Jay (00:01)
Welcome to the dive table. I'm Jay Gardner.
Sarah (00:04)
And I'm Sarah Miller. And today we're going to be talking about boat etiquette. Jay, do you want to? Yeah. On a boat. It's, it's a classic from whatever timeframe. What, what, what inspired this one? Cause this is a topic that you wanted to push here.
Jay (00:09)
I'm on a boat. I'm on a boat. What's that song?
Yeah. So it's so interesting. You know, the boat topic, because there's lots of different situations you can find yourself on in boat diving, everything from, you know, a chartered boat. Some people call them the, you know, the cattle boats, packed full of divers to a smaller charter, to a Zodiac, to a buddy or friend's boat, which is the best one, by the way. And,
What is the etiquette? There's a, there's a etiquette that comes with being on a boat to make it easy to dive. And we always think about this, the saying, you know, we train hard to dive easy. And yet in a lot of your open water courses or those sorts of things, I, at least in mine, I had no idea how to, I was certified diver. I had what are 30, 40 dives and I never dove off a boat. I got on a boat and it was like a whole different world. So for me,
When I teach open water, I purposely do a couple of days shore diving and a day of kind of experience diving off of a boat, but we're still in instruction mode because there's things that you should know and things that were taught to me eventually that were really helpful for me on a boat. So I'm passionate about the, that sounds so stupid, about the etiquette of boat diving, but it's, it's just passion. Yeah.
Sarah (01:44)
No, it's not stupid. No, I like it. So let's get into it.
Jay (01:58)
Yeah, here we go.
Sarah (02:01)
So I'm really curious to hear more about this because I got certified on a boat. So like my experience from the get -go was boat diving. And I guess the learnings kind of came from just being there, right? Like I never had an instructor sit down. I mean, obviously there was like the safety briefings and that kind of stuff, but like I didn't get.
a real lesson of like the different parts of the boat and like the lingo. I mean, for goodness sakes, I have called a bowline, a bowline for like most of my marine career. And it's common. And I realized that I have a lot of mispronunciations because I learned all of this stuff with Spanish speakers and people who speak English as a second language. So like,
Jay (02:43)
That's common. Yeah.
Yeah.
Sarah (02:54)
I just was, I was in this different world and I didn't know. And the first time that I said that to like a sailor, I was like, my gosh, I'm so embarrassed. They called me out on it. Like, what is that? Like I am special. So please let's hear from you on this.
Jay (03:12)
worry, I just called the holla bread chala bread. So I got a I got a nice response from that one, which I, you know, I just didn't know my bad. So, but yeah, I think I think your experiences is like most people's experience. So what I did is I prepped for this episode, a list of the things that I talk about my kind of list that I take on a boat with me, when I'm teaching open water students, or I'm teaching somebody that has never been boat diving before the things that I would go through.
So maybe we could go through the list and go back and forth on that. Sound good? All right, so number one on my list is be a minimalist. You don't want to be the person, a boat by the very nature of it being a boat has limited space, right? For the most part, almost every boat I've ever been on, even if it's not packed, even if it's not a cattle boat, you have a limited amount of space. And so you don't want to bring,
Sarah (03:45)
Yeah.
Jay (04:09)
everything that you own in your dive locker onto that boat, right? You don't need your backup fins and your backup to your backup fins, just in case. Be a minimalist, bring what you need for that trip, that dive and leave everything else at home or in the car or in the parking lot or in the dive locker at the dive shop. and I think that this is an important one because oftentimes I get on a boat and you see someone who's
We kind of joke and the phrase has always been the Christmas tree diver, you know, the one that has a bunch of ornaments hanging off of them, bring everything that they possibly could ever need for every dive. You know, we're doing a nice, you know, reef dive and they've got, you know, a reel and three spools clipped off. Why? Right? Like you're not going to use those things. So the number one rule or the first rule, not the number one is be a minimalist because recognize that the boat has.
Sarah (04:40)
Mm -hmm.
Hehehehe.
Jay (05:05)
very little space and you want to take up as little of that space as possible for your stuff.
Sarah (05:11)
Yeah, I think on top of that is, and I say this, being a person that is terrible at this, be like organized. Like I, my biggest issue with going onto random boats at this point is that I currently do not have a gear bag. Like I don't have one. It does not live in my vehicle because I don't, I don't go on boats very often anymore. Like it's just not a common thing. I'm always shore diving from my van.
Jay (05:37)
Right.
Sarah (05:41)
So I would say that, you know, if you are going to do that, having a bag or a crate, right? Like a lot of people will take a crate and especially if you know the boat that you're going to go on, you could get one that fits under the dive benches. That's really helpful.
