Side Mount for the "occasional" cave diver

[SUB ZERO]

Hi Fellows,

I don't live next to caves . Being between NJ and NC, wrecks are what most of my diving has been about. I wanted to get into cave diving just to practice overhead and line work for wrecks. As I researched cave diving and cave courses, they seem to be a world within themselves and my motivation has changed. I would like to get into cave diving for the sake of cave diving.

Initially, I wanted to stick to backmount cave training and diving because that would have been my configuration inside wrecks. Now I see the advantages of side-mount particularly in a cave setting. Presently, my backmount configuration has become an extension of my body and it may take some dives to get that level of proficiency with sidemount. Once it is achieved, you have to be diving it frequently to retain it. For someone who will be diving caves once a year, should I stick to backmount? My concern is finding myself deep inside a cave in a configuration that I am "second best" in.

Someone suggested that I take the cave course in backmount. When I am done, I can dive is SM or BM but if I take the course in BM then learning SM and getting a few dives under instructor supervision may be hard.

Thoughts and suggestions welcome.

[kensuf]

Since you're already very comfortable in BM, my recommendation is to learn to cave dive in the equipment that is the "extension of your body" rather than trying to learn both how to cave dive and how to dive sidemount at the same time.

[Dominic]

I agree with Ken, I am definitely more comfortable in backmount than sidemount. So any serious technical diving I do (including cavediving) is in backmount. Maybe one day I'll be proficient enough to sidemount in a cave.

[tbone1004]

agree with Ken. Cave training is to teach you to cave dive, not to dive in new gear. Take the course in backmount and learn to cave dive in a configuration you're familiar in. After you go through training and get some dives in, if you want to go sidemount, take a sidemount course and commit to it properly.
I believe sidemount is a better configuration for cave diving and very rarely dive doubles in a cave and very rarely dive sidemount in open water because I think doubles are better for OW/wreck diving. That said, there is very little in terms of equipment configuration that feels as simple as a set of doubles and I love how easy it is so there's something to be said about that while you're learning to cave dive.

Ken btw is a great instructor with umpteen bajillion dives in doubles going back to the WKPP days, so I'd highly recommend reaching out to him while you are instructor shopping.

[lord1234]

Why do you *need* sidemount? Sidemount for most is a tool to overcome some issue, whether it be injury, SUPER tight cave, etc. Backmount can keep you plenty busy in Florida and Mexico caves for many years to come.

[SUB ZERO]

Why do you *need* sidemount? Sidemount for most is a tool to overcome some issue, whether it be injury, SUPER tight cave, etc. Backmount can keep you plenty busy in Florida and Mexico caves for many years to come.

Well firstly, those caves in the Bahamas look pretty awesome! I heard that you had to be in SM to dive those? Secondly, all cave divers end up in SM at some point. It seemed the most optimum set up if you were doing strictly cave. I am glad that that is not the case.

[rddvet]

Learn to cave dive first, then decide if you want to screw with SM. I started bm for a little while, chose to go sm and I absolutely love sm (I'm way more comfortable sm than bm), but have started going back to bm. Sm can be a real PIA. In the initial stages it's constantly fiddling with gear (even if you take a course). Then when you start going longer range you have to start figuring out what to do with all of your stages. BM if by far much easier to use to just gear up and go. SM is really only necessary when you need to hit tight passages. I personally still dive sm for alot of areas others can wiggle through in 104s. The main reason is I have way more time in sm than doubles and am less likely to scar the cave in sm.



If I had to do it all over again I would've just stuck with bm the whole way through. Only reason I chose to go to sm was my wife took a pretty nasty spill due to a tree root with worthy 85s doubles on her back and was out of diving for a while. It was the height of the sm craze a few years ago and thought maybe the switch will decrease the chance of her hurting herself again. She would also go back to all bm diving now too if given a choice.

[Maxpcf]

Not sure if it's needed, but another agree with Ken.

[helodriver87]

Secondly, all cave divers end up in SM at some point.

Not necessarily true. I know several really experienced guys who have never messed with it. There's a ton of backmount accessible cave out there. Stick with the gear you know while learning about the environment you don't. You can think about sidemount later on down the line when you have a need for it. There are way more sidemount divers than divers who truly need sidemount.

[cmint]

I'd say take the class in the configuration that you are comfortable in, then learn SM after the class.


It's frustrating to change to a configuration that you're not used to during a class.