Mikel's Art

IANTD is dedicated to producing knowledgeable and skillful divers. Both of which are key to developing competent, confident and relaxed divers who can fully enjoy the exhilarating experiences of advanced and technical diving.

KNOWLEDGE and UNDERSTANDING are beyond a doubt the key to power in any endeavor one undertakes. In diving, the combination of knowledge and understanding equates to safety.

IANTD has designed its course materials to instill in-depth knowledge to the student and practitioner of advanced and technical diving endeavors. This knowledge develops greater confidence and better understanding of both the enjoyment and risk aspects of safe diving.

To insure a sound knowledge base, IANTD is demanding on the subject material presented in its programs.

SKILLS and STRESS MANAGEMENT are important in performance of safe dives and in the ability to survive when faced with demanding events in the water.

IANTD programs are designed to develop superb water skills and relaxed and comfortable divers. To achieve this level, techniques are taught and drills are incorporated to enable divers to realize their full potential. The confidence developed in this type of training will reward students by allowing them to become self-confident and self-reliant divers.

Equipment familiarity exercises, such as simulation of a gas failure with valve shutdowns and regulator switches, are included to allow divers to become confident and capable in reaching and manipulating the valves; and in performing regulator switches. To the amazement of many, this is often difficult on the first couple of tries. Indeed equipment adjustments are often needed to enhance the performance of this skill. This is a skill that may save a diver's life someday, and one in which all divers need to be confident with. This type of confidence is developed by demonstration and practice.

Stress management exercises are placed into our programs to simulate realistic diving emergencies. Their purpose is to train divers in response awareness, and to develop in their minds a memory of having experienced a similar event before. For instance, the drill of swimming to a buddy for a prescribed distance without breathing, and then commencement of gas sharing, followed by a timed swim. To some, this appears as a fitness or harassment drill. In fact, it is a confidence builder and a mind conditioning exercise. It enables a rehearsed response to an emergency instead of an on-site challenge to develop mental stamina. The distance involved is similar to the stress one encounters when swimming to a companion diver, who is also probably swimming; and communicating their needs and initiate gas sharing. The timed-swim is designed to instill a reaction of maintaining a normal swim pace to enable gas consumption to remain at a normal rate.

IANTD believes confidence and efficiency are developed by spending time in the water. All programs specify required minutes of bottom time to be accomplished within a certain number of dives. IANTD is the first to incorporate this into diver training. IANTD believes basic survival skills must be PRACTICED until they become reflex reactions. IANTD recognizes that many skills in its programs are redundant. Provisions are allotted to credit diver training amongst programs.

IANTD values experience and its standards have provisions for credit of equivalent experience towards a given level of certification. At the same time, we all realize that experience is not always compatible with knowledge and skill performance. To provide a marriage of experience, knowledge and skill performance, divers must demonstrate the required skills and knowledge appropriate to the level they are being credited for, prior to certification at a higher level of diving.

IANTD believes that our instructors do set the example. To this end, the instructor must always be in the water supervising the dive; demonstrating overall good diving skills while providing an extra element of safety in the water. At the same time, the instructor must take care that the student does not depend upon them. They must insure confidence is being developed.

Assistants can be used, but only if the instructor is present and in the water at the same time students are. This is for a three fold reason. First, the instructor must be evaluating the diver. Second, the instructor has more experience to observe the diver. Third, for liability reasons, IANTD considers it an irresponsible action if the instructor is not present on training dives.

IANTD requires the instructor in charge to accompany students on their first dive to a new and greater depth, and to discourage students from exceeding the prescribed limits of the training program they are participating in. IANTD believes diving is a risk activity and, thus, divers must be aware of risk.

The more advanced the diving styles, the more polished the skill level of divers must be to provide safety. In addition, standard minimum skills and theory insure each instructor that a diver coming into our programs from another IANTD Instructor is ready to advance their diving education.

IANTD requires a standard student text and/or other equivalent texts, if submitted and approved in writing by the BOD, to insure that the theoretical knowledge exists to make the given level of diving safe.

In cave diving, the NSS/CDS and NACD texts are considered equivalent. In fact, the IANTD Cave Diving Manual and Student Workbook recommends these texts as supplements.

Upon program completion, IANTD requires students to complete a written exam as our only means of measuring their knowledge level.

IANTD has leadership / supervisory ratings to allow for "instructor assistants" in preparation of advancement towards instructorship.

IAND, Inc./IANTD believes that being confident, competent and knowledgeable, through responsible training, enables one to survive the seemingly impossible.