Jay (05:59)
Right. Yeah, that was, that's number two on the list is be tidy and compact. See be, be tidy, be compact. What, what else can you do to do that? Like I love the idea of the crate. You can also, you know, depending on the situation, get ready and at the truck or at the dive shop, you know, I put on my dry suit halfway. So I put half of it on, and, you know, without the arms or the next seal or anything like that.
Sarah (06:01)
Hey, nailed it.
Jay (06:27)
at my truck before I ever get onto the boat, right? Because that saves a bunch of space of me changing and things being everywhere and all of that. You know, leave behind big cases, you know, the cases that you have your dive gear sitting in, like trade it for a small crate or something like that. There's a lot that you can leave in the car or get ready at the car before you ever step foot on the dock to get in the boat.
Sarah (06:51)
Yeah.
Jay (06:56)
And then on top of that, I think it's, it's being tidy and being compact also means like, for, for example, I'll have to post a picture of this, but I dive a lot of doubles, when I'm boat diving or I'll have my CCR boat diving, which is a lot of stuff, right? There's a lot of things. And so the way I've learned to kind of keep all of that really nice and tidy, the long hose, all of that is to kind of keep it all together, put the belt together, take the crotch strap, put it all the way over the top.
and over the manifold and tuck everything into that, wrap the long hose around that. So that's one tidy piece. There's nothing dangling that someone could walk by and trip on or, or get wrapped around somebody else's tank or anything like that. And I, I bring my gear onto the boat, put it there, get it nice and tidy. When we're first taking off after the dive, when they're going to do fills or anything like that, I put it back in that same tidy place. Every time that my gear is going to sit there.
without it on me, I tidy it up, I clean it up and I clean up the area around me, put my fins in the same spot. For example, again, these are little tips and tricks. I put my mask in one boot of my fin and my computer and my compass in the other boot of the fin and slide those underneath and put, and sometimes I'll put my hood through the, the, not elastic, the metal spring straps.
to keep everything really tidy, just pick up my fins, everything's there, my kit's nice and clean, and I'm compact and tidy, and not, you know, taking up any more space than what I need for myself.
Sarah (08:37)
Yeah, I would say that last tip, if you do that, make sure that you are like remembering that you did that because I can't tell you the amount of times I've seen people accidentally toss their computer overboard because they've forgotten that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's why I tend to attach computers and compasses and things to my B .C .D. Like I just attach things there. I'm sure it looks like a Christmas tree for a minute, but like then it's I know that it's attached. But that is a good.
Jay (08:50)
Mmm.
Sarah (09:06)
That's a good piece of advice for people. I think you kind of like, when you look around and you watch the people who are working on the boat, you notice that that is very much their mentality as well, right? Like anything that they're doing, they're cleaning up after themselves. You don't see the lines, you know, all over the place. It's all very neat and tidy. So I think it's good to sort of emulate that.
Jay (09:32)
Yeah, again, limited space, lots of people moving in heavy gear is, you know, just be as clean as you can. And, and I think that's an important one. I also, I put my computer and compass on bungees. so they're on, you know, that's how they go onto my wrist. You can take that and clip it into the long hose bolt snap.
Sarah (09:52)
Mm.
Jay (09:57)
is another way. If you want to do that same thing, I think what Sarah's saying, clipping it to the, to the, to the back plate of the wing. That's the, I do that with my CCR because I can't remove that computer, right? It's attached to the unit. So again, it's just being mindful, however you do it. And the other, the other thing about that is I think as Sarah pointed out, get into a routine. I know my boot of my fins has my mask, has my.
You know, compass has my my depth gauge get into a routine of think through how you're going to do the boat and then ask yourself After that trip, how did it go? How could I improve that? How could I be a little tidier a little more prepared is a really nice way to be prepared for boat diving Okay, so we got number one and number two here's number three on my list be prepared. What does that mean? call ahead
Sarah (10:27)
Yeah, yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Be like a Boy Scout, Girl Scout.
Jay (10:52)
Yes, yes, on my honor, I'll do my duty, right? To be prepared. So for all you tech divers out there, this goes directly to you. Call ahead if you're bringing your doubles. Call ahead if you're bringing stages or deco bottles, all of those sorts of things to know.
Sarah (11:11)
That goes for side mount too, because there are some boats that do not want side mount on their boat, like period.
