, and jokes are designed to mock reality and make us laugh by contrasting serious with silly.  Most clowns need a straight man, someone to be the target of their jokes, or around whom they can contrive a laughable situation.  Clowns attempt to distract their audience from their lives with humor.

Scuba clowns are similar in many ways.  They seek attention from others, they look for laughs, and they make a joke out of just about anything.  Scuba clowns seldom allow a dive briefing to continue without a few interruptions.  They often interject wry comments and ask intentionally stupid questions.  They mock discussions about planning, gear checks, and safety as unnecessary, trivial, or boring.  They speak out of turn during roll calls.  They are boastful, rude, and braggadocious.  Sometimes, they take a poke at other divers by ridiculing one’s gear configuration, fin selection, or choice of exposure suit.  If you ever heard someone mocked because they wore a snorkel or carried a knife, you may have seen a clown in action.

Clowns love practical jokes.  They are famous for hiding someone’s gear, shortening BCD crotch straps, and rubbing foul-tasting substances on regulator mouthpieces, but it is in the water where clowns are most unpredictable.  They make comic water entries, swim in unnatural positions, and make confusing hand signals.  More extreme behavior includes pulling on a buddy’s regulator hose, loosening someone’s tank strap, activating another’s BCD inflator valve, and feigning distress.

If you feel uncomfortable imagining this clownish behavior actually occurring, you are not alone.  Responsible divers love to have fun but never at the expense of another.  Clowns actually believe their stunts are funny and they are often surprised when not only their buddy turns against them but their audience, too.  Most scuba clowns do not realize that their antics may distract others enough to cause real trouble to occur.  Their mockery can quickly turn to mourning once it becomes apparent that they contribute to distress, injury, or worse.

Cowboys are almost the other extreme from clowns.  Instead of craving attention, they shun it.  The cowboy mystique is that of a man and his horse, alone on the prairie, self-sufficient, and self-reliant.  Cowboys survive on the frontier where danger lurks and one’s wits are the most effective weapon.  There are no rules except the ones one makes for himself.  Or, so it goes in the movies.

Scuba cowboys are a bit like their Wild West brothers.  They usually seem quiet and aloof.  They sit apart and gear up separately.  Because they seldom have a buddy, they reluctantly accept one assigned them but offer little of themselves to that buddy before a dive.  Cowboys appear competent and comfortable before a dive; they seldom ask questions or seek assistance.  Many accept that behavior as pleasant, polite, and reaffirming (maybe because the last dive included a clown) but little do they realize what lies ahead.

Once scuba cowboys hit the water, it may be the last anyone sees of them before it is time to surface.  Even if they linger long enough to ensure their buddy reaches depth safely, they usually take off to explore the site on their own.  Sometimes a cowboy acknowledges that he has a partner enough to let him tag along.  He seldom, if ever, turns around to check on him and the other diver better keep up or get left behind.  Cowboys keep on riding, sometimes according to plan but usually shooting from the hip and following whatever trail seems nice.  They know they have enough air to do what they want, as long as they want, so they keep on going until the very last moment.  These are the last ones to surface and often farthest from the boat or beach.

It would be enough that scuba cowboys followed their lonesome ways and accepted the risks of diving alone but the result is often a problem for other divers.  Even if an abandoned dive buddy unites with another group of divers, no one is sure what became of Hop-A-Long Cassidy.  Standard buddy separation procedures call for searching submerged for no more than a minute, then surfacing to reunite.  If scuba cowboy keeps swimming submerged, other divers may presume he is lost or imperiled.  They may discontinue their dives to begin searching for him.  His continued absence may cause divers to risk their own comfort and safety by leaving their scheduled dive site to explore an expanded area, possible to encounter undesirable currents or conditions they may assume influenced the lost diver.

Both clowns and cowboys exhibit a form of selfishness that is annoying at best and deadly in the worst possible situations.  Their behavior deserves to be addressed according to the circumstances.  The appropriate word at the right time may make a difference or it may not, but one should at least try.  Dive masters can ask clowns to remain quiet during briefings, sometimes allowing an uncomfortable pause following an interruption.  Practical jokers and pranksters should be confronted by all parties, not just the victim of their tricks.  When all else fails, take away the clown’s ultimate desire – the audience.  Just ignore the idiot until he stops talking.  Next trip, everyone remember to leave that diver on the beach.

