No Bubbles Freediving Course

[shoutatthesky]

Well I am just back from my first freediving course. I thought I had a reasonable knowledge of basic freediving but I learned so much more and filled in some gaps in my knowledge.
The course was run by 'NO BUBBLES' in Auckland, New Zealand, by Patrick Preisig and Fran Rose. Both highly experienced divers and awesome teachers. There were about 9 students altogether so the instructor/student ratio was really good.
We started Friday evening with a three hour talk covering such subjects as history, equipment, physiology, safety, training procedures, etc. I could have kept talking all night as it was all so fascinating. A lot of the material I had been through before but not with real world class freedivers. Alas, we had to go home and sleep if we were to make the most of our time in the pool the next day.

Day Two: A 9am start at the pool. Feeling slightly weird not having had my usual 3 double shot coffees, just a couple of bananas and some water. That was soon forgotten as we got started. First we went through some of the fundamentals of breathing with Fran graciously stripping to her bikini top to give us a better view of the breathing muscles. Once our heart rates had gotten back to normal we started on learning the major breathing areas of belly, diapragm, chest, shoulders, and throat. I have been doing breathing for freediving based on what I have learned from yoga in years past, but already I could feel more air getting into my lungs by virtue of a few subtle movements well explained. After a few demonstrations we split into pairs and did some timed breathing excercises, e.g. 6 in, 32 hold, 12 out.
Then it was time to get into the pool for some static work. Fran and Patrick took us through the hows, whys, and whats of static apnea. We went through a series of breath holds leading up to a max. attempt. I had started out the year with the goal of surpassing the five minute mark and managed that and a little more. I think everyone amazed themselves by their abilities.
After a rest it was time for some work on dynamic with fins. We all had a play around with the different kicking styles to make sure we could do them all and to show the instructors just how bad our technique was. Patrick was able to point out some subtle yet significant changes for me to make to my own style.
Everyone was from different levels of experience but we fitted in together well as a class and this was encouraged by Patrick and Fran's relaxed yet comprehensive style.
After a few relays and fine tuning of weight and technique we all attempted a PB. I got a dissapointing 76 m. If I had been fresh I may have done more but at least I now have the tools to work on getting further. I forget the class best but it was not far from 100m. Everyone did an exceptional job and we all celebrated by having a bit of a play around with some mono fins. Somewhere in amongst all this we did some work on rescue techniques. At the end of the day I was thoroughly exhausted and just wanted to eat and sleep.

Day 3: Another 9am start for a go at some breathing exercises and a static session. We were talked through as before on rests, and holds except for the last which was to be another max. attempt. We all knew that if we pushed too hard and suffered a BO then we would miss out on out deep water session that afternoon so this was a more relaxed affair and a chance for us to get used to the protocols and body sensations of static apnea. I did a comfortable 4 mins eager to get to the deep water.

Our deep water site was a freshwater lake called Lake Pupuke with an effective depth of 56m. We entered from the shore and out to Patrick's homemade line platform - basically two inflatable tubes with an aluminium structure holding a pulley and a 'rope lock'. All attached to a rope and base plate and weighted with about 20kg's.
There was quite a strong wind blowing the whole structure along and causing the rope to sit at an angle. I had never done any constant weight before so anything was good enough for me but soon after I had I gotten out to the rig I discovered I couldn't equalize in my left ear. I played around with it making sure to let all the air out and wriggling my jaw every way I could and this managed to get it happening. Then I would do a dive and it would seize up again. In the end I only managed a very dissapointing 16m. Overall the class results were good with quite a few getting into the 20's and further.

The course was the first freediving course I have been on so I can't make any comparisons but Patrick and Fran really seemed to know their subject and how to teach it. Now I have to get to the pool as often as possible and work on integrating their advice into my practice. There is a lot of work to do but now I have a much clearer picture of what needs doing.
Thanks for the great time Patrick and Fran - see you at the next course or maybe I will be competing along side you before long?

[amihov]

It seems like every body in this class was very capable but when it came to diving 16 meters is pretty weak for a supervised and max attempt . Even 20 m is weak. I can't believe that people doing way over 50 m dynamic can't reach the 20 m mark in constant ballast.

[demasoni]

Originally Posted by amihov

It seems like every body in this class was very capable but when it came to diving 16 meters is pretty weak for a supervised and max attempt . Even 20 m is weak. I can't believe that people doing way over 50 m dynamic can't reach the 20 m mark in constant ballast.

Sorry, but am I missing something here? By reading your post it seems like you were at the course and then passed negative judgement on someone else's first time performance.

Please let me know if this is what you mean or if I'm just too tired here and didn't understand something correctly.

[Sergiu]

Originally Posted by amihov

It seems like every body in this class was very capable but when it came to diving 16 meters is pretty weak for a supervised and max attempt . Even 20 m is weak. I can't believe that people doing way over 50 m dynamic can't reach the 20 m mark in constant ballast.

Your judgement is rather harsh and I wonder on what you based it. There is some correlation between dynamic and depth diving, based on the formula CWT = DYF/2.5 (m). Yet, this is purely orientative and should not applied to beginners nor seasoned freedivers, where additional factors such as equalisation and fear/axiety (of getting "down") can significantly reduce the performance, for newbies, or are completely neglijable for the top divers.

