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After an interesting conversation over a few beers, I'm curious... do any of you have any dive superstitions, rituals or carry a good luck items while diving? I know a few people who have the "three gear failures prior to the dive and they skip the dive" philosophy. Frank Martz used to use only blue gear. Any stories out there?
3 failures or problems before going under calls my dive. At 70 it has worked so far. LOL
Quote:
Originally Posted by shellmoundal
I was just going to post something similar. Another one that I go by is "if you think you should call the dive then you already should have."
Finally, I'm very reluctant to touch dive gear that I find on the bottom. Some years ago I was diving in Tobermory, Canada on the wreck of the Arabia. Descending down the line we were blessed with surprisingly good visibility for Lake Huron. Anyway I began to notice a lot of gear that was strewn along the bottom, fins, a mask, BC with tank and regs attached. I thought someone might have lost it overboard in rough seas so I told myself that I'd collect it on the way back. As luck would have it another diver beat me to it.
What we found out when we surfaced was that a diver had drowned at the sight the previous day and that gear was his. Apparently during his struggle to surface he began to doff his gear. It didn't help and he drowned.
Why my reluctance? The diver who retrieved the gear started have a lot of problems with his gear the rest of that trip. Maybe it was coincidence but personally I think it was bad juju.
Oh Jill, Jill,Jill,
You had to ask, didn't you? Before every dive, I mix a bit of rhino horn, tiger penis, and bat wing into coconut oil and brush the concoction liberally, but gently, on my testicles while watching midget wrestling reruns and singing an ancient Navajo bedtime lullaby.
In addition, I will call dives if it's: a weekend, too cold, too hot, too early, too late, raining, no place to park at Turkey Roost, too many Russians, Brazilians, or Canadians on site (cuz they talk funny and it scares me), or calling for rain and there is a female cold slaw wrestling event within a two hundred mile radius (this is rare).
3 failures and we're done for us.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The one time I failed to count all three failures, someone died.
Hahahaha, I never cease to learn new stuff on here. I googled female cold slaw wrestling, and what do you know, that's actually a thing.Quote:
Originally Posted by snakedoc
I just called a dive this morning that I drove over 4 hours to get to, did a prep/checkout dive yesterday, spent the night, got an early start at the site. The only reason was because I just was not feeling the desire to do it.
I think we all should listen to our inner-voice/intuition, (which women seem to have more than men).
Some of us are tuned in to this while others aren't and/or ignore it. My experience in life has shown me that it is important and not to be blown off.
As hopefully all of us were taught; call any dive at any time for any reason and that is the way it should be.
3 regular "oh shyte's" or 1 major "oh shyte" (such as a small oxygen fire-yes, a small one...) is my rule...has worked so far...
Dive safe,
Celia
PS My favorite color is blue, but I am not obsessive about it..... :-)
Quote:
Originally Posted by jerrwhy01
That must have been before the zebra mussels. Toby always has great viz. The arabia is also a site i've recovered some gear in one dive (dove it too many times, so i decided to explore. Recovered a mask, snorkel, an overweighted weight belt, and a AL60 w/ regulator attached...still pressurized from being under ~2 years. That was a fun dive (unlike the previous one where i lost sight of the wreck)
Three things go wrong before or during a dive, thumb goes up. Doesn't have to be gear issues. The problems I worry about most are mistakes I make, even little ones. Too many of those is probably a sign the most important piece of gear -- my brain -- isn't fully in the game that day.
Sometimes nothing has gone wrong, but for whatever reason I get THAT feeling. Dive gets called. I've even called one after gearing up, about to walk to the water. Ding! Something says, maybe you shouldn't do this today. Got out of gear, reloaded car, figured out what to do the rest of the day. Never regretted calling one.
OK, Jill, your turn: What superstitions, rituals, and talismans do you have?
- Sid
DITTOQuote:
Originally Posted by Dsix36
Any 3 problems just prior or during the dive and its I am out of here.
Gabe
Why 3 and not 2 or 4?
Because 3 is a magic number.Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU4pyiB-kq0
Do not, under any circumstances, pick up any found $$ before a cave dive.
