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Old 12-22-2005, 03:44 PM   #1
ThePunisher
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Deepest you feel comfortable?

Hey,

What's the deepest that most freedivers feel comfortable getting down to and how long can you stay down there? Also, do you guys have any techniques/tips or articles that I can read to help improve how long you can stay under?

Thanks guys!
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Old 12-22-2005, 04:04 PM   #2
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

A good start is to purchase "Freedive" by Terry Maas.

Secondly, I would try to buddy up with someone in your area with preferably some freediving experience. It's amazing how you'll be able to learn if you have someone mentering you and show you the ropes. Also, a buddy will protect you against some of the dangers associated with Freediving.

Keys to freediving is to relax and conserve your enery (Oxygen) by limiting un-needed movements. Aerobic exercise will certainly help as you can reduce your HR this way and all elite freedivers have an elaborate aerobicb-based training routine. Learn to relax while in the water by using appropriate "breathe-up" techniques. Which is usually ventilation on the surface before descending. Learn to use your entire lung capacity, which includes your diaphragm.

Freediving can get really technical, but the above may be a good start. Continue to ask questions and utilize the "search" capabilities on this site or go on over and surf www.deeperblue.net. Although, you can get more confused over there with just the terminology. After you've become somewhat comfortable you can learn a few tricks regarding streamlining yourself, packing, purging and lots of other stuff. Don't take this sport for granted as freediving spearfishing is by far the most dangerous sport in the world.

Don't train alone in a pool and again, find yourself someone to share this experience with and learn off each other. And never dive alone (although we are all guilty of this).

Good luck!
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Old 12-22-2005, 04:20 PM   #3
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

your depth and bottom time can vary tremendously from day to day. Its dangerous to have a mindset that "Im a 80' diver" and force those depths if youre not feelin it that day. Many factors can effect your ability such as dehydration, metabolism, recent illness, stress, fatigue, ect. Learn to listen to what your body is telling you. Some days you will dive like you can do no wrong...other times will be very frustrating. Anylize your trips...if you are getting ear problems and arent ill did you eat or drink dairy prior to your trip? Gatorade on the boat(sometimes messes up my ears) instead of water? Ect.

If you talk to many experienced freedive hunters and ask how deep can they dive(which happens to be the most commonly asked question when people find out about your hobby) most will tell you something like, "as shallow as I can and still shoot fish."
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Old 12-22-2005, 04:52 PM   #4
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

I'll second that. Conserving energy/oxygen is key. As a newer spearo, I can tell you how much improvement you can get by actually concentrating on staying calm and thinking about efficiency / what you are doing to save oxygen.

I currently feel comfortable with a decent bottom time at about 30 feet. However, I am shore diving and I have weak fins. I feel like I could go quite a bit deeper but my fins aren't that strong. I have a pair of longblades coming for Christmas =). I don't want to go too much deeper now cause I don't have the longblades yet and the power to get back up.

When you get in the water, you will find out quickly how long you can stay down and what you are comfortable with. Generally (but not always) the deeper you go, the bigger fish get. When you actually think about your movements, etc, you will improve quickly. Good luck!!
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Old 12-22-2005, 05:04 PM   #5
Bill McIntyre
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

The best single reference that I know of is "Blue Water Hunting and Freediving" by Terry Mass. I highly recommend it.

BTW, I think the majority of white sea bass are in the top 20 feet, no matter if the bottom is 80 or more.
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Old 12-22-2005, 05:10 PM   #6
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

If you want some good breathe-up techniques, throw Spearo_Fla a PM, he has some great insight. As for depths and bottum times, every day is different as is every dive. I find factors such as visibility, how my body feels, and if there are any fish around is what affects my bottum time the most. For example, if I make a dive and don't see any fish at all ... I can't stay down for long. If I dive again and there are tons of small snapper around, I can push longer and longer under the hopes that some nice fish will come. If I make another dive and am stalking a nice fish, this is when I have the longest bottum times. Even while pool training (always w/ a partner), I find that my longest times are very close in relation to my dives when stalking a fish. Be safe.
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Old 12-22-2005, 06:21 PM   #7
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Okay, thanks guys. Definately going to check out that book and thanks for the input on the WSB Bill, it's good news that their in shallow waters!
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Old 12-22-2005, 06:35 PM   #8
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

