Finding a dive buddy for new diver

[Benutzer]

I'll apologize in advance if this is a FAQ, but I skimmed a number of threads and didn't see anything that looked related.

I just started as a student and should be getting my OW cert in a couple of months. Later this summer, I'll be making a trip to Rhode Island (I live in Ohio) and I'd be interested in doing a couple of dives out there. I'm not really planning on joining a "dive trip", but would like to rent some gear and dive somewhere convenient from shore, just for the experience.

From my wanderings in cyberspace, I've gathered that obviously most people prefer an experienced buddy to dive with, so I'm wondering what my best bet might be to find someone who'd not mind diving with a newbie. Should I just ask around at whatever LDS is near where I'm going or is there a good resource online for people looking for buddies?

[scubasamurai]

well if your new maybe try and find someone the lds recommends with a little experience. usually some good lds and their instructors don't mind going diving with someone new.
you really don;t want two newbees out doing a shore, it is usually good to have someone give you tips and be there incase you need a little review. most of use "experienced" divers really don't mind going out diving with someone new, especially DM candidates and people going for their instructor rating, helps them with practicing .
i know for a fact that the techie's and especially cave divers like to know their partners for obvious reasons, but thats another matter and rightly so, but ow you can usually find someone at the dive shop and hook up there
good luck

[SkuaSeptember]

Here is one possiblity:
New England Aquarium Dive Club - About Our Club - Who We Are
The NEADC often does club dives at Ft. Whetherill or at Beavertail.
And another possibility:
ScubaBoard - New England Lobsta Divahs
Plenty of RI divers in this forum and good info on local sites.
Or, you could send me a PM when you get your dates nailed down. I've done some diving there this winter but have never gone in the warm months.

[maggs_the]

welcome to the club!!! hope you have deep pockets cause this habit is worse than cocaine!

there are lots of folks out there who prefer not to get "stuck" with a newbie but on my very first ocean dive, i got buddy'd up with a former dive instructor and all i did was follow and remember my training. when we surfaced, he thanked me for being so easy.

newbies ain't bad... but just like anywhere else, a few give them a bad name.

but the scuba community in general (from what i've found) is very open and accepting and eager to bring more into the fold.

so again, LEARN what you can in class and practice in the pool and maintain a cool head when you go out there.. before you know it, you'll be dissing those other newbies

[terrillja]

Well if you want to make it south shore of MA, I might be interested, since there is no max on lobster size there, unlike the 5" max on the north shore.

I tend to go out with my dad a fair bit off the coast of mass, but I would second skua's links, if you can plan far enough in advance, there always seem to be people going out anywhere you would want to dive.

I'd throw up a post on SB with your tentative dates and see if anyone replies.

We really do have a lot of divers in MA/RI, even with our cold water.

[Benutzer]

Wow, I'm kind of surprised at the quick response, and it looks like the answer to my question is basically that there's not going to be any problem finding someone to dive with. Just post on the boards, check with a couple local clubs and LDS's and we've got a party ready to go.

I'll definitely let you know. I'll head to RI, then drive down to MD before I head home to OH, so there's lots of opportunities in that direction. But I am especially interested in RI since I have some nice memories of the area (if I recall, the water's pretty cold in the summer though). Somewhere around Buzzard's Bay in MA is also very interesting to me since there's some property near there I want to check out.

Thanks for the links and advice. Nice point about the DM candidates too. That makes a lot of sense that they wouldn't mind a newbie at all.

Yeah Maggs, unfortunately my pockets aren't that deep. I can see how it can get real expensive real quick. I'm thinking my biggest expense is likely to be travel because we don't have too many oceans in Ohio. ;-(

[Benutzer]

SB is Scubaboard.com? Is that like the main dive-related site where all the cool kids hang out?

[terrillja]

Originally Posted by Benutzer

SB is Scubaboard.com? Is that like the main dive-related site where all the cool kids hang out?

Yes, it's scubaboard.com. Though I find that the scubatoys forum is a lot more welcoming and friendly.

[SkuaSeptember]

Originally Posted by terrillja

Yes, it's scubaboard.com. Though I find that the scubatoys forum is a lot more welcoming and friendly.

Ditto

[SkuaSeptember]

(if I recall, the water's pretty cold in the summer though).

Cold is relative. Those of us north of Boston consider RI warm water diving.