11 Mar 2007 - South of Scotland Regional Training Day ***Report***
Loch Fyne is the venue for the Second Regional Training Day.An opportunity to get some Training done, do some Training as an Instructor, or come along for a dive.
Ronnie, Ally and Warren on our Boat at Oban Last March.
Quick report on the South of Scotland Regional Training Day at Crarae Loch Fyne.
There were six of us who finally made it, Ronnie, Gavin and Pete Dunlop, Andy, Dougie and myself, No Neil Young, Gavin Wilkie lying Drunk on a Beach, and Graham had earlier advised me he couldnt make it,
We all arrived about the same time and after a Bacon roll and a Tea Sue allocated Students to Instructors.
There were about 40 people there so I ended up doing some Dive Leader Training and impressing all with my Navigation in bad vis ( pure luck ).
Ronnie Mackenzie was Instructing a First Openwater Dive, he passed me on the first dive with his student suspended from her first stage like a puppet.
Pete Dunlop had an Instructor for his first Open Water Dives and did really well, but was too cold to do a second dive.
Dougie had a lovely female Instructor from Edinburgh Uni and he loved every minute of it, even though he lost a weight pouch, and it couldnt be found (more later).
There was a shortage of Instructors so Andy and Gavin went for a Dive and had a great time feeding Wrasse, and finding large Congers.
After the lunch break i carried on with Dive Leader Training with 3 students, with the bay getting stirred up i didnt lose anyone and completed the exercises and a 30 minute dive, then brought us right back to the shot in -1m vis, So they now think Advanced Instructors are real Experts ( oh how wrong they are) they were then really impressed by my midwater DSMB Launch i was hovering perfectly...just luck again!.
Ronnie had a better Second Dive with Felicity, his student, Dougie did his second dive and loved it, but best till last.!
Gavin and Andy had Sue Mitchell, Our Area Coach and aFirst Class Diver/National Instructor to take them through Sports Diver Recue...I have never seen anyone worked as hard, that was real Rescue Training, and was good to watch, full seals on AV...and lifting casualties up and down beaches, long tows, over 2 hours in the water...Sue was really impressed by both of them, I think they got home at 7.30pm!..
So a long Day and was it worth it? I dont know, as an Instructor its was no different to what we do in the Club, and we could have easily accomplished what was done in house, maybe not all on the one day, but we always have plenty of Instructors willing to Train, whereas some Branches appear to have a problem getting Training done so it was a good event to help them out. ....at SQSAC we are always willing to help out when needed...plug plug...
I would be interested to hear what everyone who went thought. It was a long drive, 2 hours each way and total mileage for me was 240miles, nearly 100 miles further than Finnart and an hour or so longer.
Anyway well done to all that went, and I would be interested in your thoughts.
( I later found Dougies lost Weight Pouch while recovering my shotline...and he then thanked his Instructors for finding it when it was me...! perhaps if i had blonde hair and Pigtails I would have been thanked!)
There were six of us who finally made it, Ronnie, Gavin and Pete Dunlop, Andy, Dougie and myself, No Neil Young, Gavin Wilkie lying Drunk on a Beach, and Graham had earlier advised me he couldnt make it,
We all arrived about the same time and after a Bacon roll and a Tea Sue allocated Students to Instructors.
There were about 40 people there so I ended up doing some Dive Leader Training and impressing all with my Navigation in bad vis ( pure luck ).
Ronnie Mackenzie was Instructing a First Openwater Dive, he passed me on the first dive with his student suspended from her first stage like a puppet.
Pete Dunlop had an Instructor for his first Open Water Dives and did really well, but was too cold to do a second dive.
Dougie had a lovely female Instructor from Edinburgh Uni and he loved every minute of it, even though he lost a weight pouch, and it couldnt be found (more later).
There was a shortage of Instructors so Andy and Gavin went for a Dive and had a great time feeding Wrasse, and finding large Congers.
After the lunch break i carried on with Dive Leader Training with 3 students, with the bay getting stirred up i didnt lose anyone and completed the exercises and a 30 minute dive, then brought us right back to the shot in -1m vis, So they now think Advanced Instructors are real Experts ( oh how wrong they are) they were then really impressed by my midwater DSMB Launch i was hovering perfectly...just luck again!.
Ronnie had a better Second Dive with Felicity, his student, Dougie did his second dive and loved it, but best till last.!
Gavin and Andy had Sue Mitchell, Our Area Coach and aFirst Class Diver/National Instructor to take them through Sports Diver Recue...I have never seen anyone worked as hard, that was real Rescue Training, and was good to watch, full seals on AV...and lifting casualties up and down beaches, long tows, over 2 hours in the water...Sue was really impressed by both of them, I think they got home at 7.30pm!..
So a long Day and was it worth it? I dont know, as an Instructor its was no different to what we do in the Club, and we could have easily accomplished what was done in house, maybe not all on the one day, but we always have plenty of Instructors willing to Train, whereas some Branches appear to have a problem getting Training done so it was a good event to help them out. ....at SQSAC we are always willing to help out when needed...plug plug...
I would be interested to hear what everyone who went thought. It was a long drive, 2 hours each way and total mileage for me was 240miles, nearly 100 miles further than Finnart and an hour or so longer.
Anyway well done to all that went, and I would be interested in your thoughts.
( I later found Dougies lost Weight Pouch while recovering my shotline...and he then thanked his Instructors for finding it when it was me...! perhaps if i had blonde hair and Pigtails I would have been thanked!)