Joel
If I forget any major piece of dive gear, like drysuit, fins, regs, mask or tanks, then I call the dive..usually.
I'm just superstitious that way... If I forget two or more of the above, then the dive is definitely over... mostly...
I too follow the 3 strikes and I'm out rule. I almost broke it recently, and was glad I chose to keep it. Thankfully no incident occurred, but I felt much better.
If I forget my tanks, regs, or BC, I go ahead and call it.
:rollguykinda hard to dive without any of the pieces you listed.Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkCoffee
When I was a new OW diver, from an old salt, "if you have to think about if to do the dive or not for more than a few minutes....don't do it."
There is one rock in Devils I pet each and every time I pass it. It's my pet rock. I've done it every time since i first saw the rock in my cave class.
government funded study????Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
I have always heard the rule of 3s, and have to say there is some sound advice there. Many accidents are a compounding of issues, and each issue causes distraction and loss of focus. If there is some hypothetical limit to the number of issues that occur,then perhaps it stops a continuation of a dive, where more compounding issues could prove fatal.
Tracy and I follow the three problems and out rule.
We have also been known to call dives at the surface due to lack of enthusiasm. Some days you're just better off staying out of the water. Fortunately this has only happened 3 or 4 times in 16 years, mostly involving ice dives. The best time to call a dive is while you're still in bed!
You must, every dive, pay proper homage to the cave gods. I always face towards Zacaton, say three "Hail Exley's", then I make the sign of the cave arrow on my abdomen, point of the arrow down towards my pee valve. Then, as I am about to start the dive, I always say "Oh blessed mother of HID ignition, please don't fail me now". If I ever get a LED light, I may stop doing that one. Finally, I chant "you'reastroke, you'reastroke, you'reastroke three times silently as a reminder of how lucky I am to still be alive.
Superstitions? NEVER clean your drysuit undergarment. You may be doing more solo dives, but what the hell. NEVER service your regulators, if it ain't fixed, don't broke it. Always do any circuit counterclockwise, if it works for NASCAR, it should work for me.
Talismans? Well I have thought about trying to get a lock of Forrest's beard to carry in my drysuit pocket, but that may be a little creepy.
Agreed. I've called many a trip when it came to loading the car or just getting up early enough to be there on time...Quote:
Originally Posted by MORGAN
then again, I do hate waking up early with a passion.
Several years ago I was sitting next to Gene at the NACD Conference and the speaker was teaching us to listen to our inner voice. I heard that talk very well and have done so ever since. The springs will be there tomorrow and I want to make sure that I will be there to enjoy them.:arrowredQuote:
Originally Posted by WEPIV
My superstition is that I always gear up "starting from the left."
Rebreather gets assembled from left to right, left tank goes on first, etc.
Left leg goes in the dry suit before right leg.
Left arm goes in before the right arm.
Left fin goes on before the right one.
Left glove goes on before the right one.
Tanks on left side go on before right tanks.
If I ever slip and do something out of order, I undo it, and start with the left whatever first.
When anyone asks me why I do it that way, I tell them, "If I don't, I'll die."
Hey, it's not superstition if it works!
m
It's bad luck to be superstitous
Last time I got my tanks hydroed/VIPed I marked them beforehand as to where the cam band was and where the lower clip was. I realized I might have to adjust the lower clip to allow for the valves not being reinserted to the same orientation. What I did NOT notice was the L/R valves had been reversed, so my left hose-clamp and clip were now on the right tank, and vice versa. This meant the handles were facing the wrong way if the regs were on as I usually put them on, or the regs were facing the other way if the handles were right. As usual, we got to Ginnie kind of delayed after a 12h drive, and rigged everything quickly and got in the water. In the water, I realized the problem, so got out and fixed it while my buddy went off and did a shore dive on his own. So, I called my dive.
My question is, how many errors did I have so I can compare to the magic three? Was it (a) one error, i.e. the valves reversed, or (b) two errors, since both valves were reversed, or (c) or four errors since I did not notice the problem on either side, or (d) five errors because I got in the water with everything screwed up, or even (e) six errors because I was at Ginnie on a 3-day weekend?
