Dangerous fin clips

    While on my last outing here is where my shooting line got tangled in between the grooves on the clips that hold the end of the tendon on the fins. In reality i think they do not serve any purpose except cover the 1/2 inch space.


    I had shot a fish at the end of my air, the shaft got stuck on a rock as i made my shot pointing down. as i slowly ascend for air i notice something holding me to the bottom. i try to undo it from the clip, after a few seconds i realize it is not coming off. i take the fin off and ascend quickly, it was not easy finning up to the surface with one fin. it almost felt like having no fins. i thought of ditching my weight belt and decided not to.

    Thanks for posting that. Unlikely as it seems if there's a possibility for something to go wrong it will, that's been my life experience. I've had my knife catch mono on the bottom once. I wasn't too bad on air and just untangled the mono. I can tell you that even light mono, whatever they use to hook fish with, you will not tear by pulling on even with a gloved hand. A knife has to be within easy and instinctive reach. That's why since then I wear my knife on the inside of the calf. It can still catch mono but much less likely. Now that you took pictures of the cips cut those fucking things off.

    yes thats right dan. cutting out any possibility does help.


    I would of liked to of handled the situation more calmly than i did. but when something does go wrong you do not have to sit and think, your instinct and body just reacts to the situation not leaving time to analyze the situation calmly.

    I'm interested in just that. What was your thought process? Why didn't you ditch the weight belt? Gamble, no?

    Quote from av001

    when something does go wrong you do not have to sit and think, your instinct and body just reacts to the situation not leaving time to analyze the situation calmly.


    You got it right. But at least you didn't fall for desperation and found a fast solution. So you were in control. You can tell by you not making a decition to drop your weights. That tells me you got it toghether and in control:thumbsup2: Desperation. is the number one killer in a lot of accidents. Not thinking fast and desperation guide you towards mistakes that can have fatal results. Glad you manage to recognize the problem and solve it fast. :thumbsup2:

    toledo, i made the decision based on how i felt. i have been closer to blackout and i know how it feels.i had not gotten any contractions or those hiccups yet but i was out of my comfort level. psychologically the event screwed up my diving the rest of the day. i could not relax and dive well.

    Dan I agree.
    Also. I'm not questioning your decision whatsoever. There's always something to learn from something like this. My next question, I guess , is now that you can analyze what happened what would you have done differently?

    sometimes it's hard to control getting the line all over us , but now that it happened to you always bare in mind that it's not only with the belt or knife that it can create a problem, even if you don't have anything on you sometimes it can twist and get your arm or leg tangled , so just it can happen anytime. i'd say try not to get into a mess of line after you shoot a fish , if it gets messy just stay clear of it.

    i understand being relaxed and a good ventilation can reduce your body's c02 triggers, but i think the human body is genius. it lets us know when something is going wrong. blackout is a defense mechanism that keeps your body from drowning, it basically tells the brain to shut the main functions of the body in order to conserve oxygen needed for the brain and heart. In blackout mode your body closes the main airways to prevent water from coming in to your lungs. Minutes later depending on the person your brain sends a signal to take one last breath, i think they call it "terminal gasp" , if you are still underwater at this point drowning begins.


    What prompts you to come up from a dive? a dive watch with a timer;)


    Although possible. it is rare to have someone blacking out at the bottom, it is usually on the ascent within the last 30 feet.


    I think your body's signals and your brain's prior experiences keep you synched throughout the day, in the constant up and down tempo.


    Learning and listening to your body in my opinion is very important.


    One thing i did after shooting was to swim after the fish, as i saw the flopper not secure. One thing i might of have done differently was to shoot and swim up not chase after the fish.

    Off-tangent rant.


    This is a good case of why ditching weight belts should never be an automatic first option. If you're tangled in shooting line, fishing line, or up here - kelp, releasing your weight belt could very well make the problem much worse.



