Behind-the-Scenes: Scuba Diving Courses - Dubbie Training

Enjoy a "home video" of our dubbies in their SCUBA diving courses.

At one point our dive buddies coined the term dubbies by combining dive and buddies creatively. The term stuck, so now when you hear us referring to dubbies they are our diving buddies, especially the teens and young adults we have helped train to dive.

Have you ever wondered what SCUBA training looks like? Some agencies will train children as young as 8 years old. We generally don't get our dubbies trained until they are 16. There is a lot of growth that happens in the formative preteen and teen years, especially related to managing risk so we hold off until they have a few teen years banked.

There are a number of certifying agencies for recreational SCUBA diving, the ones we see the most are PADI, NAUI, SSI and SDI. All adhere to similar standards. Most have online or classroom learning in advance, followed by a day practicing skills in a pool, then two days (4 dives) in the openwater, meaning any natural environment that meets requirements such as depth. In our case we have been helping to certify students in the Hood Canal in Washington State. A challenging place to dive because the water is very cold, about 45-60 degrees, the visibility is poor due to debris and algae in the water, and the weather can be uncooperative at times. The challenges in training mean our dubbies are equipped to dive just about anywhere in the world once they are certified.

Want to know more about what we are up to? Please take a look around and mark your calendars for March 5 so you can return with your family to catch Episode 1: "When Life's a Wreck".