The rule of threes is stupid. If you get the bad feeling in your gut, call the dive.Quote:
Originally Posted by tursiops
I just fix whatever the problem is and carry on with my life.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kelly Jessop
Scuba trinkets break sometimes. No big deal. Fix it or grab a spare.
Hey, it has always worked for me.Quote:
Originally Posted by OFG-1
I had one dive, in particular, where MANY things went wrong while kitting up. Then I had a BEAUTIFUL dive. Super nice.
The only time I've had a series of clusters, I was already at the entrance on the way out.
I can't think of anything I'm superstition about. Hell, I even dove Ron Simmon's tanks. ;-) What did that guy call them?
And Ian Rolland's rebreather. I'm still alive to tell the tale.
I try and be logical and not stupid. That's about it.
The most important scuba trinket is a mixture of white and grey matter that is encased in the cranium. When someone is very distracted and has lost focus then accidents can and will happen. For example, incidents where people have breathed off the wrong gas mix because they are dealing with multiple problems that have occurred. Wet rocks, are wet rocks and will be there tomorrow. If enough has gone wrong, eg 3 things, then perhaps enough mental acuity has been lost to facilitate an incident.Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
But not two or one.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kelly Jessop
I think it's bad practice to suggest some sort of a threshold based on an abritraty number. One failure might be enough for some people, but this teaching of three (which I've heard a bajillion times) can instill confidence (or doubt) where it shouldn't be.
you don't need Superstitions Rituals or Talismans when you hear voices
The more things that I notice have gone wrong on the surface, the fewer things I will have go wrong in the water since I will have already addressed the issues. If I have more than a few things that I catch it might make me slow down and go through everything again to be sure I am all set so in a way- if 3 things go wrong, I might be safer than if "nothing" went wrong (until I was in the water).
I have had days where I woke up at the ass crack of dawn and was half asleep when packing my kit. When I get to the dive site I could call either call it for having multiple issues or I can say "wow, what was I thinking?" and address the problems as they arise and use the event as a reminder to slow down and double check everything.
One thing I do is meditate while waiting on my buddy. Breath in for 3 seconds and out for 8. Repeat and think of nothing but the cool air as it comes in and the warm air as it exits. This relieves stress so I don't strangle my buddy when he tells me he forgot something in the car and needs me to doff my gear to get the key for him and it lowers my sac rate. Win-win.
some of my best dives have been the ones i was tempted to call on the way to the dive site. Then as i surfaced, i think to myself, damn didnt i ever need this.
then other days, I wake up at 4PM and think, hey we are late to go scooter little river...then realize i am still drunk and pass out again..
I text Ted and Travis while I'm at the Racetrack taking care of business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevrumbo
This is awesome. Thank you for posting it.
You made no errors, you called the dive.Quote:
Originally Posted by tursiops
I have to wear red next to my skin when caving/climbing/cave diving. More red is safer.
No red next to skin, I always get hurt (anecdotally proven to be 100% true).
I hate red as well :(
No magic to the three strikes you're out rule. For me, that almost never happens so if I have three issues it means I probably did not properly do my due diligence so I don't do the dive. Instead I go back to the bench, truck or whatever and tear everything down and start from scratch. Then I go dive.
if three gear issues canceled my dives nothing would ever get done. if you put enough gear in the water sometimes some of it is going to break.
if a rew gear issues rattle you mentally, then yea, cancel your cave dive. that seems prudent
If you have three gear failures before a dive, you should call it. If for no other reason, three gear failures indicates poor gear maintenance.Quote:
Originally Posted by LiteHedded
Or there's a metric #### tonne of gear.Quote:
Originally Posted by FW
As amount of gear increases, the probability of encountering a problem also increases.
Yea ok I'll get right on that. Send support home. Cancel the dive. We had some bad o rings.Quote:
Originally Posted by FW
I silently pray to the cave gods before each dive...and go commando under my drysuit undergarments...
