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I think some of you are missing the point of the "most important person" concept. Mr. Rennaker is just being honest about basic human nature. When things are the worst we all revert to our survival instincts despite the best intentions. Recent case, the Jackson Blue incident also detailed in the Journal (and let me emphasize that I am not sitting in judgment of these divers), three divers entered the system. At maximum penetration they had a silt out and lost communication with each other...they became solo divers. Two of them were able to regroup attempt a search and then exit...the third was left behind. As the two exited their stress levels were obviously elevated with self preservation being the priority. When they reached their safety bottles, three full 80cf at 1000', neither diver elected to pick up the bottles and go back in to search some more....the thought of getting out was paramount and understandable. In all cases self rescue is better than buddy rescue and should be taught in that order. As for solo diving, it should be made as a cognitive choice not as an outcome of circumstance. The divers at Jackson had no intention of solo diving, but for a time it occurred. Mr. Rennaker's article eludes to these types of scenarios.....swimming or scootering too far apart, loss of visibility without touch contact, long one-man restrictions, stressed or task overloaded diver....these scenarios are "solo dives" and should be avoided if you are not prepared for them. The other type of solo diving is intentional, even if a "buddy" is in the water. Small system exploration being the best example. It requires special gear, training, and mind set. Solo diving can and is being done safely on a routine basis by a small number of experienced cave divers. They just don't advertise or promote the activity...solo diving definitely is not for everyone, but neither is cave diving for that matter. Lee Gibson Matt London wrote: > I was also appalled at this article and Mr. Rennarker and his > insistence on his "most important person" concept. The lack of proper > buddy system procedures, communication skills, equipment knowledge and > configuration, dive planning and the basic diving skills that is so > obvious in cave diving today is the direct responsibility of the > instructors handing out the certifications. Many people today seem to > be more interested in collecting "C" cards ASAP then learning the art > of safe cave diving. With all due respect it is my opinion that Mr. > Rennikers article is a prime example of what we don't want to teach > our students. Best regards M> Thailand's deep cave exploration at - > www.divefun.com/tcdp/
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