Final days of IDC & Mock IE…Check!

By admin on December 1, 2011 in Diving in Bali

Hello again ladies and gentleman, people of all ages!

I believe the last time I filled you in on the IDC we were right in the thick of things, preparing and presenting various in class knowledge developments as well as inwater skill circuits. Before wrapping up the IDC, we were given one ‘day of rest’ an optional day off which as a group we decided to for once enjoy a stress free day out on the boat in Nusa Penida. We were blessed with a shining sun, perfect dive conditions and a sighting of about 6 large mantas. But now back to the serious stuff… Today we wrapped up the official final day of the IDC portion with day 2 of the mock exam. The mock exam basically consisted of a imitated Instructor Exam like the one we will be facing tomorrow morning and the following 2 days. It was one final assessment/opportunity to practice and master the possible skills and subjects we may get during the actual exams as well as one last chance to review the theory that at this point hopefully we should have down pat. The past couple weeks have consisted of many moments of course directors towering over us or behind us ticking things off on their slates as we present in both confined and open water situations. But in the end, it was for the better and now we know when they are towering behind us, they are marking off all the things we are doing right! Instead of clapping after a presentation, we splash the “instructor” which is a really great feeling and fun for all. Come take the IDC at BSB and you too can have the satisfaction of being splashed with praises.(it really is a great feeling) Fun and games aside, at this point, times were tense as we took on the mentality that this was the real thing. Although a matter of one question can be the difference of a pass or fail, all in all I think we have a pretty confident bunch. We’ve had lots of fun and plenty of progress and it’s finally time for the little birdies to leave the nest and try our luck in the big, big world.

In the end, the mock went very well. Everybody passed, confidence was high and we were now mock instructors..(if only that meant something) It is 930pm right now and I’m sitting in the BSB classroom going over some last minute stuff alongside my buddy and fellow instructor candidate, Jacques. Steve just left after a long day at the office and at this point it’s up to fate. Tomorrow morning we will meet at BSB around 9am then head off to possibly the most stressful, nerve-wracking couple days of our lives. The exams run for three long days. Day 1 consists of 5 theory exams covering physics, physiology, general skills and environment, Recreational Dive Planner and equipment. Each section is only 12 questions but this means if you get more than 3 wrong on 2 sections, YOU FAIL. If you get more than 3 wrong in only one section you get 1 chance make up which I’m sure would be the most frightening test of your life. If all goes well, after the theory section, we write a standards exam going through the many PADI general procedures and standards. Day 2 is when we present a knowledge development in class presentation as well as a confined water presentation and a 5 skill circuit. Once again there is a passing criteria, but for now we won’t go into details. Finally if all is still fine and dandy, we move to day 3 which entails an integrated open water skill presentation as well as rescue exercise 7. This is when we come across an unresponsive, non-breathing diver on the surface and must remove both theirs and our equipment while providing rescue breaths every 5 seconds… Not an easy task with surface currents and examiners watching your every move… Good thing we’ve practiced this about 50 times up to this point. So, all that said, I think the Blue Season Bali IDC team will have no problems blowing through the 3 days and coming through the other side as instructors. We’ve worked hard mentally and trained very hard physically up to this point and with the dedicated work our course directors have given us, we have all the tools necessary to pass the exams. For now, think positive thoughts, deep breaths and hope lady luck doesn’t give us any trick questions on the exams…Or else…..