I carry o rings, a multi tool and a wrench in my pockets so I guess I'm in the camp of not letting superstitions dictate my dive plan
That post may negatively impact the resale value of your undergarments.Quote:
Originally Posted by PDAVIS1
What the hell is an "abritraty number"?Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
The rule that keeps us alive "never call a dive". Works as well as everyone else's.... To date.
Bob
I'm not superstitious, but i am a littlestitious - Michael Scott
For a while, my ritual was a run to relieve myself followed by a prayer that I was sufficiently hydrated but not so much so that I'd need a p-valve. As my dives got longer, my ritual became less effective.
It is a number first defined in the 1700's by the French scientist, Claude Abritraty (Ab-rit-raty) that defines the number of times any random word can be misspelled, depending on the number of vowels in the word. It proved not to work for most Slavic words, particularly proper names, as there are just too many vowels. I believe it is expressed as I^e, except with no C, where C is a consonant.Quote:
Originally Posted by floridabob
Bob doesn't your predive plan usually involve not showing up for the planned dive??Quote:
Originally Posted by floridabob
the other thing that we also have found to be somewhat true when cave diving (not a reason to call the dive before it starts but during the dive itself) is that when you find extra stuff in the cave (such as line cutters, back up lights, go-pros, or simple valve knobs) make sure you are not missing such items yourself, it also applies to OW diving.... because the cave giveth but the cave also taketh!
Dive safe,
Celia
I'm not trying to be critical but what can you do underwater with these items?Quote:
Originally Posted by LiteHedded
The folks I know that carry gear like that mostly cite it as being useful for quick fixes to gear that you discover in the water as you are getting ready to descend. That way you avoid a (possibly) long walk back to your vehicle.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
Anything you could do above water with the same resources.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
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Fix stuff.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
that's where the DIN o rings come in the most handy. they fit nicely in my wetnotes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Macdyver
the wrench is handy for swapping a second stage, or putting a qc6 cheater on.
multitool is good because it has an allen key that fits a halcyon reel. so if i get in the water and the line swells, i can back that screw off some and the reel is still functional. this would save an exploration dive you'd otherwise have to thumb. it also has an oring pick for getting stubborn din o rings out.
you use tools to fix things.
May be a stupid question, but what happens to a reg when you take a first stage off under water to replace a leaking din o-ring then start using it underwater? I would think the amount of water would be detrimental long term
I care a lot less about the long term health of a $150 regulator first stage than maximizing resources available to me to complete the dive if a problem develops midstream. Everything in cave diving is an expendable consumable except you and your buddy. Do what you need to do to get the equipment operational and then service it or throw it out once you're topside.Quote:
Originally Posted by rddvet
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no issues so far. most times i find issues with din o rings as i'm gearing up in the water.Quote:
Originally Posted by rddvet
underwater it's easier to just take an entire stage reg off another bottle
Didn't know if the water shot through the hoses ruined the hoses or the spg and therefore all needed to be replaced post dive.Quote:
Originally Posted by LiteHedded
On very rare occasion a little water will get in the spg and you'll have to retire it.Quote:
Originally Posted by rddvet
That only happens with those thin plastic face spgs. I've never seen it with my brass and glass onesQuote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
Take the hose off and spool out, stuff the gauge in a container full of rice for a few days. It will dry out.Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
And I don't mean the left over fried rice from the Chinese place.
I did this once at Little River during the start of a solo dive down where the cave line starts as some bubbles were coming from one of my first stages. I took my tanks off and unscrewed and screwed back on the leaking reg and all was fine. No issues later either.Quote:
Originally Posted by rddvet
my main ritual is how i put my stuff on in the water. it's just a sensible order to me, but really does need to happen the way i do it or i don't feel comfortable. plus the three slow deep breaths with face in the water from every reg before descending, which is combo gear check and quick meditative moment.
and rolling over upside down with my light tucked into my chest every time i pass pothole. not for luck, just because i like to see the light from the darkness.
Yeah, you'll lose an SPG. But how much is that, $40?Quote:
Originally Posted by rddvet
Cow butts.... my worst day diving was mid cave
Training. On the way to Ginny
You pass a lot of cows and usually they face away from you
And you see a bunch of cow
Butts. On this day they were all facing me and I thought
It was strange. Worst day ever!
