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General
You can get scuba certified over 6 pool sessions and 4 open water dives by completing the classroom portion online with PADI eLearning or through SCUBA SHACK's home study options. We recommend a slower pace for a more thorough experience. The PADI Open Water Diver course is flexible and performance-based, so you can progress at your own speed. Start your scuba journey with us today!
Diving into the world of scuba with SCUBA SHACK and PADI is an exhilarating journey! Here's how you get there:
1. **Knowledge Development** - Dive into the basics! Learn how pressure affects your body, how to pick the best gear, and plan your dives. You can start right now with PADI eLearning at your own pace or join our scheduled classes to meet new dive buddies!
2. **Confined Water Dives** - Time to get wet! Practice your skills in a pool or pool-like conditions. From setting up your gear to clearing your mask, you'll master it all. Plus, you'll have a blast and make new friends along the way.
3. **Open Water Dives** - The real adventure begins! Complete four open water dives with your SCUBA SHACK PADI Instructor at a local dive site or an exotic destination. Experience the underwater world like never before!
Getting the right scuba gear is part of the fun! At SCUBA SHACK, we'll help you find the perfect fit. To start, you'll need your own mask, snorkel, boots, and fins. For the PADI Open Water Diver course, we provide the regulator, BC, dive computer, tank, wetsuit, and weights. Investing in your own gear ensures comfort and convenience. Whether you're diving in tropical, temperate, or cold waters, we've got you covered!
If you have an appetite for excitement and adventure, odds are you can become an avid PADI scuba diver. You'll also want to keep in mind these requirements:
Minimum Age:
• 10 years old
• Students younger than 15 years, who successfully complete the course qualify for the PADI Junior Open Water Diver certification, which they may upgrade to PADI Open Water Diver certification upon reaching 15. You must be at least 13 years old to take scuba lessons online with PADI eLearning, due to international internet laws. If you're younger, you can still learn to dive – just have your parent or legal guardian contact SCUBA SHACK.
Physical: For safety, all students complete a brief scuba medical questionnaire that asks about medical conditions that could be a problem while diving. If none of these apply, you sign the form and you're ready to start. If any of these apply to you, as a safety precaution your dive physician (SPUMS) must assess the condition as it relates to diving and sign a medical form that confirms that you're fit to dive. In some areas, local laws require all scuba students to consult with a physician before entering the course.
Waterskills: Before completing the PADI Open Water Diver course, your instructor will have you demonstrate basic waterskill comfort by having you:
• swim 200 metres/yards (or 300 metres/yards in mask, fins and snorkel). There is no time limit for this, and you may use any swimming strokes you want.
• float and tread water for 10 minutes, again using any methods that you want.
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About Physical Challenges: Any individual who can meet the performance requirements of the course qualifies for certification. There are many adaptive techniques that allow individuals with physical challenges to meet these requirements. Individuals with paraplegia, amputations and other challenges commonly earn the PADI Open Water Diver certification. Even individuals with more significant physical challenges participate in diving. Talk to your PADI Instructor at your local PADI Dive Shop or Resort for more information.
Learning Materials : Unless you choose PADI eLearning, you'll need and use the following training materials during the PADI Open Water Diver course, and for your review and reference after the course:
• The PADI Open Water Diver Manual
• PADI Open Water Diver Video on DVD or the PADI Open Water Diver Multimedia (combines manual and video for computer based learning).
• You will also need your PADI Log book and Recreational Dive Planner (Table, The WheelTM or eRDPTM).
Easy. There is no best gear. But, there is the best gear for you. The professionals at SCUBA SHACK are trained to help you find scuba gear that best matches your preferences, fit and budget. These professionals can get you set with the right stuff, plus they provide service and support for years of enjoyable and dependable use.
You may also want to talk to other scuba divers in PADI's online scuba community to get recommendations on particular scuba equipment brands and models.
You can dive practically anywhere there's water – from a swimming pool to the ocean and all points in between, including quarries, lakes, rivers and springs. Where you can scuba dive is determined by your:
• experience
• level site
• accessibility
• conditions interests
For example, if you've just finished your PADI Open Water Diver course, you probably won't be diving under the Antarctic ice on your next dive. But, don't limit your thinking to the warm, clear water you see in travel magazines. Some of the best diving is closer than you think.
Your local dive site can be anything from a special pool built just for divers like one found in Brussels, Belgium, or more typically natural sites like Belize's Great Blue Hole, Australia's Great Barrier Reef or Japan's Yonaguni Monument. It may be a manmade reservoir or a fossil-filled river. It's not always about great visibility because what you see is more important than how far you see.
The only truly important thing about where you dive is that you have the scuba diving training and experience appropriate for diving there, and that you have a dive buddy to go with you. SCUBA SHACK can help you organize great local diving or a dive vacation. Visit today to get started.
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