Jay (11:17)
Exactly. Yeah. Where do you want me to put, Hey, I'm bringing doubles. Is there room on the boat for that? Number one, number two, where do you want me? What makes it easier for you? Where do you want this deco bottle? Where do you want the stage bottle? Ask that question before you ever show up the morning of the dive. And it's a simple phone call. I mean, I'll do it. I'll even leave a message. Like I literally went boat diving a couple of weeks ago and I called, no one picked up. I left the message said, Hey, this is Jay Gardner.
I'm going to be diving doubles. Please give me a call back if that won't work. and, or if you don't have space for that and they call me back, he said, bring them, we're going watch it, but we want you in this specific spot. So we'll save it for you. Thanks. You know, done. It took 30 seconds. So be prepared. It also comes down to things like things that are on the vessel. So do they have a save a dive kit that's on the vessel? Most vessels do. So in that case, you don't need to bring all of your toolbox worth of gear.
Sarah (12:15)
Yeah.
Jay (12:16)
Are they going to fill gases? If they are going to fill gases, do they have an analyzer on the vessel? If not, you can bring an analyzer, palm O2 or whatever. If they have one, leave yours at home, leave it in the truck. So it's just being prepared of what do I actually need to bring and preparing the dive operator for the way that you want to dive or what you want to do so that everybody feels better about that situation.
Sarah (12:41)
Yeah. I don't have anything to add to that. Yeah.
Jay (12:41)
Be a Boy Scout. Be prepared. Alright, number four. The number four on my list is just the word dramamine meme.
Sarah (12:54)
Yeah, for anybody that gets seasick knows that. Yeah, Dramamine. You know, I have gotten seasick, but it's not, it's usually not a horrific experience. I found that when I owned the boat in Indonesia, like as long as I didn't eat a big breakfast before heading out, I'd be fine.
Jay (13:02)
Do you get seasick?
Sarah (13:21)
The only time that I've gotten properly seasick was, I think it was my first time out to the islands in California. And I don't know what happened, but I was seasick for like a day and a half. Like I tried to, yeah, like I tried to go to yoga the following morning and I was doing sun salutations and I finally had to like sit down because I just had like massive vertigo. Like I felt terrible. So it's like no joke.
Jay (13:32)
Oof.
Sarah (13:49)
With that stuff, you want to take it the night before usually and the morning of just to like get it in your system. And then you're usually gonna have a good time. Usually. You don't want to wait and be like stoic and be like, this time is gonna be different. And then like take it when you're already feeling sick because then it's way too late.
Jay (14:08)
Ha ha.
Yeah, yeah. Listen to Sarah's words right there. Rewind the podcast and listen to that again, because it's so, so true. And I'm, I never been seasick really. And, but I still, you know, got into the routine of the dramamine mean. And then there was one time that I didn't do the dramamine mean and sure enough, I've eaten a.
Sarah (14:27)
Hmm.
Jay (14:39)
a big lunch and we went out for a dive and my gosh, it was the worst feeling in the world. I didn't, I've never barfed yet. I was so close and the best I've heard it called so far, because every dive operator kind of has their own way of talking about barfing on a boat. They always do it in a dive briefing and they have a special spot to go to. The best I've ever heard a title was the VIP section.
Sarah (14:44)
Did you barf?
Mm -hmm.
Jay (15:07)
which is the vomiting in progress section, which comes with another little tip and trick that is a lesson learned through experience. Don't put your kit next to the VIP system or VIP section. Yeah, yeah. I was sitting there and it was a nice spot because it was like an open, you know, spot. I like to be on the deck, not underneath the top deck on the boats. And sure enough,
Sarah (15:09)
cute.
Eww. no.
no.
Jay (15:36)
someone, someone had to visit the section and I was there. I moved, but I didn't move my kit fast enough and there it was. Yeah. It was, it was gross. So yeah, if you've ever had to scrape that off of regulators, it's not a fun thing. So.
Sarah (15:44)
Yeah. gosh.
Well, I think most, if scuba instructors are listening to this, I think all of us have gotten experience of someone barfing on us. So it's just part of the fun of the job, I guess, is dealing with people's vomit.
Jay (16:08)
There's our next shirt. What was the first one? We're having a good time on the internet. You know, having a lovely time on the internet. This one should be, you're not really a scuba instructor until you've been barfed on.
Sarah (16:12)
Hehehehe
It's real, it's real for sure.
Jay (16:22)
It is. It is. All right. So VIP section covering, I think the, one of the other things that, that maybe go should go without saying, but surprisingly doesn't is if you're going to bring a dry bag, which is a great thing to do, you know, how to be able to put your phone and things that you want to keep dry or have a Ziploc bag. Sometimes I just bring that and it's fine. but.
try to keep the dry areas dry. And I see, you know, whether it's in a area of the boat, in the front of the boat, or it's, its own container, that says dry container. I see so many times people putting, you know, grabbing their dry bag that they left and it's soaked and then putting the dry bag into the dry container. That's all wet and everyone's stuff gets wet. So try to keep dry areas dry. If you can't.
