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As
Cuta season approaches I have been analysing my diving in
an attempt to hone my skills. And one of the questions I asked
myself was, "what was the one thing that had the greatest
affect on my diving last Cuta season "And almost undoubtedly
the answer was in the "system" Warren and I deployed
when diving. We had evolved a diving technique that yielded
great rewards, and took our diving to another level. But I
also found myself frustrated and ineffective when diving with
other mates who weren't used to the way Warren and I dived,
the result was …less fish!
So here is the 'system' / method what ever you want to call
what we did:
In
Sync
Finding a buddy or a mate that you "sync" with is
all important…however once you get the "system"
down you will probably be able to dive with other mates who
also understand the way you dive successfully.
Warren and I have been dive buddy's for most of our diving
years and have built up a natural harmony in the water, and
this is very important. There must be a mutual respect for
one another and a tolerance to each others misgivings, mine
is my inability to carry all the fish I shoot back along the
beach….Warren is stronger than me and serves well as
a mule…jokes*
Seriously
match yourselves, don't hook up with some one who dives deeper
than you. This will only frustrate that person, and you might
even find yourself out of your depth. Even though pushing
your self is what it is all about, you could land up endangering
your own live our those of others. Pick some at the same level
and push each other, that way if you get into a dwang the
other guy is also able to assist. What if your buddy drops
his belt at 25m and you are only able to get to 18m? Remember
in an emergency your depth will be reduced due to a boost
of adrenaline.
The
Key
The Key to our "system" was keeping together, it
only takes one dive down while the other guy is not paying
attention and you could be separated for the whole dive. You
can keep together two ways.
One way is to consciously or subconsciously choose a one of
you as the marker/leader. That way one leads and the other
follows, Warren and I seem to get this right without having
to organise before the dive. Often it is the guy on top of
his game that morning that takes charge. Leave ego's on the
beach if your mate is leading work with him….its team
work.
T - together E - each A - achieves M
- more.
But by far the most influential thing making this work is
using a flasher. Not only does it attract fish it becomes
the pivotal point of your dive.
Rule No.1 always stay with the flasher! How we work is simple
one works the flasher while the other hunts below. While you
work the flasher prep for your dive keeping an eye on your
buddy. When your buddy gets to the surface give him a few
moments to gather himself and tidy up his bouyline. Then pass
the flasher to him quickly do your final prep and go down.
And thus the roles reverse, this way the flasher is constantly
been worked, there is always some one in the strike zone and
no one person is burdened with the flasher.
Some
Tips
- The
guy with the flasher determines where you are going if you
want to move on to another point.
- The
guy on the bottom has priority over the first shot, so if
you are on top and fish come through check where your mate
is before shooting. This is important because if you dive
down on a fish your chances of spooking it are far greater
than the guy at the bottom. And there is noting worse than
lining up on fish that is swimming onto you and having it
dart off because your mate is tearing down from above to
try get a desperate shot.
- Scan
your environment while on flasher duty; I have shot many
fish in Warren's blind spot that he hasn't seen or has not
been able to get to. But don't forget who has priority……then
no one gets pist!
- Watch
you lines!!!!!! Keep the flasher in-between the two of you;
your lines should go out parallel to each other in the direction
of the wind or current. When you are at the bottom and are
about to come up find the flasher and come up on your side,
failing to do this will result in lines getting tangled
and time wasted. This has been the most common problem diving
with other mates and can be very frustrating. If you are
the man on top keep an eye on your mate as he comes up,
and position yourself so that he does not have to swim extra
to get on his side.
- Keep
5-10m of line looped up in one hand, I do this for a number
of reasons. Firstly as I descend I let some line out to
reduce the drag of my buoy. I don't let all the line out
I keep some in hand encase I need to chase a fish…again
less drag. But all-important it helps keep the tangles between
Warren and I under control…less line out less chance
of tangles. This also helps keep the strung fish close and
away from the sharks.
- If
you are the top man and your mate shoots a fish don't wait
for him to call for help get down there and check the damage.
If the shot is good and the fish will be landed easily don't
worry, other wise go for the second shot. I have found that
loads of time is saved but putting a second shot…even
when the first was a good one. Some times it may take 10-15min
to secure a fish but with a second shot you can have the
second strung up in minutes.
I have dived with guys that have been too concerned with
trying to get there own fish that a 'good and already' speared
fish was lost. Don't be doff obviously if the shoal is still
coming through and you have a chance at a fish go for the
fish….I don't think a mate will fault you for that.
- Be
mindful of your buddy, especially if he is the one putting
the second shots into your fish and he hasn't got a fish
of his own yet. Don't be a hog. It's often more rewarding
to watch a diver get their first fish of a particular species
or size, then to just add to your own stringer.
The Flasher
Warren and I have experimented with many different types of
home made flashers. The one that seems to be most effective
is quiet simple. We make one or two 'squids' out of the sliver
lining in a wine box. One of these is weighted and will go
at the bottom of the flasher. The other can go almost any
where.
The flashing discs or fish are the next important part, you
don't want them to big, I have seen guys with huge fish like
discs. I prefer small discs up to 10cm, this way you can have
10-15 fish shaped discs that seem create an impression of
a frenzied shoal. As apposed to a couple of large slow moving
flashes. The discs that work best are Perspex with mirror
tape, they are lite and move freely even when there is little
movement on the flasher.
The length of the flasher will be determined by the depth
and clarity of the water. Our flashers are generally made
up with the discs and silver squids taking up about 4m - 7m
at the bottom with another 10m of line attached to the float.
This configuration works well in water up to 20m deep. But
even then the idea is to bring the fish to you, so often even
in clean water we don't let it all the way out.
I
hope that these tips will be of some help, if you have ideas
or have found something that has helped your diving give us
a shout. We would love to share it with the guys out there.
Happy
diving,
Chris
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