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Is Buddy Breathing Still an Important Skill to Learn?

Is Buddy Breathing Still an Important Skill to Learn?

Written by Leisure Pro Staff
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Published on November 7, 2014

SCUBA diving is a sport that has benefited immensely from the advance of technology. The primary advantage of the advances has been in the area of safety. Pressure gauges quickly replaced J-valves, and automated inflators took the place of CO2 inflators that were designed for single use.

Many of the tried and true techniques that were carefully honed skills for divers in the past soon become outdated as new equipment comes on the market. The advances beg the question of whether or not some of the manual skills that were required of divers in the past are still relevant in today’s world of underwater exploration.

One such skill that served as a foundation for competent divers was buddy breathing. There are countless situations one can encounter while diving that can lead to the neutralization of their primary source of air. When this event occurred in the past, buddy breathing was the way to avoid a dangerous situation that could even lead to death. Modern divers rely on alternate sources of some kind to provide them with air when things go wrong, leading many people to believe that alternate diving skills are ones that are antiquated. However, no technology has ever proven itself to be completely flawless.

When it comes to diving, there is a variety of dangers that we face. In order to be completely prepared, a diver can never have enough safety measures at their disposal, buddy breathing included. Having the ability to supply both yourself and a partner with air from a single regulator during an out-of-air situation is an invaluable skill that should never fall by the wayside.

These skills are also training-dependent, meaning that excluding them from the foundation of diving techniques would leave people operating completely on instinct rather than tried and true methods. The more training one receives in the practice, the easier it is to remain calm in an emergency situation where one is required to employ timing and teamwork in a steady and consistent manner.

Being as safe as possible while diving means receiving the proper training in both buddy breathing and the use of an octopus unit. While buddy breathing is still alive and well in high-level certification and specialty training, its value should not be discounted in recreational practices as well.

Leisure Pro Staff

Leisure Pro Staff

Marketing Director for LeisurePro