[quote= thanks for the input on the WSB Bill, it's good news that their in shallow waters! [/QUOTE]

The bad news is that after you shoot them shallow, they often tie up in the kelp deep.
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Old 12-22-2005, 08:01 PM   #9
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Damn...if I end up using a polespear (Like we talked about in the other thread) how much trouble do you think I'll having killing 'em?
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Old 12-23-2005, 01:37 AM   #10
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Quote:
Originally Posted by ThePunisher
Hey,

What's the deepest that most freedivers feel comfortable getting down to and how long can you stay down there? Also, do you guys have any techniques/tips or articles that I can read to help improve how long you can stay under?

Thanks guys!
For me, its 45 feet. The duration varies from day to day. Usually 50 seconds to 80 seconds. I just never try to push things for safety sake.
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Old 12-23-2005, 01:58 AM   #11
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Terry's books Freedive and blue water hunter are great. I would suggest Blue water hunter, because free dive has very little on spear fishing.

The first thing that led to an improvement in my diving was getting comfortable with my equipment in the pool so I could relax in the ocean. I had to go diving about 4 times before I could calm down and start to relax. Perhaps relaxation should be your first goal.

Then I worked on minimizing my movements. Water has so much resistance that a few useless arm movements (like using your arms to swim under water) can burn alot of air.

I have recently focused on breathing techniques and streamlining my body, both have made a huge improvement. When I started diving I probably could not break 15 feet, but a few years ago I broke 70. It took me 10 years to make that improvement, but it was pretty much a trial and error process until I found Spearboard. I am sure you will improve much faster.

I spend most of my time in 35-50 feet of water looking for lingcod and vermilion. Just be safe. I think almost every Hawaiian skindiver magazine I have seen has an obituary in it.
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Old 12-23-2005, 03:58 PM   #12
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Thanks guys, appreciate it. Also, how long between dives do you wait before you go down again?
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Old 12-23-2005, 04:18 PM   #13
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Quote:
Originally Posted by ThePunisher
Thanks guys, appreciate it. Also, how long between dives do you wait before you go down again?
I try to wait a minute and a half unless some big fish swims by under me and makes me cut it short.

But this brings up something else that you need to buy.

I had no idea how long my surface intervals were before I bought a Sunnto D3, which times surface interval (as well as other things like depth and time of the last dive). Then I found out that if I just depend on how I feel to know when I'm ready to go again, it will only be about 40 to 45 seconds. Others have told me that they had the same experience. The D3 gives me the facts.

I think a popular rule of thumb might be that your surface interval should from 1.5 to 2 times the length of your dives.

If I know I'm about to make a very challenging dive, perhaps to go down and cut a fish out of the kelp at a scary depth, then I might make sure that my surface interval is 2 or 3 minutes.

And then at some point when the depth and conditions are too scary, I have a very long surface interval swimming back to the boat to get a scuba tank. I've been called a pussy for that, but I'd rather be called a pussy than called dead.
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Old 12-23-2005, 04:23 PM   #14
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill McIntyre

I think a popular rule of thumb might be that your surface interval should from 1.5 to 2 times the length of your dives.
McIntyre's advice is fairly accurate. I always try to aim for a 2:1 ratio of:
surface time: bottom time.

If you are attemping deeper dives and stay down longer you may want to extend the surface time, but generally 2:1 should be good at a minimum. Be careful, a freediver can get the bends without enough surface time, but for most of us, this should be a rare occurence.

Another thing to keep in mind for freediving, what you do in your surface time, will determine your bottom time. Relax and Ventilate and prepare yourself to descend again.
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Old 12-23-2005, 05:58 PM   #15
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Re: Deepest you feel comfortable?

If Iook at my D3 at the end of the day my average depth is between 32 and 36 feet.The deepest will normally be mid 50's or 60's,depending on how I am diving that day.
Don't worry about depth and time yet.Get out there and dive!Depth and time will come with experience.The best piece of advice I have ever gotten is if your not pissin every 20 mins or so you dehydrated or not relaxed.Sounds crazy but its true.
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