checking the line

[ARY]

The mailreport on recent dive in P2 of people i know makes me to think: should i pull the line occasionally just to check if it is still secured reliably at its tie offs and placements. We swim along the line but we don't know if it is still secure when we will neeed it. If i accidentally break the line doing pull-checks i can abort my dive and fix line on spot but it will ensure that line is in working condition. My concern however in this situation would be: what if while i'm doing it some team is still in there? In PSSP i shouldn't do such pull-checks but instead go to report problem, right? Is it OK to do pull-checks elsewhere?

Any way personally for me it is a reminder about situations when line that you used to enter and travel along in a cave really gets untied, removed or weared off so i have to remember to do careful inspection of line at each placement (which i frequently forget). Gold line that is laid in major passages is probably OK but rarely visited places with old line berried in silt might present dangerous surprises.

[Angie Reim]

I would agree that gold line is generally okay. However on the last dive I made to Hill 400, part of the rock that the line was wrapped around must have broken off -- or perhaps some students had pulled too hard making the jump (a forgiveable offense, they ARE students). The gold line was drifting in the current and I could envision a scooterer coming around the corner and clotheslining himself. Of course we stopped and did our best to reroute and tighten the line.

Just when we finished that I was changing reg's (SM) and coincidently I was blown into and tangled in the same line --- right then another team came around the corner and caught me. I gave them the universal loser signal, waved okay and then swam away as fast as I could.

Anyway I digress----- I might give a VERY slight tug to the line when I go down the tunnel less traveled. If the line is buried in silt I always try to bring it up. Better to know where the line is and where it leads than assume the wrong thing into a silt mound. If I screw up the viz for my own dive then that's a small price to pay.

[Tegg]

I always give the line a tug every once in awhile... the less traveled a part of the cave and the siltier, the more I "test" the line. You really don't want the line going limp on a zero vis exit...

Of course YMMV and I am not responsible for you pulling off a tie off if you "test" the line to hard...

[ARY]

Just when we finished that I was changing reg's (SM) and coincidently I was blown into and tangled in the same line --- right then another team came around the corner and caught me. I gave them the universal loser signal, waved okay and then swam away as fast as I could.

Stop, this is offtopic but i like the way it is. When you were changing regs did you attach hose and second stage back on cylinder? I leave it hang on the same one necklace, why store it back on cylinder if you don't have a need to unclip bottle now?
Another interesting moment: what is a standard "universal loser" signal ?

[HomoErectus]

Another interesting moment: what is a standard "universal loser" signal ?

I would like to know that singal too, so I can put it on my fins.

[Angie Reim]

Universal loser signal.

Thumb and finger in shape of 'L' on the forehead.

[PacerFan577]

Just when we finished that I was changing reg's (SM) and coincidently I was blown into and tangled in the same line --- right then another team came around the corner and caught me. I gave them the universal loser signal, waved okay and then swam away as fast as I could.

So last weekend my wife and I decided to do a push dive up the gold line to see how far we could make it on backgas. We were headed up the main line toward Hill 400 when I come around a corner and nearly run into someone in sidemount that's close to entangling themselves in the line... They realized it, got up and over the line, gave us the universal loser signal, and moved away faster than I've seen anyone go.

So Angie, that was you? I wasn't going to say anything, but since you did... Well, nice to meet you anyway

[Angie Reim]

Yeah. It was funny. I swear your face was about 18 inches from mine when you came around that corner. Should've seen the look in your eyes. Like 'Holy cr**! What is this?!"

Very uncool of me. I should've backed off the line before changing regs.

When you were changing regs did you attach hose and second stage back on cylinder? I leave it hang on the same one necklace, why store it back on cylinder if you don't have a need to unclip bottle now?

Same one necklace? I don't understand. Two reg's on one necklace? One reg clipped off a necklace? Two regs, two necklaces? Sounds cumbersome and can lead to confusion between which reg goes to which tank.

What works for me is the following. I am no expert and this is what has worked out for me only. You asked, I'll tell you but go get official training if you have not done so. It is worth every penny! It's worth it to learn from someone elses mistakes without suffering them yourself. That being said.......I dive SM exclusively. I will mix dive styles (BM/SM). My regular buddy dives SM but prefers BM. If it's a team of two the buddy needs to be experienced and known to NOT likely panic. If a buddy is not well known/experienced then someone else needs to be BM too - team of three.

For the BM buddy I carry a 5ft LONG hose on the left tank which I wrap around my neck in the usual manner with a bungee necklace. The excess is stuffed on the tank under two bands. I've learned to stuff it such that it deploys without entangling itself on my rig. (Thank you J.F. for the helpful hint. Yall should've seen the first drill. What a hoot!). The right reg is on a SHORT hose and clipped off with a break away o-ring arrangement. I stuff the excess hose on the right tank and I can easily return it there during a dive. The rig seems streamlined (BUT I AM ALWAYS OPEN TO HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS).

I have run OOA drills and the air share with BM works well. On those drills I have said just grab a reg and we'll work out the long hose after you get air. Of course the one in my mouth was the one grabbed. Since the right is break away, all I had to do was pull it. If the right was pulled the other hose was on the necklace and ready. Likewise, I can quickly donate that long hose to help someone. A switch off was not difficult and it is my responsibility to move to a more correct swim position. You can't expect an OOA person to think well.

Proper air management is crucial. I never expect to airshare for myself and always I keep enough in each tank to get myself out. Good thing because I had a free flow last weekend that required me to shut down one tank for exit. I wasn't worried. Plenty of air in the one tank and there were options for accessing the shut down tank. The buddy at the time was BM. I wouldn't take his air, but he was ready!

BTW if any sidemounters out there take exception to this arrangement and can foresee a disaster in the making then please comment. Like I said, I'm no expert but this arrangement seems to be working well for me given that I do to mix SM and BM dives (under the strict guidelines mentioned above).

One last comment. If the dive plan is definitely for tight nasties SM only then I'll remove the long hose for a shorter version so it won't catch on rocks.

[Angie Reim]

Of course YMMV and I am not responsible for you pulling off a tie off if you "test" the line to hard...

What does YMMV mean?

[ARY]

Thanks Angie for sharing your experience. I'm only on my way to sign up for sm class (just need some time and some money) however i always try to use my chance to ask questions.

I have similar config: left cyl w.long hose around neck(will donate), right cyl with H-valve and primary short hose w.swivel , secondary "stage"-length hose folded under inner tube on cyl and this second stage clipped to the right cyl(will use as replacement reg or safety reg if cyl used for no-mount restriction). I use just one necklace to clip both active second stages on it (elastic rings between each reg and its clip). The reason for one necklace came after my right (short hose) second stage stuck in between sholder d-ring and rock and started to release gas and i had no chance to get to it with my hands. If this reg would be on my necklace at that time it never happened (plenty of room between head and body around neck to protect regs from pinch and dirt).

In any case it takes seconds to switch second stages in your mouth unless you try to fold hoses and clip second stage back on a cylinder. This one may affect a trim for a moment especially in "wind". That is what i was thinking reading your message and thats why it became curious to me.