Something for thought and possible discussion

[awap]

Originally Posted by aggie99

What would suck is if you didn't see the regualtor pop off and you still have the mouthpiece in you go to take a big breath and suck down a bunch of water!

My impression was that is exactly what happened. Looked to me like she lost the reg and did not see it go, attempted to inhale, stopped when she got water and exhaled a bit again (just a few bubbles), and then attempted to inhale again before she reacted. I don't think she realized what happened until she was on the cameraman's gas.

[mchain]

Originally Posted by aggie99

What would suck is if you didn't see the regualtor pop off and you still have the mouthpiece in you go to take a big breath and suck down a bunch of water!

Yup, that would certainly suck.

[texdiveguy]

Nice video.

[Vercingetorix]

Originally Posted by aggie99

Personally this is why I like secondary on a necklace around my neck, I don't even need my hands to find it, just bend my neck down and put it in my mouth. This is also true if some hungry air shark grabs my primary.

Agreed!!!

Other divers ask me why, as a recreational diver, do I have my octo on a necklace on a short (22-inch) hose. This video answers that question. To repeat aggie99, I don't even have to search for my octo; it's right there, no hunting involved.

I love what one commenter said:

She shouldnt be diving if she doesnt know what to do in a situation like that.
First off, where were the hand signals for no air?
Second, she shouldnt have grabbed you like that, what if your reg got damaged also? At this level i doubt you have been trained to share 1 reg and make a controlled ascent?
Thirdly, she should have been blowing bubbles, especially if ascending that fast, does she want to risk her lungs popping?

The diver (Cecille) was in panic mode. All she she had a reg in mouth, but breathing water. Unless the training is thoroughly in-grained, logical progression goes out the window. Oh, how I love the self-righteous.

[digitalman]

I'd like to think that if this happed to me, I'd handle it a little better. You really don't know how you'll act until it happens. Under the circumstances, stress and perceptual narrowing set in and she grabbed what was first in her line of sight.

[BoomerNJ]

It's one thing to be ooa, but another entirely to take a big breath of water... I think most people on the lower end of the experience curve (which seems was the case here) would react badly, myself included. I agree that she should have reached for her own safe second. But in the grand scheme of things, if it turned out ok (which I sincerely hope it did), she got air & they surfaced in a relatively slow manner so it seems, a lesson was learned. It also seems they were not that deep, maybe on their safety stop or something? I give credit to the camera operator, he or she seemed to handle the lunge for air fairly well & probably saved the situation from ending badly...

[Splitlip]

More discussion

Mouthpiece detached - video clip - ScubaBoard - Scuba Diving Forums and Social Network

[waytooslow]

see I knew there was a good thing about me sucking water so much, I don't freak anymore, trust me if you get a good breath full of h2o - first time the "flight" kicks in. It is easy to armchair it.

I am not a fan of zip ties though they seem to be the norm in the sport. I am a safety wire kid of guy - from my racing days. but have found no real good substitutes for the zip tie that we all rely on on our life support system - gives me chills just thinking about trusting a 20 cent part.

[CompuDude]

Originally Posted by aggie99

What would suck is if you didn't see the regualtor pop off and you still have the mouthpiece in you go to take a big breath and suck down a bunch of water!

Exact same thing happened to my father during his AOW class with me in Hawaii. Fortunately, the instructor happened to glance his way and reacted quickly in handing my dad his octo, before my dad even realized there was a problem, and he never breathed in water.

Originally Posted by waytooslow

see I knew there was a good thing about me sucking water so much, I don't freak anymore, trust me if you get a good breath full of h2o - first time the "flight" kicks in. It is easy to armchair it.

I am not a fan of zip ties though they seem to be the norm in the sport. I am a safety wire kid of guy - from my racing days. but have found no real good substitutes for the zip tie that we all rely on on our life support system - gives me chills just thinking about trusting a 20 cent part.

It's quite possible to breath off a reg with no mouthpiece. Not as convenient, but unless you're completely panicking (understandable, especially with a newer diver), you should still be able to get all the air you need from a reg with no mouthpiece.

As for the diver in the video, I agree this is a reason why a necklaced octo is a great idea, even for those who don't want to move their configuration all the way to a long hose. It removes all doubt as to YOUR octo's location. I never actually saw her go for her octo, it looked to me more like she was trying to find her main reg, and forgot about her octo entirely.