DMT'S Week 3

For Week 3, the DMTs were super busy ticking off the boxes re the Practical Application portion of the course.  First, they completed the mapping project.  The team spent two days working to create a map of Awas and House Reef.  This entire month, the theme has been boys versus girls.  So on the first day of mapping, the boys (Damien and Man) and the girls (Jan and Sanne) worked in separate teams using skin diving and various search patterns to orientate themselves.  On the second day, they worked together as a four person team to combine their maps and to polish the details, such as compass heading, fin kicks, and depth readings.  They did a superb job!

Next up, we geared up for the final skill circuit, which involves demonstrating the twenty-four skills from the open water course.  There is a big difference between being able to DO the skills and being able to DEMONSTRATE them.  Part of the skill circuit involves learning how to explain the parts of the scuba gear and how to assembly and disassembly the kit.  Here’s a picture of the girls practicing their spiel and preparing their equipment.  And here’s a photo of the boys hanging out after the skill practice.

At the end of the week, we completed the 40 meter dive.  It was serious fun planning and preparing for the deep dive.  My favorite part is seeing how “narc-ed” the DMTs are at 40 meters by playing various number games that involve hand-eye coordination.  It’s always a good laugh to see how hard they are concentrating when counting using their hands.  Check out the team after the dive!

Next week is our final week together, which means the STRESS TEST and the always messy SNORKEL TEST.  Stay tuned for more details!