This list of skills and notes is meant to better prepare you for the course dives so you get the most from your in-water time. These skills will be briefed and debriefed as part of the course, but reading them here will set you up for the most success. This list isn’t inclusive to all skills in the course, nor it is a replacement for the standards.

House Check

Before you leave the house or hotel, physically check to make sure everything is packed. Double check your charging station to make sure you’re not leaving batteries behind. Check the dryer for undergarments and the drying rack for drysuits. Make sure tanks are loaded, analyzed, and full. Condom caths, light batteries, and undergarments are the top 3 forgotten items.

Site Check

Once you arrive at the site check with your team to make sure they have everything they need. If possible, analyze the cylinders again to verify. Take stock of your gear and plan for the fewest reasonable trips to the water. Make sure you and the team are on track to get in the water around the same time. For example, if Diver 1 takes longer to carry gear down, divers 2 and 3 shouldn’t be waiting in their drysuits. They should pace themselves to match the slowest team member. However, efficiency is important – make sure to discuss this aspect so that everyone isn’t lagging assuming this other is slower.

Predive Check

Once in the water the team should review the plan. Then run through a quick audible gear check and calculate 1/3s (or ⅙ for cavern/ intro) audibly. The team leader (person running the line and first in the order) should take charge after everyone has completed their checks and begin the s-drills.

S-Drill 

All dives start with s-drills. Each team member does a 360 helicopter turn for their teammates to inspect their equipment. After the spin they deploy the longhouse to show it’s free, and ask their teammates if all looks good.

Properly deploy a guideline

We will practice guideline use one the surface, the open water, and in the cavern environment. The goal when running a line is to lay it quickly, efficiently, and properly. Lines should be run as a team. If you’re not using the reel you’re  on the “line side” (behind the leader) guiding them with your light, looking ahead, checking the line, and being aware.

Proper line deployment means:

  1. It can be used to exit in no visibility.
  2. It is secure and will not come undone because of flow or errant kicks.
  3. It is low to the ground, wall or ceiling. 
  4. It has the minimum number of placements and wraps.

Follow a guideline

We will practice following a guideline under progressively complex conditions:

  1. In open water
  2. In the cavern
  3. In low visibility
  4. In no visibility
  5. While sharing gas

No matter the condition we are focused on 3 things

  1. Don’t lose the line
  2. Don’t damage the line
  3. Don’t become attached to the line

For “no visibility” we’re simulating an loss of visibility do to silt disturbance. For safety and conservation reasons we will not purposely disturb the sediment for this skill. Instead, you will close your eyes to simulate not being able to see. After success on this “honor system style” we will use a mask covering or turn off all lights.

In the cave environment we need to predict the next sequence of events. We “scan the line” with our light to see the next 20-50ft of the line which allows us to notice any oddities.

Share gas

Don’t run out of gas. It’s a bad idea. Service your regulators, do s-drills, plan your dive and monitor your gauges. In overhead diving the only true emergency is running out of gas. If we have gas we have time. 

We will practice sharing gas in progressively more complex conditions:

  1. In open water
  2. In the cavern
  3. In no visibility

Body positioning is extremely important for gas sharing so that both divers can use the line for navigation while sharing gas. We will review this as part of land drills. 

Remove and replace mask while in contact with the guideline

Becoming proficient in one handed skills is important as a cave diver. Not only do we need to have good light awareness, but in an emergency situation we need to be able to keep contact with the line. For this, we will keep one hand on the line, remove the mask with one hand, “clean” the mask with both hands (while maintaining contact with the line), and replace it with the free hand. Do not wrap the line around your forearm because that breaks the basic rules of line management.

Signaling

Lights are for seeing and signaling. Overhead divers should show good light awareness. You should always be aware of what your light and your buddy’s light are doing. Your light should shine just off to the side of your buddy so they can see it. Avoid sudden light movements. Avoid shining your light in your buddy’s eyes.

Covering your light head should result in your buddy shining their light on you to make sure you’re ok. Covering your light is a good check if you can’t see a teammate-behind-you’s light.

The point of cave diving is to look at the cool cave. After scanning the line, look around the passage in a controlled manner. 

Lost Line

Having a continuous guideline to the surface is one of the 5 rules of cave diving. If we lose the line we need to find it. This skill is practiced as if we are in 0 viz don’t have a buddy to assist.

  1. Deploy a safety reel/spool (aka, don’t get more lost).
  2. Make an extra secure tieoff.
  3. Swim towards the direction you think the line is in.
  4. While swimming, sweep your hand from the floor as high as it will go.
  5. Once you make contact with the line, secure your reel/spool and attempt to exit the area on the line.

Lost Buddy

You should always cave dive in a team. The team helps mitigate risk with more double checks.

The lost buddy drill is to assist a teammate who is off the line and needs help getting back to it.

  1. Cover your light and look around for their light. 
  2. Look around for them.
  3. You have established they aren’t there. Clip your backup light to the line to mark this spot as the point you’ve lost them.
  4. Check your gas, if you have “enough” then proceed to number 5. If not, exit the cave and get help.
  5. Swim (along the line) in the direction you think they are. This should be back into the cave.
  6. If you see bubbles, a silt cloud, a light (any clues) place a cookie and tie into the line
  7. Swim to the buddy and get them on the line.
  8. Reel the line back. 
  9. Ensure the buddy goes the right way!

This skill will be performed staged at first to practice the mechanics. Later it will be randomly assigned during the dives.

Deploy a backup light

Lights seem to fail a lot in training….deploying a backup light is a simple skill, but it’s more than just taking a light out and turning it on. If your primary fails you are instantly without light. Your buddies should take notice of this and come to assist. Then, follow the below sequence of events.

  1. Light fails, buddies notice
  2. Deploy backup, turn on
  3. Unclip backup
  4. Move to the front of the team
  5. Exit