What are the most important things you should be doing in the last minutes before jumping off a dive boat into the water? Let’s call this list our last minute checklist. These points are key, but you may wish to add some for your circumstances.
Have you had the appropriate conversations with your dive buddy and with the boat captain?
Are you wearing the correct dive weights?
Is your buoyancy inflation/deflation equipment working?
Are you wearing your mask and fins?
Have you taken one or 2 quick breaths from your mouthpiece while watching your pressure gage?
Is your octopus or secondary mouthpiece working?
Is your air cylinder full of known breathing mix?
Is your buoyancy adjusted for your desired descent (rapid descent vs floating on the surface)?
Are you stressed out, or are you wearing a smile because you’re doing what you love to do?
Is your dive buddy stressed out, or is he/she smiling back at you?
Be Safe & Dive with a Smile!
Dave Wills