Cowboys require a different approach.  Buddies must express their expectation for companionship during the dive and elicit some kind of commitment.  Sometimes, it does not hurt to ask if the diver just wants some space to explore alone.  If the answer is yes, buddy up with someone else.  If a cowboy wanders off during a dive, never assume it was just his nature to do so.  Responsible divers are obligated to follow standard procedures for buddy separation.  Once it is discovered the diver separated intentionally and did not surface, communicate accordingly and plan to make other arrangements on future dives.

Basic Gearing Up and Water Entry for Beach Diving

Beach diving sites vary from sandy, desolate shores to rocky jetties or waters that lap at the edges of a city skyline.  Whatever the setting, beach divers must perform basic functions in assembling and donning their gear.  If one performs these functions effectively, the dive has a chance of going as planned but, if these basics are neglected, the dive is unlikely to be a success and might actually become hazardous.

Consider four elements essential to beach diving.  First, you must have all the gear you need for that particular dive.  This may seem too simple to even mention but you would be surprised how many divers arrive lacking sufficient weights, a dive flag, or a full tank of air.  If you ever had a buddy try to borrow a spare light to loan for a night dive, then you can identify with the need to have a basic gear checklist.  The dive plan becomes handicapped when a team member is underweighted or limited in function by lack of equipment.  Considering the role of the missing gear, safety may also be compromised.

Next, have a buddy with experience and training adequate for the dive planned.  You may be surprised to learn how many divers, even veterans, who have never logged a beach or shore dive.  Few things alarm a seasoned beach diver more than to learn that his new buddy is expecting to be taught and guided through an initial shore entry.  Divers must discuss experience and expectations when planning the dive, probably well before arriving in the parking lot.

Speaking of plans: Have one.  Even a rudimentary verbal sketch of entry and exit points, and what to do in between the two ends beats wading in and hoping for a great dive.  The best plans include the following features: entry/exit points, direction of travel, depth anticipated, current flow, gas management (turn-around and minimum pressures), and scheduled activities (photography, spearing, lobstering, etc.).  Before entering the water, it is also good to review signals and lost buddy procedures.

Finally, it is a good idea to develop a system that enables you to plan, conduct, and conclude your dive effectively.  An example of such a system would be a dive template for particular sites that includes a checklist of gear (especially equipment specific to that site or dive activity), environmental conditions (weather and water state and forecast), names and phone numbers of participating divers, and estimated entry/exit times.  (A copy of that plan should be retained by family or friends in case of . . . well, just in case).  Another system is the process by which a diver gears up, allowing him or her to assemble all necessary equipment even in dark or inclement conditions.

A typical south Florida beach dive begins with divers assembling their gear near their cars in the parking lot.  Although some may carry gear separately to a tarp near the surf for assembly, most like the thought of only making one trip, wearing their gear to the entry point.  Divers check and double check their air supply to ensure adequate gas for the dive and that the valve is opened fully before entering the water.  Buddies should check their buddy, as prescribed by all open water dive training curriculum.  That extra set of eyes often catches what one overlooks because of carelessness or distraction.  The buddy check should be from head to toe, including fins, weights, regulator hoses, bcd straps, and mask.

Except for fins and mask, don the gear and attach equipment as it will be carried during the dive.  Beach divers often learn the hard way that this is also the time to secure gear and tethers. If a spare vehicle key is necessary, ensure it is attached before locking the vehicle.  Move toward the surf with at least one buddy available to help if one stumbles enroute.  Once at the water’s edge, make final preparations including one more buddy check.  Neither buddy should enter until the other is ready.

At this point, many divers have a preference for water entry.  Most styles include the following steps.  Rinse and don mask.  Inflate the bcd halfway or more according to sea state.  Carrying the fins or with them attached to the bcd, stride into the surf until about waist deep.  Turn your back and present your tank into oncoming waves to lessen their impact.  Allowing the water to support you (add air to bcd, if necessary), don fins with assistance of buddy.  With sufficient buoyancy, begin finning backward past wave action and to the desired descent point.

Prior to descending, ensure each buddy is ready.  This is important.  A lot can happen between the beach and the deep blue sea.  Individual divers may sense conditions exceed their training, abilities, energy, or comfort level.  If the swim out has been arduous, one may wish to rest before breathing regulated air.  Divers may have also noted any unexpected conditions like strong currents, boat traffic, or limited visibility.  Perform one final gear check before signaling descent and venting the bcd.  Again, this is a good time to head back to the beach, if conditions and confidence are not good.