Sarah (17:11)
Yeah, I think that's just part of like the respect of sharing space with people, you know, whenever you have a common area, and especially with a space that small, like listen to the boat briefing, follow the rules that are on the boat, you know.
Jay (17:31)
Yeah, yeah, that was that's actually you're right ahead of me on my list here. I'm impressed because communication was the next one.
Sarah (17:35)
man, I guess I have done some boat diving, so there you go. Yeah, you said communication is the next one? Yeah, that's what I always see in this. You might be wanting to touch on, you know, pre -dive like you've already said, but the biggest thing for me is...
Jay (17:44)
You do have a list.
Yeah, with the operator, communicating with the operator.
Sarah (18:03)
to make sure that you understand how they're keeping track of you and to be very clear about that. So like a lot of boats that are bigger will assign you a number and make sure that you tell them, okay, 32 is leaving, 32 is back on board, you know, being very clear about that. And then also for like dive operations where you're going as a buddy team, you get a back on board time.
Right? Like, and it's part of the logistics and scheduling of that day. So like, again, being respectful of that and making sure that you follow the guidance and rules that they set. It's, they're there for a reason.
Jay (18:48)
Yeah. Yeah. And I find it's exactly right. Communicating goes both ways. So number one, listening to the captain and the crew. And I find, you know, unfortunately a lot of people, on boats sometimes tune out.
Sarah (18:57)
Mm -hmm.
Jay (19:06)
to the safety brief, you know, maybe they've been on the boat a bunch of times. And so they're just kind of continuing on the conversation or, or, you know, doing their own thing. And I'll tell you, even if you've been on that boat a hundred times and you know it inside and out, or you even own the boat, the safety brief isn't just for you. It's for all of the divers. And so being respectful, tuning in, in that, you know, three minutes it takes to listen, I think is, is an important thing.
And then on top of that, also the dive brief, those dive masters or instructors, whoever's on the boat, part of the crew that's talking about that dive site, even if it'd been on it a hundred times again, remember it's not just for you, someone else on the boat. It's probably their first time on that. So if you're being disruptive during that time or dismissive of what's happening, that makes not only it harder for the dive operator to do their job, but it also can create a culture where that's okay to be dismissed or something.
someone who's diving in for the first time really needs to hear that. So make sure that you're listening to those things and you're tuning in when they're being done. And I think that's a really important thing.
Sarah (20:14)
Yeah, I think that second part that you were mentioning, like, it's about being examples, right? Like, if you've been on that boat 100 times, like, you... We need to be examples for the people who are new. And, you know, spreading that sense that, like, we respect one another, right? Like, it's a really basic thing, but it can be ignored.
Jay (20:39)
Yeah, yeah. And then I also think that, like you said, the timing of things is important, but you can, you know, this goes out to all those instructors out there as well. When you're working off of a boat is having that dialogue. Hey, we're going to be shooting some SMBs up because we're doing some SMB drills.
or, Hey, we're going to go right here and we're working on X, Y, and Z just giving them that knowledge, letting them know what's going on or Hey, we might run a little bit over because of this. Is that okay? right. That that's a conversation, not a, okay. They said what they need to say. Now let me get to work. Right. it's more about that dialogue, the open dialogue and Hey, if you're doing a bigger dive or, you know, there was a guy, recently who was on his CCR.
And you know, we got a dive time of, I think it was an hour, be back on the boat and then we'll take a surface interval and we'll do another hour on the same site. This guy just stayed underneath the whole time and didn't communicate to the captain. That's what he was going to do. And so there was a little bit of this, like, and I said, Hey, you know, I, I did see him. He's on the CCR. My assumption would be he's just going to stay for the two hours.
Sarah (21:40)
Right. yikes. OK.
Jay (21:56)
but he didn't communicate that to me, but that would be my assumption. And so the captain asked, Hey, will you go and just take a peek and make sure he's there? I said, sure. And he was, and he got a little, little scolding when he got back on the boat a little later. But that's just a misstep in communication, not in the execution of the dive. That's fine. If you want to stay for two hours, we have that time.
Sarah (22:12)
Good.
Totally, but you have to tell somebody about it. Yeah.
