Course Outcomes

 

GUE’s Recreational Diver Level 2 course is a no-decompression course structured to prepare divers for deeper recreational diving while using sound equipment, efficient diving skills, and advanced breathing mixtures. Course outcomes include, but are not limited to: skill cultivation and refinement, familiarity with the theory and practice of decompression, safe use of Nitrox and Triox for extended bottom times, correct ascent procedures, diver rescue (on land, at the surface and underwater), emergency management, and the use of Helium to minimize narcosis, CO2, gas density, and post-dive “nitrogen stress.”

 

Prerequisites

Applicants for a Rec 2 course must:

1. Submit a completed registration form, a medical history, and a liability release to GUE Headquarters.
2. Be physically and mentally fit.
3. Hold insurance that will cover diving emergencies such as hyperbaric treatment, e.g. DAN Master-level insurance or equivalent.
4. Be a nonsmoker.
5. Obtain a physician’s prior written authorization for the use of prescription drugs, except for birth control, or for any prior medical condition that may pose a risk while diving.
6. Be a minimum of 16 years of age.
7. Have passed the GUE Recreational Diver Level 1 course or a GUE Fundamentals course at the “recreational” level.
8. Have completed at least 25 non-training dives.

 

Course Content

 

The Recreational Diver Level 2 course is normally conducted over five days, and includes ten dives and at least fifty hours of instruction, encompassing classroom, land drills, and in-water work.

 

Rec 2 Specific Training Standards

 

1. Student-to-instructor ratio is not to exceed 6:1 during land drill or surface exercises; it cannot exceed 3:1 during any in-water training.
2. No overhead diving.
3. Critical skills may not be conducted deeper than 30 feet/9 meters.
4. Maximum depth of 100 feet/30 meters.

 

Required Training Materials

GUE training materials and recommended reading as determined by the course study packet received via online download after GUE course registration.

 

Academic Topics

 

1. Introduction: GUE organization and course overview (objectives, limits, expectations)
2. Applied diving physics
3. Applied diving physiology
4. Situational awareness
5. Breathing gas overview
6. Dive planning, gas management, and logistics
7. Introduction to Triox
8. Decompression overview and minimum decompression procedures
9. Diving safety and accident prevention
10. Rescue diving techniques, emergency management, and diving-related first aid

 

Land Drills & Topics

 

1. GUE-EDGE and pre-dive drill sequence
2. Rescue skills, including managing a rescue scenario, swimming and non-swimming assists, egression techniques, controlling a panicked diver, underwater search patterns, managing and surfacing an unconscious diver
3. Navigation skills using a compass, guideline, and natural navigation
4. Light and touch communication protocols (only applicable if the optional night dive is included)

 

Required Dive Skills & Drills

 

1. Must be able to swim at least 300 yards/275 meters in less than 14 minutes without stopping. This test should be conducted in a swimsuit and, where necessary, appropriate thermal protection.
2. Must be able to swim a distance of at least 50 feet/15 meters on a breath hold while submerged.
3. Demonstrate proficiency in safe diving practices; this would include pre-dive preparation, in-water activity, and post-dive assessment.
4. Demonstrate awareness of team member location and a concern for safety, responding quickly to visual indications and dive partner requirements.
5. Efficiently and comfortably demonstrate how to donate gas to an out-of-gas diver in multiple gas-sharing episodes.
6. Demonstrate a safe and responsible demeanor throughout all training.
7. Demonstrate proficiency in lift bag/surface marker buoy deployment.
8. Demonstrate good buoyancy and trim—i.e., approximate reference is a maximum of 30 degrees off horizontal while remaining within 5 feet/1.5 meters of a target depth.
9. Demonstrate three propulsion techniques. Students should demonstrate comprehension of the components necessary for a successful backward kick.
10. Demonstrate proficiency during gas-sharing scenarios, including a direct ascent while managing minimum decompression obligations and the use of a surface marker buoy and spool.
11. Demonstrate effective proficiency with proper ascent/descents, including the implementation of deep stops.
12. Demonstrate effective navigation using a compass and managing a spool as a guideline underwater.
13. Demonstrate proficiency in fundamental diver rescue techniques including assessing a rescue scene, supporting and recovering distressed, tired, and unconscious divers at the surface, recovering an unconscious diver to the surface, and a range of simulated diving incidents.
14. Demonstrate basic equipment proficiency and an understanding of the GUE equipment configuration.

 

Equipment Requirements

GUE base configuration as outlined in Appendix A.

Explore GUE Standards

Note: Prior to the commencement of class, students should consult with a GUE representative to verify equipment requirements. Whether or not a piece of equipment fulfills GUE’s equipment requirement remains at the discretion of GUE and its instructor representatives. Participants are responsible for providing all equipment or for making provisions to secure the use of necessary equipment before the start of the course. In general, it is better for the student to learn while using his or her own equipment. However, students should exercise caution before purchasing new equipment to avoid acquiring substandard equipment. Please contact a GUE representative prior to making any purchases. Information about recommended equipment can be obtained from the equipment considerations section of GUE's Web site.