Hello Fellow Adventurers

[Climbfast]

What to do? What to do? Recently got interested in cave diving through a friend. My only problem is my friend who was going to show me the ropes, pun intended moved out of state. I currently live in St Louis, Missouri, 38 years old. It would be awful kind of anyone who can point me in the right direction and inform me about equipment purchases/reading material.

Yours Truly.
FVJ

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Tomex Motors
Larry Bernstein
Peter Whitmore
Devin Mei

[JamieZ]

You dont need the internet or gear, you need a competent instructor. Talk to her/him on the phone and let them get you started. Taking classes= instruction, meeting other interested cavers and possibly meeting a mentor if you have the right attitude. The reading material part is also a good start, find some material that stresses how easy it is to die if you dont follow the basics. Pickup Caverns Measureless to Man. Basic Cave Diving: Blueprint for Survival http://safecavediving.com/store/books.html http://stores.homestead.com/NSS-CDS/...Categories.bok

[Half-Fast]

Welcome, Climbfast! What training and experience do you have in cave diving, in open water diving, and in dry caving?

I'd like to urge you to watch this video if you haven't already seen it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVmqK5YZuxM

[FW]

What to do? What to do? Recently got interested in cave diving through a friend. My only problem is my friend who was going to show me the ropes, pun intended moved out of state. I currently live in St Louis, Missouri, 38 years old. It would be awful kind of anyone who can point me in the right direction and inform me about equipment purchases/reading material.

Yours Truly.
FVJ

Come down to Poplar Bluff the 17-18. There is a cavediving "mini Workshop" being put on by the NSS-CDS. There will be a lot of cave divers, and some cavediving instructors there.

Missouri mini workshop

Mon, 08/16/2010 - 19:27 — webmaster
There will an NSS-CDS mini workshop in Poplar Bluff MO September 17-18. For more information contact Ed at Ozark Dive Company.
(573) 778-3483
http://www.ozarkdive.com/index.asp?tab=4&id=Calendar

NSS-CDS Social
When: Fri, September 17, 4pm – 10pm
Where: Perkins Resturaunt/ Guest House Inn International (map)


NSS-CDS Missouri Mini Workshop
When: Sat, September 18, 8am – 5pm
Where: Guest House Inn International/ Perkins Resturaunt (map)

[ltb7733]

hi there, glad to hear you are interested in cave diving. you got some good advice from the previous post and i would like to add my 2 cents worth. You did not mention your level of experience, so i assume you are at least advanced open water and nitrox certified and hopefully some intro to tech diving courses would be good. i hope you can find a tech instructor in your area. You can check my posting history and look for a post called TO ALL WANNABE AND NEW CAVE DIVERS, i think you will find this on the 3rd page of my posting history. I think that post will give you a good idea of what you are in for. Anyway, get the manuals for cave diving from the NACD and NSS-CDS. you can also start running a reel on everydive and practice line management. Get in a pool with doubles if you have not dove with doubles before. Research how din regs are set up and why. You will also need to be drysuit certified. Cave classes are long and you will get cold in a 7mm suit after 4 hours or so. There are tons of videos on youtube on cave diving. The dive rite website has great information on cave diving gear narrated by lamar hires. You will find that many people will be willing to help reccomend a cave instructor when the time comes. I had mike Oleary for my cave class and i would reccomend him highly. good luck with your endevors.

[Sludge]

You will also need to be drysuit certified.

This is not meant to sound mean, or a flame, but it will probably sound that way. I apologize in advance.

But if you need a course to dive a modern drysuit...

[ltb7733]

lol.....im aghast!!! certainly you are not saying just jump in with no instruction or training...formal,informal or otherwise?..............oh....bty....nothing from you could ever sound mean.....especially with that puppy saying as a moniker...........

[Sludge]

... and had you been at the Cave Diver's Forum Social last month you could have met the puppy in question!

(And I feel that, while drysuits were difficult to use many years ago, modern drysuits only require a few minutes in a pool to master.)

[Me]

Yes, drysuits aren't a big issue to operate as they once were, but you need that card if you want to rent......

[Half-Fast]

You will also need to be drysuit certified. Cave classes are long and you will get cold in a 7mm suit after 4 hours or so.

This varies from person to person. I did my classes in a wetsuit and I was fine. My instructor, though, was using a drysuit and putting thermo-packs under it. YMMV