Jay (22:25)
got to communicate, right? You got to communicate. So communication is so important. Don't feel like, you know, it's you're, you're the tourist and you can't speak to the captain or the crew. you know, if you need to say something and you want to communicate to them, ask them, Hey, I really need to talk to you when you find a good time. Can you jump over here? So I could ask you a couple of questions because they might be.
dealing with the lines, getting the boat launched, whatever it would be. And right then it's not the right time to talk to them, but just let them know, Hey, I like a few minutes before that. I always get on the boat and I, and I asked, you know, the captain and the crew, Hey, can you let me know when we're about 15 minutes from the site? Cause I'd like to, for us to get ready. Cause my, my goal on a boat is always either to be the first ones in the water or to be the last one or the other. I don't like being in the middle of things. That's when the line gets really clogged up.
Sarah (22:56)
Mm -hmm.
Jay (23:19)
That's when, you know, keeping the team together can become challenging. If you have issues when you get in the water, all of that. So I always say, let's get in first or let's get in last. And that means we need a good 15 minutes to get all of our keyed, you know, on checks done all of that. And so that as soon as we more onto that dive site, boom, let's go. We're ready. Like, let's get to the back of the boat. Let's go. or someone's taking a long time.
Don't rush. It's fine. Let everybody else go, right? Someone's having an issue. my right post, whatever's going on. This, that other thing, or I had a leak in this and I'm fixing it. No worries. Don't rush yourself. Take your time. We'll go last. So you give yourself that, that leeway is how I approach it.
All right. I only have two more on my list. I feel like my, I love boat diving. I love all diving, but I like the boat because I always feel like you not only get to go diving, but you get like a little cruise in there as well. So I always end up like, you know, leaving my gear when that was all done, going up to the top deck and just sitting there and enjoying the conversation and enjoying the view and all that. I just, I think it's a cool way to dive.
Sarah (24:14)
man.
You
Well yeah, of course.
Yeah, it's a full day adventure. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think most of us are obsessed with boats. Like, I mean, I haven't talked about it on the podcast, but I'm currently shopping for a sailboat, you know, like it's where I think we're all kind of obsessed with them. And usually you want to be the friend of a friend who owns a boat. You don't want to actually own the boat, but I'm going to do the stupid thing and try and own the boat. So.
Jay (24:50)
oooo
Yes.
Now, Sarah, since we're talking about this on the podcast, I told Sarah, I've owned a boat and I said, don't do it. I said, be a friend with somebody that wants to do it.
Sarah (25:12)
Hey, I have owned a 60 foot boat. I know how much of a like black hole of money they are, but I'm also curious to do it. I've never had a sailboat. My boat in Indonesia was motored by a giant freaking mega diesel engine.
Jay (25:21)
Yes, they are.
Yeah.
Sarah (25:36)
So it would be a different adventure and boat life and van life are very similar in a lot of ways. I'd actually get more space on a sailboat, it should be crazy.
Jay (25:47)
Yeah, it's true. It's true. All right. Two more on my list here. So I don't know how to, I called this one, don't be a back deck driver. I don't know. I'm going to come up with a better phrase for this one. So if you have ideas out there.
Sarah (26:01)
I mean, I like it. I know I like it, but explain yourself.
Jay (26:06)
Explain myself. Originally was don't be a poop deck driver. Do you know what the poop deck is on the boat?
Sarah (26:13)
I thought that was like a joke. That's not like a, okay.
Jay (26:15)
No, it's a real thing. It's a real thing. The poop deck is the deck above the captain's quarters on old pirate style ships like galleons. They called that the poop deck. It's not where you go poop, but they call it the poop deck. And I forget the whole reason why. Anyway, so I don't know. The other one was, and I felt like this was a little bit sexist, but like, don't be a boat, Karen, was another one. Like there's a few others. I don't know what the male version of Karen is, but it exists out there.
Sarah (26:26)
Okay.
Yeah.
Chad.
Jay (26:45)
Chad there you go. In other words
Sarah (26:46)
Although Chad is, it's a different connotation, but.
Jay (26:51)
Let's I'll explain it and then we got to come up with a better phrase for it. But it's when you're on the boat, it's not the time to criticize other people's kits, gear, way of diving, all of that, you know, be judgmental. It's not the time, right? It's not the time to teach them. Well, you should put it this way and you should do it that way. No, let's just unscrew this regulator and put it over here and we'll put this one over here because that'll be a lot better for you.
And it's not the time to give your advice about someone else's diving. the reason I say all of that is yes, you might have an opinion. Yes. You know, you know, the, the caveat to all of this is, you know, if you see something completely unsafe, Hey, your regulator is actually not on your tank and you're about to jump in the water. Yes. Say something like, or Hey, like it's leaking. Like obviously if there are major safety concerns, you know, if you see something, say something, if you see someone, you know, out of it,
Sarah (27:50)
Mm -hmm.
