First Class Diver Experiences 2006

First Class Diver Chief Examiner - MARK WILSON
With a view to continuing to help divers aspire to and achieve the First Class Diver award we have compiled the following information from those members who achieved the award of First Class Diver during 2006

We have invited each of them to provide information on their experiences and aspirations and I'm sure you will all find these as varied and colourful as the individuals themselves.

I congratulate them all for their hard work and commitment in gaining this award and wish them well for their future adventures diving with the BSAC

Mark

Email - fcdchief@bsac.com

FIRST CLASS DIVER EXPERIENCES

Gary Asson

Why did you do First Class?
To prove I was good enough

What was your experience of the FCD exam?
Lots of hard work, I enjoyed the prep, but on the days took the advice “if you started to enjoy it, make sure you are still focused".

What lessons did you learn?
Theory

As the questions tend to be in two parts, you need to have both depth and breadth of the subjects, also don’t think that because you have passed the theory that you can let that side slip. The questions on the practical part can be just as searching.

Practical

When prepping, try to dive with an objective, and if possible be the Dive and/or Project manager. Don’t be afraid to go outside the BSAC to get more knowledge. I found a lot of the NAS courses very useful.

Project plan

Know when it’s finished. If you are not careful, you will spend more time on the final 1% than you did on the rest of the document. Make sure it’s a workable plan. Definitely get the opinions of others, especially those who will be honest, and not just tell you how good it is. QA is the key.

What do you intend to do now as a First Class Diver?
Going to do some more cave while I work out a plan for NI.

Biography
Started diving in 1995 in Goa.

I’m an advanced Instructor and active on the ITS circuit, but enjoy teaching at all levels, Try dive onwards.

I dive when and where ever I can. I have not grow out of the “can it be dived" phase, and hope I never do.

Favourite diving definitely into cave, including the crawly type, but am also happy doing wrecks etc. Basically as long as I’m doing something diving related I’m happy.

Email contact Gary@Asson.co.uk

Ginge Ayres

Why did you do First Class?

It was the next step. Time to do it before I passed 50! - just made it by a month!

What was your experience of the FCD Exam?

Theory Exam - Hong Kong

Needed to apply good exam technique. A lot to write and draw in a short time.

Not enough space on the answer paper.

Practical Exams - Plymouth

Good fun diving with more experienced divers.

Not as bad as I expected.

Enjoyed diving the south coast.

Enjoyed interacting with the Nis and ribbing the CE! (No offence Mark, its just my wicked nature!).

Day 1 - Task Day (RIBs) - great fun diving from RIBs for a change. Bit choppy.

Day 2 - Expedition Day (hardboat) - needed thermals and suncream for English weather.

Plan C applied due to weather. Only got one dive unfortunately - the Nis favourite - Barn Pool - not as bad as they made out!! , if used to diving in Hong Kong!(Yes it is in the tropics!)

Expedition Plan - Plymouth

For me just another project report, but cutting down to required 15 pages was time consuming.

Not much longer than the brief for one of our branch dives!

What lessons did you learn?

General:

Apply the 7Ps and KISS.

Train with others of same level if possible - difficult in Hong Kong.

Keep a diary so you can answer these questions!

It made sense for me to do the Exped plan last after the practical exams allowed these to be the recce for the exped.

Have a good study plan / schedule for completion of modules.

Theory Exam:

Should have started studying even earlier, but time scale had to fit in with holidays and workload.

Collect all necessary books, videos, DVDs and references well in advance - ordering from RYA and BSAC takes time.

Do Trimix and Rebreather courses before start doing exams. Though not required, there were questions on these subjects.

Learn to draw knots not just tie them!! Wear shoes with laces.!

Practice sketching all diagrams from all references.

Practical Exams:

Do plenty of refresher courses as close to exams as possible (as I couldn't attend prep workshops in UK).

Controversial maybe, but while working with the rest of the dive team, be more selfish - instructors are marking your personal performance so you need to show you can do everything required in the briefings to get the marks. (I deliberately bit back my natural desire to jump in and take over all the time, but this proved to be the wrong strategy). Strike a balance to achieve your aim of scoring well.

