50 Hours & 50 Dives! Complacency Kills…

Today I completed 50 hours in 50 dives on my Rebreather (CCR), in just under 6 months!

The CCR is primarily a tool for me, which I decided to invest in mainly for cave diving. I believe it increases safety when used properly. I’m already a Full Cave Diver, but to use this tool in future cave dives, I needed to complete at least those 50 hours and 50 dives. Just because someone has thousands of dives in open water and hundreds in caves does not mean they can immediately use a new piece of equipment such as a CCR. Many ignore these rules and end up dead.

One must be comfortable and confident with a CCR, and its use must become second nature before taking it into other environments, always staying within training and experience limits. I will now have to undertake further training abroad to complete my CCR Cave Diver qualification.

I’ve described these 50 dives to friends in the same way as learning to drive a car and passing the test. The licence is just a plastic card; it’s afterwards that you truly gain experience. With a CCR, it’s the same. During some of these dives, I’ve had to deal with real-life situations using skills I was trained for during my initial course. These included replacing a mask after it broke, dealing with a diluent “boom” (free-flow) and disconnection, carrying out several bailouts to resolve issues before returning to closed circuit, and performing cell verifications. I’ve also spent plenty of time practising skills during dives, rather than simply swimming around.

To achieve this milestone, I’ve used a lot of annual leave from work to fit dives in, missed numerous band rehearsals and engagements, lost earnings, rearranged other activities, and spent many late nights (some until 2 AM!) preparing the CCR for dives. I can finally slow down on the weekly diving schedule! At one point, I even dived five days in a row. Some people said I seemed to prefer diving over other things I was missing out on, but it was all about logging dives and building experience. If only they knew how many hours of preparation, dismantling, and carrying heavy gear across Gibraltar were involved!

Despite saying that my main goal is cave diving, I’ve really noticed the advantages of the CCR. For example, I come out of every dive with my tanks virtually untouched, while many of my dive buddies finish their dives with nearly empty cylinders. On deeper dives, I’ve seen divers go into decompression, even when using nitrox, while I still have an hour or more of no-decompression time remaining.

I love my unit and personally believe it is the best option for caves and shore dives, and perhaps some recreational boat dives too. However, once trimix boat dives enter the picture, things start to become uncomfortable and a logistical nightmare when managing all those tanks in a sidemount configuration! Oh, and it’s also excellent for remote expeditions where no compressors are available.

Now, time for a rest!