Jay (27:50)
you know, say something that that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying don't be the, the, the boat Chad or Karen that goes around and with the clipboard and like, well you're, you're using a bungee wing. Do you know why those are on so unsafe? Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You should cut that bungee off. That's so I've seen it so many times on a boat and especially I'm talking to you tech divers and, and sometimes you DIR divers that are out there, you know, making other people feel uncomfortable.
The boat is not the time. If you really have to say something, wait for the parking lot after it. Wait for the lunch afterwards. You know, I just found shut up, do your dive, dive as you're doing. If someone has a question, I'll happily give a short answer and say, hey, why don't we talk more about it when we get back to port? Or why don't we grab coffee this week and I'd love to talk more about it. The boat is just not the place.
to have those conversations to be in that situation. And I see it way too often. And it's something that if I, you know, maybe I should make another shirt that just says like, don't be a boat Karen and wear that on the boat because I just think it's an unfortunate thing. People are there. They paid the same amount of money as you did to be on that boat. They have the right to dive in the way that they want to dive without, you know, feeling judged and feeling like they don't belong.
And that's just a big thing for me.
Sarah (29:19)
Well, yeah, and I want to push back on just some of that, the attitude that you're referring to, like, because I see it a lot with certain types of divers. And honestly, this message isn't going to hit them anyway, because they don't care. Their way of doing things is the best way of doing things. But whenever I see something and I'm like, huh,
Like that's an interesting way of configuring things or whatever. Like how about you get curious about it? Like, that's interesting. Like why do you do it that way? And like maybe you'll learn something. Like, you know, it can go into your bank of things that, you know, maybe it's reasons why you don't do it that way, but you can like learn from these other divers, whether they have, you know,
10 dives or 500 or whatever. I don't know, I think a lot of us will get into a space of just being like, well, this is the way that I think everybody should dive or this is the equipment that I think everybody should have. And I'm saying this to back plate and wing, long hose guy. I just don't.
I think being curious is the better way to go about things. And if people want to hear their, your opinion, they'll ask you, right? Like because of the nature of like what I do on the internet, I do get a lot of people who ask like, what do you think about this? And how would you do it? Like that kind of conversation is fine. But I think that's, it's like a mindset thing of, of not being so stuck on what we think is right and just being curious about each other.
You know?
Jay (31:11)
Yeah, I think curiosity is different than maybe what I'm describing. Cause I agree. I think you'll see a lot of things and you can ask those questions. I think it's making sure that it's coming from a place of curiosity and not judgment. And that's the line for me. And what I see on the boats a lot is the judgment. You might use a question to get into, let me tell you how you should do this differently.
Sarah (31:24)
Yeah.
Mmm.
Jay (31:35)
And I think that those, that's the attitude I'm addressing is, is more or less the, the I'm right and everyone else is wrong. Hey, and this is coming from somebody who owns an agency that has a very specific way that we can figure it. That does not mean that everybody is part of your tribe and it needs to be a part of your tribe and everybody who does it differently is wrong. It means that you've made a choice in the way that you want to dive and your choice has reasons. And that's great.
Sarah (31:46)
Yep.
Jay (32:05)
you know, and, but it doesn't mean that you have to evangelize that to everybody else and convert everybody. you know, you can tell if they ask, that's my, that's my say shut up dive. And if people ask, answer genuinely. And if they're really interested, have a conversation on the parking lot because the boats really not the spot for it. So that may, we have to come up with a better phrase for that, but, I don't know.
Sarah (32:31)
Right on.
Jay (32:35)
Don't be a back deck driver, a buddy driver. I don't know if you've got one out there in the scubaverse
Sarah (32:40)
I thought you were referring to other boaters trying to direct the captain. I'm like, bro, not the place. This is not your boat. Stand down.
Jay (32:51)
Yeah, no, don't do that. Don't do that. Exactly. Yeah. Please, please. I didn't put that on my list, but please don't give instructions to the crew of how they should run their boat. That's just silly. That's just silly. The last one on my list, and maybe we can wrap up this episode with this, was just be aware of the layout of the boat.
Sarah (33:06)
Absolutely not.
