Rebreather Training Course October 13/14, 23-25

[deep thought]

Matt, Good Question and thanks for asking. This requires a couple different angles to answer.

It is not arrogance but a fact that I have personally owned over 8 CCR's (classic inspiration / vision inspiration/ evolution, classic KISS, Sport KISS, Optima, Megalodon / mini Meg, COPIS Meg, rEvo, and home built) and trained on Lar, Submatix, Coltri, plus SCR's.  Having dedicated so much time, and resources into rebreathers allowed me to gain a tremendous amount of experience on different units.  Yes it is a bit task loading for the instructor, but what I have learned is that fully closed circuit rebreathers have more similarities than dissimilarities.  The biggest challenge is to keep up with changes in computer systems such as the upgrades in the Optima or changes in ISC meg handsets... And I know some of the CCR's on the list are very close, however the Full size Inspiration with Vision Electronics is much different to wear and set up than the smaller Evolution with Vision Electronics.  When I started teaching rebreathers some ten years ago, I already had 15 years of training scuba divers so I felt very confident taking 4 new ccr divers in every class.  Today there are many more instructors across the nation, class sizes have fallen dramatically and quite frankly I feel there are too many rebreather choices for a small market.  But back to the basics of difference, is the flow dynamics of each brand name of CCR's that I teach.  My goal is to make sure that the student understands the most basic principle of what/when/where the gas flows in a CCR.  Training agencies have based the skills of operating a specific CCR that is no longer available for sale, this unit was capable of amazing things just as it was capable of overwhelming a diver if they were not on top of changes.  So when a diver learns to flush diluent in an Inspiration, it is vastly different from flushing a Meg, or KISS, etc... To teach all of these confidently requires that the instructor has spent the time/hours in water to develope the "muscle memory" to react correctly to status changes.  I feel confident that I have the experience and can handle the task loading.

For the student wishing to have only one style of CCR in the class, I can appreciate this thought and I do know some instructors who only teach one brand of CCR due to brand loyalty, or simple economics of investing in training and units.  Like a dive store that would train open water divers with a SeaQuest back inflation BCD, verse an Oceanic jacket style BCD...there are different techniques that these totally new divers would experience.  Now when the scuba instructor teaches Advanced Open Water, the students may show up in class with a drysuit / wet suit, an air integrated transmitter computer / hockey puck computer, or split fins vs. paddle fins, Poseidon side exhaust, or Aqualung traditional front purge... there are always challenges.  I know for years teaching recreational / technical diving that it would be nice if divers were all equipped with the same gear from drysuit to regulator, but it is not practical.  Divers who jump into the CCR market have very often done a lot of research into which unit they want to dive, and I encourage but do not force one particular unit....then I smile as I know by experience that many of my past students are on their 2nd or 3rd choice of rebreathers.  The student is not adversely affected by having multiple units in the training because they are enveloped in a bubble of totally new experiences. 

All, or most all of the rebreathers on the market today are good choices - they work - yes some I prefer more than others, and I have bias but still understand the students wishes and provide training.  Unfortunately the market is overwhelmed with choices of CCR's, too few divers making the jump, and more CCR instructors every day... If wishes were fishes, I'd be a whale and only allow rEvo and inspiration students, but then they still harpoon whales - ouch!

Good Diving

Ron