Plenty of preparation on charts etc.

Work-up training the week before the practical exams at the exam location very worthwhile - get used to boats to be used, conditions, dive sites in advance - this was particularly necessary for me as I had never dived in UK before!! (Well once in a gravel pit!!) Luckily I spent 3 years stationed in Plymouth so knew my way around! I was particularly lucky to have a great bunch of divers on the prep week, particularly Rachel Sharp doing all the organizing - we all benefitted from her unselfish devotion - just what BSAC is all about. It made a difficult time for me settling in, much easier.

Get used to the other candidates before the exam.

Keep equipment simple - more complicated, more to go wrong.

Get a thicker Semi-Dry!!

Useful to have car for storage. Never ending equipment list!

Don’t rely on local resources - take it with you.

Stay cheerful, look confident, be authoritative - assessments are all a bit of a bluff - exaggerate (show off?!) where necessary.

Needed plenty of time to get over flights and acclimatize to local conditions.

Get plenty of sleep the week before as you wont get much on the weekend.

Everything a bit remote as training alone in Hong Kong.

Don’t let the assessors get under your skin - beware of red herring tactics.

Be prepared for the unexpected - think about contingency plans.

Carry a wetbook inside your suit.

Have a set of crib cards within reach for reference.

Have a good breakfast (Thanks to Becky at MBC for filling me up both days!) and take your seasick pills at the right time!!

Be used to working in adversity, when everything is stacked against you..

All adds up to BE PREPARED.

MOST IMPORTANT - ALL STUDENTS ARE WORKING AS A TEAM TO GET EVERYONE PASSED AGAINST THE STANDARD. ITS NOT A COMPETITION.

Expedition Plan:

An advance desktop study and prior planning for the exped at the exam location channeled the need to find out relevant details and acquire local dive guides etc.

Full analysis of the module brief paid dividends.

What do you intend to do now as a First Class Diver?

Carry on doing what I enjoy most - going diving, training others and organizing / conducting overseas trips.

Biography

Royal Engineers - combat and construction engineer - used to managing manpower and resources to get the job done.

1988 Started diving in Berlin (Special Branch 203) age 33. BSAC Novice Diver

1989 First open water dives in Falkland Islands

1991 BSAC Novice Diver (again) Hong Kong

1991 Island Services SAC (Special Branch 458)

Total Logged Dives: 16

1991 BSAC Sports Diver Hong Kong

Total Logged Dives: 30

1992 BSAC Dive Leader Hong Kong

1992 BSAC Advanced Diver theory United Kingdom

1992 Invicta SAC (Special Branch 1244) Maidstone, United Kingdom

1996 retired from Army

1997 YMCA Scuba Club (Branch 723) Hong Kong

1998 BSAC Club Instructor Hong Kong

1998 Assistant Training Officer YDIVE (Branch 723) Hong Kong

1999 Secretary YDIVE (Branch 0723) Hong Kong

1999 BSAC Open Water Instructor Hong Kong

Total Logged Dives: 240

1999 BSAC Advanced Diver (theory again!) Hong Kong

1999 BSAC Advanced Instructor Hong Kong

2000 Chairman, Training Officer, Editor YDIVE (Branch 0723) Hong Kong

2001 to date Chief Instructor Marine Divers (BSAC School 388) Hong Kong

2001 to date Diving Officer Marine Divers SAC (Special Branch 2292)

2002 BSAC Instructor Trainer Singapore

Finally thought I was experienced enough to have a go at FCD!

Total Logged Dives: 1367 at exam

Total Logged Dives: 1395 at exped report submitted

2006 BSAC First Class Diver United Kingdom age 50

Where do you dive?

South East Asia / Micronesia / Australasia/ Red Sea / Canada / Indian Ocean (Mostly warm water diving!)

Anywhere I go on holiday and there is diving available.

Run branch trips all over the place.

Type of diving preferred.

The ones I come back from.

