DM at last...

[nitroxbabe]

I made it!

As of tonight, I have officially earned the title Divemaster. Woo hoo! Hated those last 2 long-ass swims, but now I'm finally done!

By way of celebration, I'm going to sleep now. Ain't I just a barrel of fun????

;)

[nauifins73]

Way Cool Carla - Congrats!! on a job well done.

[StSomewhere]

Congrats! Once you rest up, you'll need to take the "in progress..." out of your dive profile!

[Scubagal]

Congratulations!!!! That definitely calls for a woo hoo!
:2208:

[nitroxbabe]

Congrats! Once you rest up, you'll need to take the "in progress..." out of your dive profile!

Much better this morning - I'll do that right now. :D

Thanks everybody!

[MgicTwnger]

CONGRATS! I'm sure you'll make a great DM.

[nitroxbabe]

Thanks Ken!

I need to talk to you about the Enterprise charter 10/8-9 - I'm trying to figure out the how's & what's - don't know about the all-day trip mostly because I don't have 2 sets of doubles... but what about the AM trip? You booked up yet? I haven't dove w/you all year!

[MgicTwnger]

Thanks Ken!

I need to talk to you about the Enterprise charter 10/8-9 - I'm trying to figure out the how's & what's - don't know about the all-day trip mostly because I don't have 2 sets of doubles... but what about the AM trip? You booked up yet? I haven't dove w/you all year!
Not yet. Situation is that Julie wants to go with a party of 5 and most of my guys are apparently bailing. The only sure bets so far are myself and Mverick.
Can you use both doubles & singles? I'll hopefully be diving 121's on the deep dives and 80's on the shallower ones, if I can smooze Mverick into lending me some big tanks again.:rolleyes:

[nitroxbabe]

Not yet. Situation is that Julie wants to go with a party of 5 and most of my guys are apparently bailing. The only sure bets so far are myself and Mverick.
Can you use both doubles & singles? I'll hopefully be diving 121's on the deep dives and 80's on the shallower ones, if I can smooze Mverick into lending me some big tanks again.:rolleyes:

Well, it'd be a major pain to switch from doubles to singles mid-trip - hey, I wonder if I could borrow Dale's double 72's.... This could be do-able yet. He usually has an extra set around.

You know what, put me down for the all-day trip. I'm sure I can talk Dale into letting me borrow a set. Kurt won't be able to come that day because he's got a gig that night, but I'm in!

Now let's do the happy weather dance... :)

Hey Reefraff, what are you doing that day????

And tell Maverick to behave himself. ;)

[DeepDiverBob]

Congrats on the DM...I am guessing your last 2 swims was the 400 yard free swim, and the 800 yard mask fins and snorkel. I didnt mind the 800 too much, but the 400 did suck. Congrats again!!!!!!!

[DeepDiverBob]

Thanks Ken!

I need to talk to you about the Enterprise charter 10/8-9 -

Whats the scoop on this charter? Just curious.

[MgicTwnger]

Well, it'd be a major pain to switch from doubles to singles mid-trip - hey, I wonder if I could borrow Dale's double 72's.... This could be do-able yet. He usually has an extra set around.

You know what, put me down for the all-day trip. I'm sure I can talk Dale into letting me borrow a set. Kurt won't be able to come that day because he's got a gig that night, but I'm in!

Now let's do the happy weather dance... :)

Hey Reefraff, what are you doing that day????

And tell Maverick to behave himself. ;)
Great! We couldn't let the year pass without some dives togeather.
Sorry Kurt can't make it, but a gig's a gig. Gigging does more to limit my diving than anything else. Well, mabye money..............
And I'm not telling Mverick anything, he's too much fun the way he is.
I'm dancing..............:0500:

[nitroxbabe]

Congrats on the DM...I am guessing your last 2 swims was the 400 yard free swim, and the 800 yard mask fins and snorkel. I didnt mind the 800 too much, but the 400 did suck. Congrats again!!!!!!!

You are so right. The 800 wasn't that big of a deal (I actually got 5 points on that!), but the 400 did indeed suck (just 2 points). Especially cuz I did it about 15 minutes after finishing the 800. But hey, now it's all done.

And thanks!

[nitroxbabe]

Whats the scoop on this charter? Just curious.

