BigFatJim’s Weblog

couple of days IDC prep, 12 days of IDC and then if all goes well 2 and a half days of IE

Strangely enough even though I am totally bricking it (more so than my DM) I’m really looking forward to it.

So in just over 2 weeks I could be an OWSI, and I can walk about with an instructor shirt like I own the place !

NOTE: IDC – Instructor Development Course, IE – Instructor Examination, OWSI – Open Water Scuba Instructor

Tradition states that this is performed butt naked.

However, as it coincided with the final dive of my wreck spec (the dive where you actually penetrate the wreck) I bottled out of that not so much that it was a tight squeeze, but because I didn’t want to get anything caught/snagged on any metal or coral (btw most coral is as sharp as glass)

I did however get down to the buff when we came back out and me and German Mike went looking for one of the big bombs that are near the wreck

I think Mike is now traumitised as I decided to put my shorts on at the surface rather than at 24 metres and he had do hang with me for 3 minutes at the safety stop with me doing my nudey superman impression hanging from the line

Happy days…

Finally, I am now a PADI Divemaster !

Did my final ocean day yesterday where I has to do rescue 6 and 7 (bring unresponsive diver from bottom, get him to surface, administer rescue breathing while doing kit removal and then toe him back to the boat) and not forgetting underwater kit exchange.

As fate would have it I didn’t end up with any of my dive team who are about the same soze as me, oh no that would of been too easy, I got assigned to the lovely but every so tiny Chelsea (she is a size S BCD and I’m a L – genius !)

Props to Chelsea for keeping her cool during the kit exchange whilst I nearly lost the plot

Thanks also to the rest of my dive team – Matt, Sean and Neil. And not forgetting Barry the instructor for putting the time in for those 2 days but for also trying to take his BCD off in the ocean and for being the worst DSD ever !

 Next stop is the IDC (Instructor Development Course) which starts at the end of this month.

Oh and one more thing, I’ve decided to get this on the back of my divemaster shirt

                         DIVEMASTER
“MADE IN SCOTLAND FROM GIRDERS !”

Only Angus and Colin (the two Scottish instructors) actually get this, everybody else looks at me like I’m an eedjit

It was either that or

          DIVEMASTER
“GONNAE NO DAE THAT ?”

You decide…

and I am bricking it !

Today mapping project

Oh, and it’s raining again – not a good omen… 

So now that I’m a DMT, you can help out on actual courses with actual instructors. So last week me and some of the troops volunteered ourselves for a Rescue course. The rescuce course is the one before your divemaster where you learn to rescue people – as simple as that

As a DM on this course you get to be a panicked diver, go missing, pass out with DCI and generally act like an eedjit (right up my street)

Here’s me, the troops and the instructor at the end of the last day on our way back to the dock

From left to right : Yankee Ryan, Crowley (instructor), Chelsea, Danny, Me (in one of those uber cool kilt beach towel) and Lauren

 Oh, and it’s not all glorious sunshine as it rained almost non-stop for two days at sea.

Personal highlights for me were being ladder carried onto the boat about 40 times and having my testicles crushed, being dropped on my head on a beach. and whilst acting as a responsove panicked diver whilst Chelsea was playing unresponsive diver and just about to be carried onto the boat for CPR me screaming at the top of my voice “GET ME ON THAT BOAT ! DON’T SAVE HER – SHE’S CANADIAN !!!’

All good stuff

Finally, for shits and giggles, we got ‘Crowley’s Beatch’ stencilled on the back of the T-shirts

There’s another rescue course at the end of this month, might sign up for that as well if I think my testicles can stand the pace…

Dive Master in Training for you land lubbers…

Basically, I’ve finished week one of my Dive Master (DM) course and I spend the next month learning/gaining experience assisting with training courses, running dive boats, doing boat/dive briefings, looking after customers and being a general dogsbody

The first week was fairly tough, my dive skills (you get graded on 20 of them) are getting better and I passed the first two exams. Week two is five more exams and all the final assessments on your dive skills and timed swims (which I really need to work on)

Oh well, off to the pool now to practice my 400m freestyle in the 93 degree blazing sun.

It’s a hard life…

Aye right, so we all jumps in about 6:30 in the evening, all with our torches waying about like a bunch of eedjits. Then  the instructor (Belgian Frank) says we’re good to go and we all descends into the murky gloom…

Murky ??? All you can see is you and your buddies light beams and nothing else – it’s totally pitch black !

It was fucking awesome ! Mind how when you were a wee guy you’d run about with a torch in the dark pretending it was a light saber and making the noises from star wars ? Well this is even better !

Can you tell how excited I am ? Can you ?

(Oh and that isnae me in the photo cause nobody remembered to bring a fucking camera – eedjits…)

The last two days have been spent at sea doing rescues on, responsive/unresponsive diver at surface, responsive/unresponsive underwater, throwing lines/floatation devices, CPR, administering Oxygen, carrying fat bastards up the ladder onto the boat, carrying same fat bastards up a beach, etc

I’m knackered !

Next stop – Dive Master (DM)

Off to celebrate new year now, my first one aff the bevvy

How to you celebrate new year without getting tanked up ?