SCUBA-Free Diving?

[flopnfly]

SCUBA-Free Diving?

The latest rage in diving - ditch all of your gear and try it yourself (with caution, of course!)



freediving, also known as skin diving, is an ancient practice that has recently come to enjoy tremendous popularity.  People have, of course, always pushed to explore the underwater world.  Pearl divers in Japan have been perfecting gear-free diving techniques for the past two millennia. Free diving began as an organized sport in the United States during the 30s, when the Bottom Scratchers, a San Diego based diving club, first held competitions.

We all have a mammalian diving reflex that allows us to endure anaerobic diving.  Freedivers experience a drop in heart pulse rate and vasoconstriction of blood vessels. Many freedivers pair yoga with their diving.   It’s both an exercise and an experience of interaction with the world below the water, unencumbered by excessive gear and technicalities.  For many, it is a practice of bringing self fully into the environment.

 Freedivers use large, long fins (either separate or mono, as pictured above) and can glide underwater at nearly twice the speed of scuba divers.  Not only are the divers unencumbered by gear, but freediving fins are more flexible than scuba fins and deliver greater thrust.   Freediving activities includes competitive apnea, freedive photography, and spearfishing. In competitive apena, divers swim long distances or dive great depths on a single breath as an athletic event.

There are two worldwide associations for competitive freediving: AIDA International and CMAS.  Both organization keep official records of dives and set rules and regulations for them.  Events include Dynamic Apnea With Fins (underwater distance swimming), Dynamic Apnea Without Fins, and Static Apnea (timed breath holding).  Other popular competitions include Constant Weight (diving and ascending with weights), Variable Weight (in which the diver leaves the weight at the bottom and ascends weightless) The Cube (descending to ten meters and swimming in a cube form), and No Limits (diving as far as possible using any method you want).

Training for free diving includes the apnea walk.  To try an “apnea walk”, overbreathe (conscious hyperventilation) for a minute, then hold your breath for a minute while you walk as far as you can.  This trains your muscles to tolerate CO2 buildups.  Experienced free divers can walk up to 400 meters this way. Bicycling is also excellent cross-training for freediving.

As of July, 2008 the world record for women’s static apnea is 8 minutes, zero seconds, held by Natalia Molchanova of Russia.  The men’s record is ten minutes, twelve seconds, held by Tom Sietas of Germany.  The women’s No Limits diving event record is held by Tanya Streeter of the Cayman Islands, at 160 meters.  The men’s record is 214 meters, held by Herbert Nitsch of Austria.

Free diving is a risky venture.   Champion freedivers dive under supervision, and choose dive partners who are trained in first aid.  There are many professional freedive training instructors, groups, and schools available to help you get started in this exciting sport.

Although freediving is largely gear-free compared to scuba, there are a few accessories that come in handy. Gear options loved by freedivers include multiple purge snorkels (“dry” snorkels) and small, housing-free cameras such as the Nikonos V or the  Sea and Seas.  And, of course, don’t forget a great wetsuit!

Curious to see freediving in action before you try it?  Consider renting The Freediver (2004), about a scientist who trains to break a freediving record, or The Greater Meaning of Water (2008), which is an independent film that explores the zen of freediving.
Just a few tips to keep in mind if you decide to give freediving a go:

•    It is not a good idea to hyperventilate before actually diving; this is just for practice!  In the water, hyperventilation can contribute to a “shallow water blackout”, which is just what is sounds like.

•    Never freedive if you have a sinus infection of difficult equalizing. Never exhale during the dive (this is the exact opposite of what one does scuba diving!)  Rise to the surface without stopping.

•    The best way to avoid accidents is to train with a freediving club or an experienced trainer.  This isn’t a sport to take up on your own.

For more information on freediving events and resources available in your area, visit www.apneamania.com