Well, it's going to be a lot of fun, that's the scoop. :)

Ken is setting up an all-day charter (3-4 dives, right?) on 10/8 and an AM charter on 10/9 - it's going to leave from Waukegan and we're doing wrecks in Lake Michigan.

I dive off the Enterprise all the time. Dave & Dale are great guys and the boat is very comfy & professionally run, not to mention that there's lots of great wrecks around.

Come on up if you can!

[MgicTwnger]

Whats the scoop on this charter? Just curious.
Hey Bob,

It's an all-day Saturday and half-day Sunday morning out of Waukegan. The list of divers is in a state of flux right now, but it looks like me, Mverick, and nitroxbabe for sure, and mabye Juls64 and some of her buddies. Heere's the op:
http://www.captaindales.com/enterprise_marine.htm

[DeepDiverBob]

How far of a drive is that up to Waukegan? My curiosity has definitly been peaked here.

Let me check my schedule, and availablity of money and I will get back to you. That is the weekend after I get back from Coz, and note sure what funds, if any, will be left.

Looking at the web site, I didnt see prices listed. How much will this set me back?

[MgicTwnger]

I'll PM you with what Dale charges. Waukegan is north of Chi, a few miles south of Wisconsin, about five hours from St. Louis.
If you're anything like me, you'll get back from Coz with empty pockets and suitcase full of t-shirts and other junk.

[Captain Caveman]

congrats now are you up for giving a AOW class. I need my cert and i want to take a 1 on 1 class. im not big on groups. you dont learn as much.
what ya think.
chris

[DeepDiverBob]

congrats now are you up for giving a AOW class. I need my cert and i want to take a 1 on 1 class. im not big on groups. you dont learn as much.
what ya think.
chris

DMs cant teach AOW, they can only help out with it.

[MgicTwnger]

DMs cant teach AOW, they can only help out with it.
Yeah, but just think of all the $$$$ you'll make!

[scubatim2004]

CONGRATS:D
I to hope to become DM Certified one day. Been diving for just over a year. Got my AOW last month along with my First Responder and am now working on my Rescue Diver Cert., book work is done so all I need to do now is the dives.

1 question if I may ask. How long did it take you from start to finish for your DM Certification?

Congrats once again,

Tim

[nitroxbabe]

Yeah, but just think of all the $$$$ you'll make!

ROFL

Stop it, stop it, you're killin' me.... :D

[nitroxbabe]

CONGRATS:D
I to hope to become DM Certified one day. Been diving for just over a year. Got my AOW last month along with my First Responder and am now working on my Rescue Diver Cert., book work is done so all I need to do now is the dives.

1 question if I may ask. How long did it take you from start to finish for your DM Certification?

Congrats once again,

Tim


Thanks a lot!

Ummm - don't ask me how long it took to complete - we had numerous logistical fusterclucks along the way - it shouldn't have taken NEARLY as long as it did.

In reality I started this about a year ago... If we'd been able to really work on it during dive season, I can't imagine why it should take more than a few months, assuming that you have all your prerequistite work & enough dives completed.

Like I said, numerous fusterclucks.... ;)

[DeepDiverBob]

Yeah, but just think of all the $$$$ you'll make!

PLease lay off the crack pipe.

[DeepDiverBob]

1 question if I may ask. How long did it take you from start to finish for your DM Certification?

Congrats once again,

Tim

One thing to keep in mind when going throught the DMC. It is an internship. You are learning about not only the diving, but also the business of diving. One thing that drives instructors crazy is people going through the DMC just trying to get everything signed off as fast as they can. There is a lot to learn, so if/when you decided to do it, remember, its not a race. I have heard stories of people doing the minimum standards to get through, and then help out with an OW class, and not be able to answer any some pretty basic questions. Also, I've heard of DMs with little experience needing to swap out their tanks after every dive. That drives instructors crazy too.

[theskull]

Yeah, what Bob said.

I believe it can be done in 5-7 full days, if you only want the card.

Some folks who do the full internship program get it done in as little as 3 months if they really concentrate on doing so and make most of their weekends available, but most end up taking between 6 months and a year. There is no rush really, because you are a work-in-progress, and the more time you spend in the water with all different level of classes the more examples of "I can't believe what that student tried to do to himself" you learn to deal with, be prepared for, and even sometimes prevent.

Mine took about 6 months, and I enjoyed every minute of it!! Seriously.

theskull

p.s. Congrats, NitroxBabe! Completing DM is quite an accomplishment.

