September 2021
HSA Dive Buddy Course
Learn how to be a safe, effective buddy for divers with adaptive needs. Become a certified Dive Buddy with HSA (Handicapped Scuba Association)! Free-Daptive Divers of Minnesota is sponsoring this exciting course during the month of September 2021.
The HSA Dive Buddy Course combines classroom instruction followed by confined water and open water exercises, designed to simulate adaptive needs. In learning about the different adaptive needs for scuba diving, Dive Buddies experience what it is like to be a mobility or sight-impaired diver, and the special considerations needed for planning and diving. It is a sensitizing, and often surprising, revelation for even the most experienced diver!
Dive Buddy Course Prerequisites:
-Certified Open Water Scuba Diver
-20 or more Logged Scuba Dives
Classroom Training – Students are introduced to the following:
-Adaptations for several disability types
-Accessibility issues
-Travel specific to people with adaptive needs
-Special considerations for diving safety and health precautions
-Adaptive diver transfers
Confined Water Training: Divers simulate paraplegia, quadriplegia, amputee and blind divers, performing skills that are technically problematic for divers with these adaptive needs. Through a variety of training scenarios, candidates learn to dive and solve problems differently. They learn to use new skills when diving with those who have special needs.
Open Water Training: Students are generally in a team of three, role playing as a Primary Dive Buddy, a Paraplegic Diver, and a Blind Diver. They will rotate through all three roles. This training provides them with specialized knowledge necessary for safely planning and diving with divers who have adaptive needs.
Class & Pool Location: Brooklyn Center Community Center
Tuition: $325. A deposit of $50 will hold your place in class.
Required Equipment:
Mask
Fins
Snorkel
Regulator with alternate air source & BC inflator hose
Submersible pressure gauge
Dive computer
Buoyancy compensator/control device
Scuba tank
Exposure suit for lake dives (optional for pool)
Weights (no soft weights permitted in pool)
*If you need to rent equipment, please consult your nearest dive shop.
Dates and Times for Class & Pool:
Friday, Sept. 17, 6:00-10:00 PM, Classroom
Saturday, Sept. 18, 8:00 AM – Noon – Classroom & Pool
Sunday, Sept. 19, 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM – Classroom & Pool
Open Water Location:
Saturday, Sept. 25 & Sunday, Sept. 26 at Square Lake.
