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Steve was a Portuguese teacher who came to Portugal 10 years ago to teach us Sidemount PCB. His enthusiasm, technical abilities, and professionalism were immediately evident to me. His new website and online training have taken this to a whole new level. These contents are perfect for anyone starting or someone who is... read moreI first met Steve 10 years ago, when he visited Portugal to teach Sidemount PCB to our staff (at that time it was early days of Sidemount PCB). His enthusiasm, technical abilities, and professionalism were immediately evident to me. His new website and online training have taken this to a whole new level. These contents are perfect for beginners, experienced divers, and instructors. Sidemount is now a well-known and simple way to dive. read less
If you're a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver, at least 18 years old and have a minimum of 30 logged dives, you qualify to enroll in a Tec Sidemount PCB Diver course. It's recommended that you also have a PADI Enriched Air Diver certification.
Steve, Your tutorials were amazing and an excellent addition to any instructor’s toolbox. I am a PADI instructor in Cyprus. After taking a few courses, I was able to master this style of diving. Although it originated in cave diving, it has gained popularity among recreational divers. But, only by using your technique, I have been able to certify competent and confident sidemount diver. I teach PADI Cyprus and have completed a few courses in order to master this type dive, which although originated in cave diving, is becoming very popular among recreational divers. I learned that your technique only allowed me to certify competent and confident sidemount diver. Sidemount diving, I know, is not difficult for any dive boat or Dive guide. I also know they will be safe and appear sleek underwater. You have a structured approach that explains every aspect of sidemount dive, including the configuration. Any instructor who is teaching sidemount I would highly recommend this! Thank you! read less
Minimum age is 18 years of age to enroll in the NAUI Introduction to Technical Diving course. You must also be a certified NAUI Scuba Diver and NAUI EANx Diver (or their equivalents), and have at least 25 logged dives with at least 10 EANx dives. Prerequisites vary for each technical training program.
These cards are only issued to those who have earned them. Participating in a course is not a guarantee of certification. Certification cards may be offered by multiple agencies for cave courses. C-cards cost $30 to $30 per card, depending on the agency. Ask your instructor for more information.
Sidemount PCB Diving Classes are an essential course for technical divers who want to be more proficient in different gear configurations, regardless of whether they intend to use sidemount every day. You can take the course in conjunction with any of TDI’s open-circuit specialty courses provided you meet all prerequisites.
Steve, just wanted to thank you for your incredible online Sidemount PCB course. I did my PADI Sidemount PCB training last year but always felt like my XDeep harness setup wasn't streamlined where I wanted it. The instructor was good, but I could tell he did not live and breathe sidemount. At the time I had signed up with your free course system which was helpful but... read moreSteve, just wanted to thank you for your incredible online Sidemount PCB course. I did my PADI Sidemount PCB training last year but always felt like my XDeep harness setup wasn't streamlined where I wanted it. The instructor was good, but I could tell he did not live and breathe sidemount. At the time I had signed up with your free course system which was helpful but obviously left you wanting more. I am doing my Overhead Environment training this November in Florida and wanted to make sure my skills and setup were up to speed. After watching your entire online course (WOW). I decided to rebuild my XDeep harness setup using all your recommendations. I re-did my entire bungee system, my attachment points, wing, etc... all using your setup. I finally feel my setup is where it needs to be, and I felt very comfortable in the water. So again, thank you. Next is working on all my skills which are much easier to work on now that my harness is setup correctly. Wish I spent the money on your training a year ago. Take care and please keep the updates coming. Thanks, Jason read less
Easy to carry around, flexible, no metal or aluminium back plates. Lightweight, easy-to-adjust, easy to get in and back out of the water.
Since the beginning of the century, one of the most significant changes in the equipment cave divers use has been the shift from backmounted doubles to sidemount. Not only do a substantial number of cave divers now sidemount, it’s possible that there are more open-circuit sidemount cave divers than backmount cave divers.
International Training, the parent organization for Scuba Diving International (SDI) and Technical Diving International (TDI) offers both SDI and TDI versions of their Sidemount PCB Diver course. Both courses are very similar. Both use the same learning materials (which, by the way, we wrote). So what’s the difference?
The major change in equipment cave divers use since the beginning of this century has been to switch from using backmounted doubles to sidemount. Many cave divers now sidemount. There may even be more sidemount sidemount cave divers that backmount cave divers.
Steve, thanks for the section on the online course. I found that I learned more online then I had expected. Your videos are very well made and help me to grasp a lot more quickly than I could from books or other materials. I intend to recite the most important lessons before going on the water course. Regards Rafal
Sidemount PCB Diving Training Courses are a great course for technical divers looking to get more familiar with different gear configurations. The course can be taught with any of TDI’s specialty courses in open-circuit, but only if all standards and prerequisites are met.
2-3 hours
Even with small cylinders, you can usually dive for 2-3 hours (rebreathers typically have two 2/3l cylinders or one 3/5l cylinder).
What exactly is the Tec 40 Course? Your first step into technical diving is the PADI Tec 40 course. It is a fundamental level of decompression diving that allows you to dive with gas redundancy, higher Enriched Air mixes of up to 50%, decompression on EANX 50% for conservatism, and up to 10 minutes of decompression.
from 130 to 148 feet
Those who are already decompression certified can immediately qualify for rebreather decompression dives. Individual training agencies set depth limits ranging from 130 to 148 feet (40 to 45 meters).