What difference does it make?

[Dominic]

A question for those of you who (like me) are pro-DIR/hog rigs.

When a typical recreational diver; ie a single-cylindered, air-breathing, octopus-toting, non-deco diver with a stab jacket and a pony cylinder; comes up to you and asks what benefits he would get from switching from what he's got to what you've got...

What do you tell him?

Cos let's face it, most recreational divers don't know what DIR is, but all divers will look at other divers' rigs and say "So why have you got that like that then?".

Assuming it's a casual conversation, not an in-depth lecture, what aspects do you focus on telling people about in an effort to convince them it's a good idea that they should consider adopting?

Just curious - when people in my club, for instance, ask me why I've got that stupidly long hose on my rig, I KNOW there's lots of reasons. But summarising it in one sentence escapes me. I tend to stick with "It's a very common twinset setup" and hope they're interested enough to ask more

[andrallan]

Dom,

Out here in Saudi long hoses are rare so the few of us who dive them get asked this question quite often. (Most diving is with single 12s)
I find that a simple demo is worth a thousand words so I usually hand them my second stage duck my head and take a step back to deploy the long hose and say "Now imagine we are underwater, how much more freedom do we have compared with using an octopus?" Most are impressed.

[Davey Willo]

I think as far as the long hose is concerned I'd just show them, even standing up in a carpark, whipping the reg from your own mouth and presentng it to them in a millisecond followed by seven foot of hose just drives home the point.

Explaining the benefits of a back inflation BC and a 'clutter free chest' harness would take a little longer but if the other person was generally interested I'd take the time to discuss all of the details a litle more.. If the person was of the type that just stands there and says something like.... "what do you want a bloody great long hose for? or "nah mate wings are shite they just force you face down in the water" then I probaby wouldn't even waste my time with them cos they don't intend to listen anyway.

A silent smugness would suffice

[And]

<font color='#000080'>

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]A silent smugness would suffice

Now a silent Dave Williamson, that would be a sight to behold

One Sentence:

Fear:

'Because if you ever run out of gas, I want to be able to save your life!'

Exclusivity

'Because all the best divers have one'

Greed

'Because once I've bought my initial setup, it lasts forever and doesn't break

Salvation

'Because its more comfortable and is less stressful in an emergency

Just pick your chosen sales pitch mate

Andy

PS On a dive site I say nothing and usually let my buddy do the explaining (Dave) In my club I show them in the pool. Most like it, but not one has bought one. I tell them its for cave diving, and so they put it in the 'too technical for me' box.

[Dave L]

Another rarely mentioned benefit of the long hose (for those who wear it DIR style) is the amount of OOA practice you get. Most people seem to think you will get strangled when they try grab your reg out of your mouth in an OOA situation. I simply challenge these people to have a go at strangling me with my long hose next time they buddy me. I’d imagine I average an OOA practice at least once every 10 dives, which is far more often than I ever practiced before my long hose!

[MATTBIN]

Dom
why bother, no seriously, if he needs to ask then he hasnt done any research as to alternative set-ups and two minutes in the car park isnt enough time. Alternatively point him to your web site (plus others) that explain it far better than a car park situation.
All this has to be done in a non-condescending manner obviously or he'll just think you are an arrogant ahole and look no further which would be a shame.

Matt

[siltmonkey]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]if he needs to ask then he hasnt done any research as to alternative set-ups and two minutes in the car park isnt enough time.

There's nothing wrong with people asking - it could be the start of their research. &nbsp;A little enthusiasm wouldn't go amiss!



r

[MATTBIN]

Totally agree silt but if you are strolling down to do a dive, be it boat or shore etc. it might not be the best time to be asked.
Sorry if it came across any other way and Dom's site is the dog's danglies for a newbie

Matt

[siltmonkey]

Maybe we could write the web link on a dive slate and flash it at people who have enquiries! &nbsp;

Q - &quot;why have you got a long hose?&quot;
A - &quot;here's your slate&quot;

Q - &quot;is that a pair of scissors on your belt?&quot;
A - &quot;you're slated too&quot;

hehe

r

[Tibbs]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Dave L @ Nov. 20 2003,12:50)]Another rarely mentioned benefit of the long hose (for those who wear it DIR style) is the amount of OOA practice you get. Most people seem to think you will get strangled when they try grab your reg out of your mouth in an OOA situation. I simply challenge these people to have a go at strangling me with my long hose next time they buddy me. I?d imagine I average an OOA practice at least once every 10 dives, which is far more often than I ever practiced before my long hose!

You need to come diving with us - RobK and I pulled 6 OOGs on Lanny on one dive...

Oh, and RobK - shall I mention the OOG 'incident' at the bottom of the shotline that time...?

Chris