Following day cows were arranged as they should be... butts to the road and all was right with the world again
I dont dive if the cows are looking at me. Cow butts are good luck charms
:rollguyQuote:
Originally Posted by JerseyJersey
In my childhood and teen years, my first activity of the day was going out to the barn with my father and grandfather and looking down a row of 85 cow butts. No wonder I've been so lucky all my life!Quote:
Originally Posted by JerseyJersey
I want a pet rock, too!
Ahhh the "chattering monkeys" I call them. Sometimes they are chattering for a reason. I'll stop and do a "pause for the cause". In this time I'll do another head to to gear check with the buddy and review the dive plan again and access the environment once more. This may take 5 min or a lot longer and that's ok. I'd much rather find issues on the surface. If we decide to dive, it may be more conservative. This "pause", to me, heightens senses and awareness and adds another internal dynamic. I tend to be very "on point" on these dives. If the monkeys start to chatter again on something I know I verified on the surface, I can tell them to "shut up" because I'm confident. If they are chattering that it's time to turn the dive then it gets turned. (Jill H teaches a really effective head to toe gear check btw)
Someone above mentioned it isn't always about gear and I agree. Maybe in a dive team someone is really not wanting to dive and is afraid to speak up out of fear or incrimination from the buddy. To me, we should create an environment where people feel safe to speak up. There could be a reason that the diver or team will never know. Maybe having voices in our heads is a good thing and we should listen when they tell us not to go in the cave. I applaud those who are brave enough to speak up! :)
And.... I don't have an issue number. If it doesn't feel right then that's enough. I also do a reg check at the surface (regs in water) with 3 breaths off each one. Slows my brain down and feels meditative. Once I'm gear checked I like to close my eyes and just breathe for a short time before descending. Has worked for me!
Not that this had anything to do with superstition :roll:
I was gearing up Saturday, and while setting up my rebreather I kept getting "FAIL" flashing on my computer. I had a bad cell, so I decided to dive open circuit. Then during pre-dive, I discovered a dead backup light. I had 3 backups, so I just pulled it off my harness. Then we got in the water, put on our sidemount tanks, stage tanks, O2, and hooked up our scooters. I started down the run, and my scooter was vibrating badly. I stopped, and looked at the prop. One blade wasn't lined up with the others. I pulled the prop apart, and the gizmo (drive hub yoke) that adjusts the prop had a broken pin. I aborted the dive.
In wreck diving we called it the "monster at the end of the line".Quote:
Originally Posted by renee
Do you just assume this since it would be inside the bourdon tube? Not a bad assumption at all, just wondering. And a rice bath should take care of that as OFF-1 states. As far as the rest goes, assuming you use the reg during the dive, it will blow enough dry gas through the regs to dry out anything where the small bit of water got in. Just my opinion, I have not scientifically proven this... although I have anecdotally :)Quote:
Originally Posted by PfcAJ
As far as rituals/superstitions/talismans, I think that land-based diving provides a little wider leeway for a "reset" if you are of the superstitious nature. Three things break? Fix them and start all over like it was a new day. If you think that it makes a difference, and I'm okay with that, don't dive. Self-fulfilling prophecies can happen... or you just spend the dive wondering what's going to happen. You can get fixated on it. That makes for a sub-optimal dive in many respects. No sense doing this if you are uncomfortable. I tell anyone I'm diving with that they can cancel for any reason.
Boat diving, on the other hand, is more on a clock a lot of the time. Things start to go bad and you start to rush to fix them. Then things can go wonky. Same rules apply though... cancel as you want, I won't mind. Crap happens.
Dunno. I guess I figure if there's visible water in the spg it's probably on it's way to corrosion-ville and I just toss it. Hardly ever happens though. I can't even remember the last time one got water in it.Quote:
Originally Posted by cmalinowski
Well not only on boats but at other dive sites as well i am not a fan of having bananas anywhere in the vicinity of my dives. BillQuote:
Originally Posted by cmalinowski