Jay (33:19)
So this comes from experience as well. It doesn't mean you need to know what, you know, the bow and the stern and what port starboard and you don't need to get on the boat and immediately become a pirate and speak, speak pirate to be successful, but know where the head is or the bathroom is on the boat, right? Know where the food is and where the trash cans are. So when you need to throw something away, you can know, you know,
Hey guys out there, if you dive a dry suit and you have your P valve hooked up, nowhere, it's appropriate to, to maybe between dives or before dive to, if you need to go to go without taking all that apart, don't just go on the, you know, the deck where everyone's gear is like, this is so gross to me.
Sarah (34:06)
That's so gross. I cannot believe that that, like, has that literally happened? Gross. Like, you're in the water for diving. Like, just pee in the water like a normal human being. Ugh. God.
Jay (34:11)
Yes, it's gross. It's really gross.
Yeah, I know. I know it's so gross. But, you know, the some boats have a warm shower. If you're lucky, one of the boats here in San Diego has a warm shower. It's right in the middle of the deck. So if you're standing there in your undergarments, and someone decides to take a shower, guess what your undergarments are now wet. So be aware of where you're standing, be aware of what's going on around you, where you can be.
kind of out of the way. Just familiarize yourself with it. I mean, it's not, boats are not crazy things. They point in one direction. There's a front, there's a back, there's a left and there's a right. And there's a way that it's laid out. And so familiarize yourself with it and try to, you know, position yourself in a way that you're out of the way of other people trying to move about and still able to get done what you need to get done.
Sarah (35:11)
Yeah, and it's a good idea to always have like a point of contact when you're like walking around the boat, because obviously it is moving in water. So you can easily get knocked or, you know, trip, you know, stumble over your feet. So making sure that you're staying safe and staying on the boat. And then with going back to safety, listening to that safety speech and like understanding where...
everything is, especially if you're one of the more advanced people on the boat and you would be like an integral part to a rescue or something. Knowing where the EPIRB is, knowing where the O2 is, knowing where the life vests and rings and all of those things like that. I think that's we've already said that, but like that's really important to know.
Jay (36:07)
Yeah, absolutely. Yep. And then the last one, sorry, on my list was also gear related. So if you're diving from a boat, it's always a good idea to take an SMB. And if you haven't shot an SMB in a really long time, maybe in a shakeout dive before that boat dive, or just review the content from your agency or watch the video online, whatever it might be to review that. But...
Yeah. If you, you know, if you're going to jump off the back of the boat, I would recommend every team member, everybody has their own SMB. because that way you can notify the boat of where you are in location. and then the other thing I would think from a skills and gear perspective is just be mindful of the downline and the upline. Most of the time when you dive off a boat, unless you're drift diving, you know, the, the boat is going to be moored onto the wreck or onto the reef or onto something that, that they're.
you're out to go see and the captain and the crew will likely tell you which line, you know, whether they want you to go off the mooring line or they have a drift line set up or they have whatever they have set up. They want you to descend on, but usually you're going to be descending on a line. Just be mindful of that descent and that ascent especially can get crowded when the captain says be back in an hour and at 15 feet, there's, you know, 30 people hanging on one spot.
Sarah (37:22)
Mm -hmm.
Jay (37:31)
Maybe end your dive a little bit earlier so that you're not part of that, right? If you're planning to do that stop or whatever it would be.
Sarah (37:37)
Or if you're comfortable doing your stop away from that line, depending on the current.
Jay (37:42)
Yes, I was going to say that, but I felt like I'd get in trouble for saying that because I don't ever touch the line unless I have to, right? Because I can be away. Like current face into the current and lightly give a light kick forward. You're going to stay in position, right? It's nice.
Sarah (37:51)
There's no reason, yeah.
Yeah. Sometimes you are like a freaking flag and there's no way to stay near the boat unless you're holding on. And that's kind of why it's nice that we have a range, right? We can be between, you know, three and six meters and do that safety stop. So that gives us some wiggle room. yeah, sorry. Imperial.
Jay (38:18)
15 and 20 feet. Yeah. Yeah. So be, yeah, be, no, that's fine. I'll translate. the, just be mindful of that, of that downline and an upline because, it, it tends to get crowded. It tends, especially if people are going hand over fist down the line, just wait, like don't go directly after the two people that just went in front of you, you and your buddy, you know, give account to, to 30.
and then go, right? And that just cleans it up for everybody going up and down that line because that's kind of the main traffic area of the dive. So I think that was all my, and tipping. I don't know, you know, there's different standards. I don't know what, you know, is right or wrong. I can tell you, you know, for me, what I do, and I don't know if this is right or wrong. So I'm probably gonna get a lot of criticism, but I try to tip like 10 bucks a tank.
for the crew considering that usually it's a crew of more than one person. And, you know, I don't know, it's 20 bucks for two dives, 30 bucks for, you know, three dives. And I try to bring that in cash or in my whole be prepared call ahead. Hey, do your dive masters and crew take tips via Venmo? Do you know? If I don't want to bring cash with me, but.