    One good example. Diving in norcal, new divers are taught to ditch their belt whenever they're in trouble. Good idea for many situations and with the average diver wearing 20# of weight to neutralize their 7mm suits, they'd theoretically float to the surface safely like a cork. However, imagine a situation where a diver has his ankle wrapped in shooting line and trying to make it back to the surface. While panicked, he could collect himself, pause, reach down and slip the loose line off his ankle. Popping his weightbelt would escalate the situation as the extra 20# of buoyancy instantly gained will tighten that noose around his ankle, potentially making it much more very difficult to untangle!


    A friend had another situation where he dropped his weightbelt near shore in big surf. It seemed like the right move at the time, but turned out to be a dangerous play. While he was able to duck under oncoming breaking waves and swim underwater beforehand, his new buoyancy(20#) became a huge obstacle as the walls of whitewater pushed him like a buoy towards the rocks. He spent all his energy fighting a losing battle.



    There are many situations that dropping one's belt is the best option; however, there are times that it would make a bad situation worse. Having a clear mind to assess the situation is crucial. I've been in a few situations that I wish I handled smarter... but they were good learning experiences.



    In this situation, dropping weightbelt could have dramatically different pros/cons if done before or after the fin was dropped.


    Good job av001 on handling a bad situation well!

    Fuzz, great post.
    I think that considering you were in oh shit mode(rapid heart rate) and the fact that you were left with one fin, could have made this situation allot worse. Even if you felt ok on the bottom, making it to the surface is a different story. I think ditching the belt would have given you a little more room if needed. Just my opinion. Doesn't mean I would have done it any differently, or would have even remembered that I had a weight belt on.:D


    P.S. Glad you are ok. Everything happens for a reason. This was just a test of the emergency broadcast system, end of beeeeeeeeep.

    Quote from Marco

    Thath's one of the reasons I don't like Omer footpockets (and many other gear from that manufacturer). I'm glad you made it without much problems.


    Cono Marco,
    y lo lindo que luces en sus trajes.:D Como dice mi amigo El Monster, "Bien Chingon, Padrisimo"


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk1yVvz6CKE


    I will delete this later as I know it's a severe hijack that merits a flogging.

    It looks chingón indeed!!



    The scary thing about SWB is, no signs are present in most people, the better athlete you are, the better shape you are in, the lesser the signs, cause you are used to severe hipoxia. Unfortunately, I guess B.W. is not a defense mechanism but it means that you´re allready dying :(

    I'm a Speardiver, not a freediver

    Fuzz, your post gives another insight to the standard "by the book" procedure of ditching the weight belt. I guess Alan would ´ve been in real trouble if he would´ve ditched instinctively his belt. He certainly did the right thing.

    I'm a Speardiver, not a freediver

    Quote from Toledo970

    Cono Marco,
    y lo lindo que luces en sus trajes.:D Como dice mi amigo El Monster, "Bien Chingon, Padrisimo"


    Y eso que no me has visto en pelotas cabrón! :laughing3: Ahí me veo más lindo, chingón o padrísimo. :D


    That wetsuit cost me 80$. I knew what I was buying. I was supposed to be a 3 mm, but right now is a 1.5 mm (if so, but maybe less). All Omer gear I've got since they went "global" have been a POS. I will ever NEVER buy any other single piece of gear from that shitty company.

    Marco Melis

    A bad day fishing is ALWAYS better than a good day at work.

    Quote from Marco

    Y eso que no me has visto en pelotas cabrón! :laughing3: Ahí me veo más lindo, chingón o padrísimo. :D


    That wetsuit cost me 80$. I knew what I was buying. I was supposed to be a 3 mm, but right now is a 1.5 mm (if so, but maybe less). All Omer gear I've got since they went "global" have been a POS. I will ever NEVER buy any other single piece of gear from that shitty company.


    I think their line of spearguns is top notch. The cobra is sweeeet ...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member to leave a comment.

Register a new account
Sign in now