[juls64]

Not yet. Situation is that Julie wants to go with a party of 5 and most of my guys are apparently bailing. The only sure bets so far are myself and Mverick.
Can you use both doubles & singles? I'll hopefully be diving 121's on the deep dives and 80's on the shallower ones, if I can smooze Mverick into lending me some big tanks again.:rolleyes:

Our party of 5 was sort of looking at the weekend of Sept 24/25. Also, I don't know if they want an all day thing or not. I would have to contact everyone. Also, I may be doing Cavern Class starting the weekend of the 8th. Let me get it sorted out, but please do not plan around me or my group.

Sorry if I confused you!

Thanks,

Julie

[scubatim2004]

Thanks for the info folks. Don't worry once I decide it is time I am in no hurry to complete the certification. I was just wondering how much time was involved in the process. I love diving and just want to learn all I can so I can be the best I can be.
For me it's not so much the certification but the learning process, and I figured that was the best way to go.

DSDO,

Tim

[Atlaua]

Thanks for the info folks. Don't worry once I decide it is time I am in no hurry to complete the certification. I was just wondering how much time was involved in the process. I love diving and just want to learn all I can so I can be the best I can be.
For me it's not so much the certification but the learning process, and I figured that was the best way to go.

DSDO,

Tim

Tim,

Mine involved 6 weeks of classes, one night a week. First week was basicly an intro and the following 5 weeks covered one of each of the 5 major topics and their exams.

There are actually 2 methods (for PADI). There is a quick and dirty method for those who don't want to "work" as a DM, but you're not likely to find that unless you go to a resort area. The other is the internship.

The internship requires assisting with 5 pool sessions and 5 non-pool sessions. At least one of the non-pool sessions has to be somthing other than open-water (rescue, advanced, specialty). You get evaluated for each of these sessions and have to score above a certain score for them to count. Typically shops want to see your scores improve as these sessions go along. These make for a great learning experience and it is to your advantage to use as many different instructors as you can for this. (You'll learn more.)

You will also have a number of class pool sessions. Durning these you will have to do all of the open water skills (and some rescue skills) at "demonstration quality". This means slow obvious movements that point out all the key elements. You'll likely have to verbally introduce the skill as well. Additionally there are "physical" skills that are graded on time/quality. These include, a longer swim than OW, a longer tread with your hands out of the water at the end and a longer tow. One of the skills is the dreaded equipment exchange which can be challanging but is generally fun and is designed to prove your ability to solve problems underwater.

Additionally you have to complete some DM level exercises, upon which you are graded. These include: supervising certified divers and DM conducted program (scuba review, discover scuba, etc). These show your leadership abilities.

Finally you will need to do an emergency plan (now required for rescue as well) and a map of a dive site. Plan to spend at least a weekend just on the map.

I started my training in April and finished it in early September. Of my class of 5 I was the first to finish (to give you some time scales). I was more motivated than the rest of the class because I needed to finish up before my daughter was born. The rest finished by the end of the year, save one who moved out of town and basicly had to start over.

On the other hand I know DMC's who have taken years, and counting :D.

All in all it's a rewarding experience. I didn't go into the program expecting to "work" as a DM, but I came out of it wanting to. During the summer I work a class a month, which typically ties up two weekends. While I have no desire to teach I do eventually plan on doing the IDC because it will make me a more usefull DM. I can avoid teaching the class but help out the instructor by evaluating skills and make the entire process go faster.

What I recomend before you start is that you are a comfortable diver. Wether this takes the minium 20 dives to start or takes 300 doesn't matter. You need to be comfortable enough to take care of yourself as well as monitor and respond to a number of students in the typically low vis environments we dive in. Oh, and get used to diving overweighted...you need that to be able to deal with students bolting, loosing weightbelts, etc.

A good DM is a little like Radar on MASH. You have to learn to anticipate the instructor's needs. For example we had about 20 students in the pool this weekend, the instructor I was with had 7. Usually an instructor likes to move down the line doing a skill with each student, but when we were sharing the deep end with another class, I started marshaling the students so that the instructor could stay in one spot and the students moved through like a que line.

You also need to make student safety a top priority. One thing I hate to see in DMC's is them "watching the instructor." Happens all the time. The DM should be watching the students the instructor is not immediatly engaged with.


James