Hot take: The 'it's just a shallow dive' mindset is a killer

Overheard a guy at the dock in Seattle say he didn't bother with his full checklist for a 30-foot harbor inspection. That's how you miss a slow leak in your umbilical or a bad o-ring. When was the last time a shortcut actually saved you trouble down here?

3 comments

3 Comments

williams.jenny1mo ago

Honestly, that same lazy mindset ruins home repairs and car maintenance too.

king.aaron1mo ago

Wait, he skipped the checklist for a harbor dive? That's not a shortcut, that's a death wish. The whole point is to catch the small stuff before you're in the water. Complacency gets people killed.

the_alice26d ago

Three buddies of mine skipped the pre-dive checklist on a night dive in a quarry last year, ended up with one guy's regulator free-flowing at 40 feet because he forgot to attach the secondary properly. @king.aaron is right, that whole "I'll just wing it" attitude is exactly how people end up as a cautionary tale on a DAN report. It's like the divers who think checking their tank pressure before splashing is optional, then wonder why they're sucking air after 15 minutes. I've seen seasoned guys skip the S-drill because they're "too experienced" and then panic when their buddy's octo gets tangled. Checklists aren't for the newbies, they're for all of us. Guess some people need to learn the hard way that shortcuts in diving usually end with a boat ride back to shore early.