- If you will be doing a giant stride, hold onto the railing on the left side of the dock, as shown above. This will give you something to hold on to all the way to the water.
- If donning fins on the stairs, do so while standing on the last or next-to-the-last step. This way, the water will help support you and the weight of your tank.
Dangling gear doesn’t cut it
We addressed this in a separate blog post. Simply put, extra second stages and consoles should never be allowed to dangle freely. This can prevent damage to equipment and the environment and helps make sure you can find these items when needed.
Walking with fins on?
We saw someone do this recently. They donned their fins on our large deck, then attempted to walk down the ramp to the floating dock with fins on.
This is yet another thing covered in most entry-level diver training materials. The only time you should ever attempt walking with fins on is if you are on a dive boat and shuffling from your seat to the swim step. Even if diving from shore with breaking surf, you don your fins at the water’s edge and then back in.
Of all the foolish things we’ve seen divers do, this takes the cake.
What to remember
What we’ve covered here underscores two things.
- Consider taking a refresher course if it’s been a while since you last dove. You may have been taught to avoid these mistakes but have simply forgotten.
- If you teach scuba, make sure you are covering all of the things we discussed here. It will make life easier for your students.
You will struggle less, and there will be less risk of losing your balance. Still, you must be sitting down or holding on to something. It also helps to hold your fin by the side of the foot pocket. This will make it easier to steer the fin onto your foot.
The best places to don fins
This will depend on whether you are doing a giant stride or using the stairs.
- If you will be doing a giant stride, hold onto the railing on the left side of the dock, as shown above. This will give you something to hold on to all the way to the water.
- If donning fins on the stairs, do so while standing on the last or next-to-the-last step. This way, the water will help support you and the weight of your tank.
Dangling gear doesn’t cut it
We addressed this in a separate blog post. Simply put, extra second stages and consoles should never be allowed to dangle freely. This can prevent damage to equipment and the environment and helps make sure you can find these items when needed.
Walking with fins on?
We saw someone do this recently. They donned their fins on our large deck, then attempted to walk down the ramp to the floating dock with fins on.
This is yet another thing covered in most entry-level diver training materials. The only time you should ever attempt walking with fins on is if you are on a dive boat and shuffling from your seat to the swim step. Even if diving from shore with breaking surf, you don your fins at the water’s edge and then back in.
Of all the foolish things we’ve seen divers do, this takes the cake.
What to remember
What we’ve covered here underscores two things.
- Consider taking a refresher course if it’s been a while since you last dove. You may have been taught to avoid these mistakes but have simply forgotten.
- If you teach scuba, make sure you are covering all of the things we discussed here. It will make life easier for your students.