Do you need a Sidemount workshop?

This post wasn’t my idea. The inspiration for a blog on our Sidemount workshop came from two sides – number 1 was my friend Jon M. Piepkorn, whom I also have to thank for the picture on the right here. 

Two years ago, Jon came along on a workshop and took a series of candid photographs, which he recently re-edited. This is when we chatted again. Number 2 was a recent Sidemount workshop for Jeff, who had completed his Sidemount certification course a few weeks earlier, but felt he needed more practice. We were only too happy to oblige.

What is a Sidemount workshop?

So, what is a Sidemount workshop, and why would you need one? Not simply because they are one of our favourite things to ‘teach’, although they are. Sidemount diving, like much of technical diving and related kinds of diving, is a journey, and there is always something more to learn. 

The beauty of a Sidemount workshop is that it can be anything you need it to be. You are not restricted by performance requirements, and you decide which diving skills or equipment-related issues you would like to cover. You also decide how many days and dives we spend together. 

As a consequence, no two Sidemount workshops are ever really the same. Take the two examples covered in these pictures. Heather, in the colourful Scream Wetsuits suit, had completed her Sidemount course in temperate waters using steel cylinders. Throughout the tropics, she is mostly diving aluminium S80s. The buoyancy characteristics differ hugely between those. In Sidemount configuration, this shows as aluminium tanks get lighter and eventually ‘fly’ behind the diver.

This causes drag and affects buoyancy, trim, stability and comfort. It also goes against the intention of Sidemount divers to have their equipment as streamlined as possible. As a consequence, this particular workshop focused on readjusting Heather’s equipment for aluminium tanks and becoming familiar with their behaviour as a dive progresses.

Heather got to play with different types of hardware for her cylinder attachments. Some of those allow adjustments on the dive, others ensure a tank stays in exactly the same place. Finding what works best for you takes time. Video feedback is a great way to accelerate learning here.

The Importance of good diving procedures

Jeff’s workshop had a different aim. Having completed a basic Sidemount diving course elsewhere and a handful of dives after that, he found that he was still not as comfortable as he would have liked to be. He also felt that getting in and out of the water took a long time.

Taking all of these points into account we decided to focus on procedures as well as equipment setup. (One thought here: to really hit the ‘sweet spot’ with a sidemount harness, you need to have your own. Small adjustments take time, but they can make all the difference.).

Why do good procedures help? Because they can save a lot of time when entering the water or preparing for an exit. Developing a routine, especially for kitting up and de-kitting or stowing gear before exiting the water after a dive, can make all the difference. This is about more than comfort – it’s about safety, too.

In Bali, many of our dive sites can be accessed from shore, meaning you often walk in carrying one tank in each hand and then kit up in the water. When conditions are flat calm, that’s as easy as it comes. However, add some waves and suddenly having a slick procedure for equipping means that you exit the surf zone more quickly.

This slick procedure comes with practice and repetition – and with the discipline of sticking to one way of doing things. If you dive from boats as well as the shore, think about a routine that may work for both.

For boat-based Sidemount dives, preparing for the exit is equally important. The goal here is to have as much of your equipment stowed and ready to hand up to boat crew when you surface, minimising time spent drifting, especially when there is a surface current.

Eventually, you want to be able to perform these routines relatively fast. However, for learning and practising speed is not the immediate goal. ‘Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast’ comes to mind. Start slowly and practice. Speed will come.

How does this relate to a Sidemount course?

You would be forgiven to think all of this should be covered in a Sidemount course. Yes, it is. However, many basic Sidemount courses are conducted over two or three days, which is a short time in which to transmit a lot of information. This is the reason behind our Sidemount Plus option. Often, questions arise after a few more dives – or when you have bought your own Sidemount equipment.

That’s when a Sidemount workshop can just be the perfect thing to help you progress. To find out more, get in touch!