From the relaxing reef dive to the adventurous deep wreck or fast drift dive.

Every dive is a good dive (well almost!).

Favourite diving spot:

Sipadan for great dives.

Puerto Galera, Philippines for the total package.

Finally:

Thanks to all those who ever had a part in getting me hooked on diving and training me as a diver. Without their unselfish support, I would not now be where I am - running a diving school, doing what I enjoy most.

Get a good wife who supports your sporting interests.

It came as a great surprise to me to win the Kowalski First Class Diver of the Year award for 2006 (perhaps reflected by the fact I had made my way all the way to the back row of the auditorium before the announcement!), as many of those attending the same practical exams as me I thought were far more worthy.

If you put your mind to it, and knuckle down to adequate prep, you can all do it!

Email contact - ginge1@netvigator.com

Gareth Leyshon

Why did you do First Class?

Like most who go on to do the FCE I guess is was a mixture of reasons. A large part I guess is ego!

A presentation by Dave Lock rekindled my interest in the autumn of 2004.

There was the issue of it being a kind of Everest, it is after all, the only diver grade that is examined out of branch.

But primarily to answer the question, are my diving good enough, strong enough & my knowledge broad enough to pass. In the end it’s a sort of personal test.

What was your experience of the FCD exam?

Very positive, which I think reflects the attitude of both the other candidates & examiners in the main.

Revealing - you start to realise how little you know on some subjects that you think you know very well. Some of your weak areas are also stronger than you first realise.

I enjoyed the practical immensely, but then it was diving!

It highlighted for me what a group of competent highly motivated divers can achieve is a relatively short period of time.

To my surprise, I enjoyed doing the expedition plan as well – although I could never quite decide when I had finished! Researching an area I had never visited before, with the intention of finding the ‘best’ sites, & putting together a plan that would satisfy 12 first class (or potential first class) divers was great fun – all I need now are 11 other people to see if it works! The hardest part was reducing it down to the 15 page limit.

What lessons did you learn?

Team work & compromise! First Class candidates, by their nature are leaders. You have to temper your leadership instinct, to work as a team, & concentrate on your responsibilities, & allow others to work on there’s. Accept that things won’t go smoothly, that all plans are fluid. There is no time during the exam for blame or recrimination when things don’t go to plan, just review, assess, re-plan, & execute the new plan – until the next problem! It’s just like any normal dive trip really!

Take the opportunity to have a ‘mock’ exam prior to the main exam. It gives you the opportunity to learn each others strengths & weaknesses, invaluable for the exam.

What do you intend to do now as a First Class Diver?

I would very much like to encourage my branch to be more adventurous, plan & execute small expeditions both in the UK & overseas. Perhaps become more involved in REDS.

Within the restrictions of work, I’m getting more involved regionally. Especially on the ITS.

Biography

I learnt to dive way back in November 1992 in Eilat, on a week’s PADI Open Water Course.

I joined my branch (0833 St Ives SAC – Cambs) in January 1993.

I guess I have been assimilated by the BSAC, I am now an Advanced Instructor, although I do hold qualifications with TDI, IANTD, & PADI .

Over the last 18 months I have been gaining experience on my Inspiration, in preparation for my MOD2 & 3. I am still active on OC & qualified as a BSAC Trimix Instructor during the summer.

My favourite diving is probably wreck diving, although I love drifting along walls & drop off’s.

Whilst it’s often assumed that I’m only interested in the deep technical dives, nice scenic shallow relaxing dives bring a smile to my face.

Although having dived in the Red Sea, Mediterranean & Asia, I still prefer the challenge of Northern European waters, a return visit to Norwegian waters is a must (as soon as I can afford their prices).

My favourite diving areas have been the Channel Islands & the West Coast of Scotland.

Although I enjoy diving with new groups & new people, I find branch dives are always tremendous fun.

I have the privilege of being the Branch President. Prior to this, I’ve been Training Officer, Diving Officer & Chairman. I’m still actively involved with the branch committee & organise a number of trips for all levels within the branch.

