THINGS WE LIKE TO SEE

SAFETY SAUSAGE...these are particularly useful when diving in an area where there is a lot of surface traffic. They can often be used creatively to provide redundant lift in an emergency. They should be carried in a manner that does not qualify them as a DANGLIE!


UNDERWATER LIGHT....this doesn't need to be big or expensive. It will be needed on the night dive and if you opt to do the cenotes. It is also handy to have on every dive. It is important to keep it stowed in an easy to reach location but again....NO DANGLIES! Some of the new LED type lights are bright enough and have long burn times. Two small lights are better than one big light.

COLD WATER HOOD....or a hooded vest can be a good addition to your warm water diving, especially if you are thinking about diving in only shorts and a rash guard or a dive skin. "If your feet are cold....put on your hat." is more than a cliché. Because 60% of your heat loss comes from your head,it really works.

UNDERWATER CAMERAS....or  video.
This is a workshop about learning to FROG KICK and
acquiring "NO HANDS Buoyancy Control Skills" We think, after the first day or two of the program, it might be wise to give those hands that you are not sculling with........a task. We know that some people want these skills as a foundation for their interest in photography........why wait to try them out?

SPRING FIN STRAPS....are a recent arrival that we think have merit. If you are on the tech diver path and will be using jet fins or a similar product....by all means, include  your spring straps. We consider them a thoughtful aftermarket add on to your gear pkg.


BP&W ...There are many ways to go about most things and setting up a back plate and wing is no exception. You can spend a lot of money on a ready made, DIR approved set up or you can put together your own package and save a little money AND become more familar with your gear at the same time.  Buying SCUBA gear off ebay or the internet is a tricky business but backplates may be one of the items where even a novice diver can apply common sense.   Webbing can be added to the plate in one piece along with a belt buckle and "D" rings.  When you wear out your webbing you replace it yourself.  The air cells are usually universal with mounting holes eleven inches apart so adding a brand new store bought cell is easy.The most common mistake is  selecting a cell with too much lift rather than not enough. We are happy to share, with our travelers,  all that we know about setting up a sensible, no nonsense BCD.Y

THINGS YOU DON'T NEED

BIG KNIVES....you don't need small knives either. Knives are banned in COZUMEL's National Parks.

GLOVES....Our rule, also a park rule. They are banned from the park period. Our view is that there is NO EXCUSE for wearing gloves while warm water diving in COZUMEL and that includes penetration of the C-53 shipwreck.
This is a buoyancy control workshop. CONTACT with anything and everything is minimal and preferably NO CONTACT ever!

DRY SUITS....this may seem obvious BUT there is always that exception; the diver who feels that if returning to first base is the right thing to do, returning in his favorite  exposure protection will be even better. We don't want to rain on anyone's parade and we see dry suits in the cenotes all the time BUT they are not the correct choice for the diving we will be doing.
If you exploit the full benefit of what we do in our 13 dives together, you will have no difficulty adapting the skills you have acquired to all phases of your future diving. We know there are people who learn to dive in a dry suit but this is a warm water workshop about skills that were never learned or not learned correctly.

This is not about learning in a dry suit!

REALLY COOL STUFF we have been doing this for some time and we know a good diver when we see one.This workshop is because we realized that we don't see them often enough. We haven't seen it all but we have seen enough to know when the message is; "Look at my cool gear and maybe you won't notice my skills." We do and we will notice! If you have read any of the other text on our website you should know where we stand.

We don't like smoke and mirrors.

"GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME AROUND"

YOU WILL BE HAPPIER ON EVERYONE ELSE'S WORKSHOP!

SMOKERS....BuoyancyQuest does not discriminate against smokers. You don't need us to tell you it is bad for you or when you should quit. We hope you quit soon but we know it will be when YOU are ready. PLEASE refrain from smoking while on the boat & while diving.  If you are considerate of others you won't need to hide, from us, that you are a smoker.