Sarah (39:40)
Yeah, I think a lot of people do.
Jay (39:42)
I think they do. And you can see that sometimes it leaves signs around the boat and everything like that. The reason I say tips, you know, yeah, you paid a lot of money to go out on the boat. That's true. And, you know, how to, how to get time, but often that, that crew is, as you will well imagine is not paid very well. and, and there's somewhat dependent kind of like, like how we have it in the States when it comes to food service on those tips. And so again, just calculate it into what you're paying for the boat.
add the tip on top. And so it doesn't feel like an extra and take care of those folks. for two reasons. One is cause they're probably dependent upon it. And two, because you want that operator, if you had a good time, of course, you know, the tip is your choice. You had a terrible time and all that. You don't have to tip, but, if you want that operation to stay in business, then that's a consideration to make is to bring that the tip money and to say thank you and to be, you know, kind and courteous about.
about the way that they want to run their ship.
Sarah (40:45)
Yeah, and I think your numbers sound kind of familiar to people that I've heard in the US how they tip. In other places, it might be like 10 % of what the dive day is, 10 or 15. And yeah, I think that's kind of standard with like restaurants too, right? Or I guess restaurants are much higher these days. So, you know, you can be very generous and people will love you for it. You can go 15, 20%.
but that's also like, it's a fair amount of money. So yeah, I think giving what you can, I speak as someone who has survived on tips before that it does make a difference. But I also understand as someone who needs to travel on a budget that it's not always, you know, can't always give everything that you want to give. So, you know, using your discretion and making sure that like your...
Jay (41:15)
Totally.
Sarah (41:44)
you're covering and being as generous as you can.
Jay (41:48)
Yeah. And that's, and that generosity, I think, like you said, depending on what you can and can't do financially, doesn't just stop at money. It's also, you know, being a good human being to them, telling them, thank you. And please, you know, having some manners, that goes a long way, and genuinely asking, you know, how, how are you, how do you like working as a dive master? You know, I've been on all kinds of boats and you'd be surprised at how many times they don't get asked that question.
And then they just talk forever. You're like, awesome. You know, good to meet you. And you make friends. It's just being a good human being like everywhere. but realizing, you know, they, they aren't there just so you have a good time. They're there for them to earn a living. And it's important to keep that in mind. So, yeah, I don't think we beat this up. Did we beat it up too bad?
Sarah (42:18)
Yeah, they're just, right.
I mean, it's, yeah, but I think it's good and hopefully people got something out of this and yeah, I'm looking forward to having my own things when I'm taking people out on a sailboat to go scuba diving, so.
Jay (42:44)
Ha ha!
That's right. That's right. That's right. Yeah. And if you go out on a buddy's boat, chip in for gas money. Come on. You know, come on now, please. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I actually screwed that up the last time I went. I totally forgot. And I have to address that with the, with my buddy who has a boat, but yeah. I please, you know, help out and whatever way you can. And most of all, go boat diving. It's a blast. You'll see things that you can't see from the shore. You.
Sarah (43:06)
like for everything. Are you kidding? It's so expensive to have a boat. Like help out.
Jay (43:29)
You get a little cruise, you know, if your boat breaks down like mines have in the past, you get a, you know, a nice three tank dive sites and a sunset cruise until the rescue boat shows up. So, you never know what's going to happen.
Sarah (43:41)
God, I have to say, no, I have to say as an operator, like that is the worst. You're like scrambling, trying to figure out how to get your boat back and like trying to keep people happy and like, my gosh, I do not miss that. I don't miss that part because boats just break down. It's part of the life.
but if people have a good attitude about it, like I remember one time we broke down, it was a women's dive day in the Komodo National Park. So luckily we broke down in a bay and we just like cranked up some music and had a dance party and it was like, it was a great time, but all of us behind the scenes were running around like, how the fuck are we gonna get home?
Jay (44:23)
Hahaha
out the oars exactly yeah
Sarah (44:28)
Yeah, my God. Anyway, yep, that's awesome. Let's all go boat diving this summer. Let's do it.
Jay (44:36)
All right, awesome. That's it. So thanks for joining us on this episode. Reach out to us, jay at thedivetable .com or sarah with an H at thedivetable .com. And we would love to hear from you and your stories from boat diving. But thanks for joining us on this episode and we hope to have you back on the next episode of the Dive Table.
Sarah (44:57)
Bye!