For those interested, here’s a write-up of my First Class Practical.

Dave Sydenham

Why did you do First Class?
I was told that as a Regional Coach I had to do it!

Really, I knew a couple of people who were considering it and after giving it some thought I decided that maybe I could achieve it, after all I felt pretty current and up to speed with most skill areas due to working on so many SDC’s. I felt I had nothing to lose. What was the worst that could happen? I’d still be an Advanced Diver but would have learned a lot. I tried to convince myself that pass or fail it didn’t matter, it would be the taking part and the learning experience that would count. No chance! I wanted to pass.

What was your experience of the FCD exam?

A really tough exam. Very challenging but very rewarding. Probably the best thing I’ve ever done in diving. Anyone who wonders what the point of First Class Diver is should do it, then they would see exactly what it is.

The first step for me was the Theory Exam. I spent many an evening over last winter studying various subject areas. I surprised myself by doing better in some areas than I expected and worse in others that I thought I was stronger in. I have to say tying knots is a lot easier than trying to draw them!! Overall I didn’t think the theory exam was too bad, I passed.

I did the Practical Exam at Cumbrae in September. The teamwork and camaraderie of all the other candidates was fantastic and I cannot thank my group enough for all their support over that weekend. I had met a couple of them a few weeks earlier during a prep weekend and found this to be invaluable come the exam. You cannot do First Class on your own, you need to work as a team and support each other when the going gets tough.

The Expedition Plan I based on a RIB trip I ran to the Isle of Man this year. I wanted to try out a few things and check they would work, and make sure the wrecks were where they were supposed to be so decided to do it for real first. The plan takes quite a long time to put together, particularly all the chartwork which took many evenings. I did this element last but would really recommend doing it over the winter before the practical exam. I actually learned a lot by doing this which could have aided me a lot in the Theory and Practical Exams had I done it earlier.

First Class is not easy but it is achievable as I would really recommend anyone even thinking about it to have a go. You won’t regret it.

What lessons did you learn?
Far too many to remember or list here!! I think you learn a lot about yourself on this exam – you push yourself to the absolute limit and at times I felt like a complete novice, totally out of my depth, however I passed so guess I must have done OK.

When I came away from the exam on the Sunday I was mentally and physically exhausted but felt like a totally different diver. I felt I had grown somehow and really noticed this on my next trip with my branch – I felt like a First Class Diver!

However, something I didn’t learn, I already knew this, but you never stop learning. Compared to the examiners I still have such a long way to go.

What do you intend to do now as a First Class Diver?

Have a holiday!

As Regional Coach I plan to use my experience to encourage more Advanced Divers in my Region to consider First Class. We currently have an active prep group, some of which are planning for the 2007 exam, some with slightly longer timescales and one or two who are not sure if they intend to do it or not but want to see what it is all about and hopefully learn from the experience.

I also want to do more adventurous diving like the Isle of Man RIB trip for example. We are toying with a few ideas such as Northern Ireland by RIB or joint branch expeditions perhaps.

Biography

I started diving with the Kinloss Sub Aqua club in 1984 at the tender age of 14. I did much of my early diving though in the Isle of Man whilst on holiday each summer. Following a few years out from diving I rejoined the BSAC with Lothian Divers in Edinburgh where I became an Advanced Diver and Open Water Instructor. I later moved to Stonehaven, and became Aberdeen Area Coach. I later took on the role of North Scotland Regional Coach when I became an Advanced Instructor. Within my various branches I have been Diving Officer, Training Officer and Equipment Officer.

Most of my diving has been done around the coast of Scotland, the highlights being St Kilda, the west coast in general, Scapa Flow and the Moray Firth which is where I grew up, although there is still so much I still want to do around Scotland. I have also had the occasional foray into warm water in places like Spain, Tenerife, Turkey, etc but believe it or not, never the Red Sea! As I seem to be the only person I know who has never been there I hope to remedy this situation at some point in the not too distant future.

Email contact dave.sydenham@bsac.com

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Page last modified: 22nd Mar 2007 - 17:37:31