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Hi there! It's amazing to see the reaction to my little message yesterday, both to the list and in private emails to me. Last night I said to Jeff that it is good to see a subject handled without people getting slammed. Well, of course, there was one exception, that I saw this morning ;-) However, like in many other issues where I allow myself to judge, I agree with Trey that gender is not important in diving. I look at my buddies attitude, esp. maturity. Reckless behavior or expensive gear has never impressed me, as much as weak people cannot find my attention. Anyone who walks consciously into technical diving on his or her own feet shares some qualities that I appreciate in a buddy. They are often very much focussed on the task at hand, mentally strong, they work hard and don't show off or complain all the time. Also, they are hard to themselves and it takes more until they approve a new buddy. There are certain rules that should be followed by anyone to make sure they get out of the cave alive, and this is certainly not gender-specific. Some people think 'women are not allowed to do the dives'. A woman that is capable and willing to do the dives will execute them eventually. Right now, there are limits: experience and the pee valve issue. Also, not everybody wants to stay at 300 feet forever and risk being bent, man or woman. It takes very much of an efford to be readily conditioned. The lifestyle is remarkably different. Just imagine to do workouts daily, change your diet for good, don't use any kind of drug (I got even used to decaf, at least before dives.), always stay hydrated (if you don't have a pattern it doesn't work), stay up-to-date with the findings of the pros, stay in shape with training and skills (read information does not equal knowledge, and knowledge does not equal experience, doing the same dive 10,000 times does not mean you are an experienced diver, it just means you have experience with that certain kind of dive). Furthermore, you've got to spend $$$$$ for gear, travel, training, gas. Downpay good bye. Needless to say that you've got to have a job that pays for those expenses, so your time to do workouts and travel is also limited. In the state where I live you can do some mud crawling at high altitude. So I fly to places, or drive wayyyys to do some more appealing diving. However, that way I get an average of 3 'quality' dives in per week (150/a), at different places, and the recreational portion of that is rather small. Cannot wait to relocate to a place where I can do more than that. That describes me as an anal retentive person when it comes to overhead diving. Dealing with depth and gas means employing a necessary tool because of the shape of a cave. I cannot even explain why I'm so hooked. Personally, I am not interested in any kind of competition to be 'a better diver than XY' - I'm doing that just for myself. Let me put it that way: it is not enough to be better than someone (that doesn't necessarily mean anything), it is enough to be the best possible self. A dive means the most religious experience in my life. At the same time I focus on myself and understand my existence as being an essential but small part of something big. Therefore, I go crazy when I cannot get wet. My mom thinks it is a hobby. Although she hates the idea of me gliding through a hole in the ground, she knows that I will always apply the highest level safety procedures. Guess she kinda likes DIR. On the pee valve: I promised myself never to use a diaper, and I can do dives up to 2 hours painlessly without 'having to go' (although I'm very well hydrated - guess it's will power). Several people on here have been witnesses. I guess last Sunday the pee to pee time was about 3 hours, with an in water time of 93 minutes. Since I'm planning on longer dives in the future, I will work on a proper, non-leaking attachment. Hope to get it done, will share my results. If anyone has a cheap source for a well-working valve, please let me know. Safe diving, Claudia > Well! I couldn't resist responding to this one seeing as how I am > Claudia's other half. ( I'll try not to dig myself into a hole here! : ) > > I personally (and I am not playing favorites here!) have noticed that > for the most part, if a woman makes the desision to do more > "Advanced" types of dives (hate the term "tech diving"), she usually > is of a particular personality type. One that is very particular about > things, (as is any proficient cave, wreck etc. diver), is determined > to not be outdone by the egotistical male species, is hard on > herself if perfection is not achieved, and can be VERY stubborn at > times. <ducking!> > > So as far as the qualities between a male/female cave or overhead > diver are concerned, I have seen nothing that would make me > hesitate doing any particular dive with preference to one gender or > another. (But there is that pee valve problem.....huh Claudia? : )) -- Sent through Global Message Exchange - http://www.gmx.net
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