At the end of the dive, surface normally and ensure all have adequate buoyancy for the trip through the surf.  Move toward the beach close enough to assist one another if waves or surf action are rough.  Once in water shallow enough to stand firmly, remove and secure fins but leave the mask on and regulator in until walking steadily.  Get in the habit of leaving your mask on until exiting the water entirely – many a mask goes missing at this point when removed and dropped or washed off one’s head by rogue waves.  Assist one another if having to climb beach gradient or if the sand is so soft that footing at water’s edge is uncertain.

The Burdened Diver

Have you ever had your dive buddy swim beyond your reach and keep going, leaving you far behind? Have you struggled to keep up with one or more buddies only to find yourself winded, fatigued, and frustrated? If so, you are unfortunately not alone. Few divers today understand the principle of the burdened diver, resulting in compromised diver safety and accidents. Many incidents are reported (missing divers found, separated divers recovered by passing boats, etc.) but most are not, probably because divers are embarrassed by their failure to obey basic safety procedures.

The principle of the burdened diver is simple: The pace of a buddy team or diving group is set by the slowest diver. This is especially true if one of the divers is bearing a burden, such as the flag or a heavy game bag, or is otherwise disadvantaged compared to others in the group. Flag bearing divers often struggle with increased drag caused by surface conditions (wind and waves) and sometimes with the chore of adjusting the reel. Divers carrying game bags (lobsters, fish, etc.) have increased weight and drag to slow them down. Sometimes divers have issues such as new or unfamiliar gear, ill-fitting fins, too much weight, or an oversized tank. Other times, it might be the diver who is not in the best shape or whose swimming skills are still developing.

Divers must remember two important facts. First, the burdened diver cannot maintain the pace others set. The reason for the burden does not matter. If the team decides to continue the dive given the conditions and the divers involved, they must recognize that the burdened member will be left behind unless care is taken to stay with that person.

The second fact is the burdened diver cannot catch up with any margin of safety. Even if the unburdened buddy or buddies occasionally pause to wait for the burdened diver, that diver is apart and probably alone. Most likely, that diver is too far away for anyone to render assistance if the diver requires it. It is also true that diver cannot render assistance to a buddy who swims ahead and gets into trouble. Consequences of faster divers letting a slower diver catch up include the burdened diver becoming overworked, consuming air inefficiently, becoming disoriented or lost, and possibly becoming physically or mentally challenged by an untenable situation.

Four practices are recommended for diving safely with a burdened diver. First and foremost, never place the burdened diver at risk. Never compromise the safety of any diver for the convenience of another. That is stated as simply as possible. Whatever decision is made to continue the dive and whatever accommodations are determined, they must include full consideration of the safety, well-being, and peace of mind for the burdened diver. If others are inconvenienced, they can bear it and make future diving decisions accordingly.

Second, include the burdened diver factor in the original dive plan. If the dive includes a dive flag, decide who will carry it and determine that person will set the pace, if not navigate and lead as well. Remember the adage, The person with the flag is never lost? That principle supposes that the other divers will rally to and stay with the flag-bearer. The plan can also include sharing flag towing tasks. Even if the flag belongs to one of the divers, that diver will not mind letting others help.

If there is another burden factor, such as game bags, equipment bearing, or other issues known before the dive begins, include that in the plan. It might be helpful to discuss a "what-if" scenario, such as, "What if one bag gets too heavy?" or "What if one of us gets tired?" The more complete the plan and discussion before the dive, the less confusion likely during the dive.

Third, consider sharing a burden that develops. Currents may be stronger than anticipated or may change to an unfavorable direction. Fin straps break, tank buckles malfunction, and flag reels jam. Stuff happens. Don’t let the load fall upon one diver – assist in whatever way possible. In doing so, you may avoid future complications and dangers. At the very least, you will earn the respect and gratitude of the burdened diver.

Finally, go no faster than the burdened diver. Slow down. Get parallel to the burdened diver and keep their pace. Your consideration will encourage that diver and may make the task easier for him or her. You may even enjoy the dive more by reducing your own pace but most importantly, you have not left the diver alone. If others in the group must move on, let them. Communicate the separation effectively with all team members, so there will be no question as to who accompanies whom.