You may find a 20m CW dive "weak" but dont put it down in written as you might just put town as well people who just started the sport and last thing they want to see it's being patronised.

it's your opinion sure but i'm for letting out the possitive vibes when it comes to encouraging others to join our ranks.

serge

[Haydn]

It is difficult sometimes to make comparisons and mine own just make it impossible to understand. Best Static with LMC 4 minutes 18 secs. Best Dynamic with LMC 156m at only the third attempt at doing a max. The question is how can I do around 150 dynamic when I can only safely do 4 minutes static. As for a constant dive, I couldnt do a 20 metre dive first time round and my first competitive dive was 17 metres, now its 57m and likely to be never achieved again. Oh, to be able to dive my age, just once more.....please God.

[fcallagy]

I think Adam showed how knowledgeable a diver he is when he did not push his ear trouble all he would have ended up with is a sore ear and no diving for a while if he was lucky. Well done Adam.

[azapa]

for a few on the DB here, diving is their daily bread, for the rest it's fun. I have just completed a course too:
Bienvenidos a Club Azul
very grass roots, many had never been bellow 1M before. But we all had such a blast, and for me, as I am sure as it was for Adam, it was great to be in the water with someone other than just the crabs, fish and those cracky-popping noises that I still don't understand. The figures are secondary. I can dive quite deep and long in the ocean, but have never managed 75M DYN..but I always love it.
great report ...

[laminar]

Amihov,

Everyone starts somewhere. That 15m diver may be figuring out things that help him or her feel comfortable. They may also have vastly different goals than you. For some it's go deep or go home, for others they just want to feel comfortable at whatever depth tempts them.

That 15m diver may turn into a 90m diver - at his or her own pace. Lets keep things encouraging.

[amihov]

I don't want to judge people but i felt so surprise that people who are passing way over 4 min in static and are making more then 70 m of dynamic are having trouble around 16 meters .I know if you are sick and you have inflammation you can't deal whit the pressure on your ears. This is totally normal but according to the post other people did almost a 100 m dynamic and non of them passed the 20 m mark. If you can do 100 m dynamic you should be experienced to go at 20 meters. Maybe i am wrong . All i know is when you are in supervised environment you should be able to explore your limits. Because you don't get this type of support every day.

[Sergiu]

Fair enough to push limits if you have the luxury of professional supervision, yet it comes down to one's goals. I suspect for some of those first time freedivers, pushing limits "as deep as possible" was the the ultimate goal and it should not be.

You seem to be the competitive type, it's all good to be, but others just want to have fun while in the safety zone, with or without supervision. Then again, if you stay around on DB for long enough reading amazing stuff, one ends up benchmarking yourself to top class divers and tend to forget that most of the people on this planet will never pass 2-3m down on breath hold!

[amihov]

I know that i did say something that i shouldn't. For me diving deeper and longer is a must. I greatly appreciate this forum . I was judging based on my experience and maybe that is wrong. Every body has diffrent objectives. Plus i have been snorkeling since i was 6 years old and i learned how to equalize when i was 9. I am sorry i don't mean to offend any one.

[Haydn]

I remember Steve Truglia on his first freedive course with Aharon & MT. He was told to do a 20m dive. Steve decided instead to turn when he felt uncomfortable and went deeper. On his return (I was his safety) his eyes were popping out of his head and his expression told me he had gone too deep. He struggled to get back to the surface despite a 5 min static. So, he had all the confidence but lacked the balanced effort. On the surface he excitedly pronounced 28.5m. His deepest dive....but it was a rubbish dive. Anyway, within a year he became the deepest Brit and made 74m no limits, at a time when the UK constant weight record was 55m. The thing is, comparisons of ability between the disciplines dont work. Neither comparing your ability at one discipline with another persons. When I set the first UK Dynamic record at 139m, it goes back about 4 years now, in Amiens (at only my second attempt at a max) it was further than many World Record holders performance at that time. Look at Fred Buyle, Pierre Frolla, Tanya Streeter and others: at that time they were undisputed depth specialists, but could not perform Dynamic anywhere near the performance level their World Class status in other disciplines sugested they might be capable of doing.

So, a person who has been snorkelling since 6 years old will be able to dive deeper than a person who cant swim. Even if that person who cant swim, is a world class athlete in another discipline and can hold their breath for 5 minutes at their first attempt. And if you cant swim, it eventually doesnt matter, remember Alun George couldnt swim a few years ago, but is now the UKs deepest person.

[shoutatthesky]

I didn't say nobody got past the 20m mark - just that I did not. I believe the best dive was 31m.

[Waterysmile]

I also want to emphasize the significance of being able to equalize. I have a very hard time of it head down but it is much much easier when my head is up. I have got to put a lot of time and effort into learning to equalize better.

[f3dive]

Hi Guys, Fran here.
Firstly Adam thanks for the glowing feedback. I'm really pleased & excited to hear that you got so much out of the course.
I was totally impressed with your 16 metres CW & 76 mtrs DYN as too was Patrick.
Lake Pupuke is VERY DARK and can be VERY SCARY when all you can see is blackness and a light under the base plate.
It is no easy task descending into the unknown for the first time. You should be really proud of your 16mtrs.

We were asked during the course whether pool performances can translate to depth.
Once upon a time I believed they did and that set me up for major dissapointment. There are so many factors involved with depth diving that do not come into play in the pool.

Adam, Be proud of what you accomplished and set yourself some goals to aim for!!!
And yes, if you come to the August comp you will be competing next to me - I might have to strip down to the bikini again to put you off.