Got a promotion today!

[Staz]

Well actually I got a promotion on the 19th (start of pay period), I just didn't know about it until today. I am now officially a first class diver. Suposedly I can do it all. I am a little rough on underwater inspection but I know enough. Besides, I try to stick with underwater pipeline construction. I will glady jump on a platform intalation or removal, or any type of retro fit constrution. Underwater demolision can be fun and I excell at it, but I always try for construction over demolision. When ever they call for an inspection I have a head cold, or my wife is sick, or my grandmother is having an abortion, whatever just as long as I don't have to do it.

Being a first colass diver will have 2 major advantages and 2 disadvantages. The first advantage is ofcourse more $$$$. The second is more seniopity which means: I will work more in the slow months (never been a problem for me though), I the busy months I will be able to pick my jobs better (I only have to compette with other first class divers (of which I am now the most junior) then the second class divers get to pick from whats left over, then the thirds, then breakouts (entry level)), And I will get to pick my spot better in the dive rotation while on a job (closer to the front for deep jobs, closer to the back for shallow jobs.)

The downsides are that, I will get stuck supervising more. I don't want to be a supervisor, too much hassle for not enough extra pay. On small jobs if none of the supervisors want it then it will be passed to a first class diver, of which I am now the most junior so I will get stuck with what no one else wants to do. Also on jobs that require 2 supervisors I will get stuck as the second shift supervisor. This isn't so bad and I have done it many times befor on pipe lay operation (because on my experiance) but I would still rather dive. I can't stand it when someone is in the water and you tell them what to do and they do something else instaed. The other downfall besides haveing to supervise is pay. I am now maxed out on pay. I can't get another pay raise until I starts supervising full time. I guess that's not something to bitch about, but now I don't have a raise to look forward to anymore.

Anyway

Woo Hoo!!!

[Lazgoat]

Congratulations Staz! Have a few beers for me while you celebrate.
I take it your diving is in the Oil industry? I'm curious as to what sort of depths you dive to and how long for.

Laz.

[RcT_ZykoN]

u lkiek a crime diver or what?

[Staz]

Oilfield Diver in the Gulf of Mexico.

My deepest dive to date is 275'. Can stay down that deep for about 25 min then it takes 1 1/2 hours to come up and then another 3 hours and 15min in a decompression chamber. BTW we breath a helium oxygen mix when diving that deep.

I have stayed down as little as 2 min or as long as 5 hours. I have dove in in water so shallow that it was only chest deep. I have dove on the pontoons of a TLP (tension leg platform) in 3600' of water, but we only went down 55' there.

It's an interesting job, but not nearlt as interesting as most people think..

[Lazgoat]

It sounds pretty fascinating.
What do you do when decompressing once out of the water? Read, sleep...? Got any pics?

Laz.

[robbie]

congrats there big guy!!! Now build more folding boxes!!! hahah
Rob

[Daniel ~]

Hey that's GREAT Staz!! Well done!

I hope this means better planned and better spacing on your trips for you and your wife.

[Staz]

Not allowed to sleep in a decompression chamber. Most people read. Sometimes I will bring a gameboy in the chamber with me. Handheld DVD players work in a chamber also, but I haven't invested in one yet. It would slow down on my reading. Laptops do not work, the screens white out. I always wondered what the dif was between a DVD LCD and one in a laptop that makes the diference.

I only have one pic handy, all the rest are on my laptop which is at Dell's repair depot getting a new MoBo. This pic is about 4 or 5 years old.

[Staz]

Laz

If you want to find out more check out this thread. It is about a year old but still explains alot. BTW hat2.jpg is my desktop wallpaper.

Robbie

I actually am about to build my first folding box. I will be helping you guys get into the top 20. I couldn't get my router to work so I went back to windows internet connection shareing on my wifes box. I decided to put together another box and stick it in my workroom and let it run 24/7 as a gateway/firewall. I will set up folding at home on it. 2 people have offered to return to me PCs that I gave them, since they have now upgraded. It will either be a duron 950 on a KT133 based mobo or a K6-2 350 on some ALi based mobo. I may tell the people that I gave the Duron 950 too to keep it and give me thier old P3 900 (some old compaq with intergrated graphics and no AGP slot) but I'll get to it.

Dan

Already Planning next Vacation for Feb but that may get cancled. I can plan one VAC a year and take off weather work wants me too or not, but after that I just have to go when I can. On of the evils of my job.

[Betty]

Congratulations on your good fortune!

[S_Wilson]

Congratulations Staz!

I have always enjoyed reading about your adventures and job. Keep up the good work.

[Allan]

Congratulations on your promotion, Staz!!

I'm looking forward to seeing more pics of you diving.

[Jazz]

Congratulations Staz

[mookydooky]

Good for you Staz!

[cloasters]

Well done! Supervising folks may be one of those things that you "let" happen, rather than "make" happen. AFAIK, 275 feet is serious business. A pal who's an ex-Navy diver went down to ~218 ft, on scuba tanks. Some folks have more cojones than others. Congratulations!

[Staz]

Thnx everyone.

200 feet is the "limit" for SCUBA. 220 feet is the "limit" for air. I bet he was pretty loopy with nitrogen narcosis down there. I don't know if I would want to go down that deep on SCUBA unless I had a dually set up with dual regulators and a x/over valve.

275 feet is pretty sweet. And pays well. We get payed more the deeper we go. 275' payed $750. Plus my day rate back they was $225 makeing for a $975 day. I always wanted to make $1000 in one day, just once, and I still do. So deeper is better.

It's not about cojones, but about maintaining your equipment and trusting it. Also you have to trust your suport personel and know the emergency porcedures and make sure all saftey rules are followed.

There were many deaths in the 60s and early 70s when things were first starting up and divers did "whatever you are man enough to do. And there were no saftey regulations. Back then lawsuits were cheap, $50,000 max. So Divers started getting together to make up rules so that they wouldn't be the next $50,000 check to thier wife. Things got better.

Then back in the mid 80s the bottom dropped out of the oil industry as we had a 10-15 year supply of natural gas and it was cheaper to by oil from opec nations. So dive companies started to cut corners again and the accident rate went up. But now lawsuits were costing more and more. Lawyers were sueing not only the dive companies, but everyone else involed. And since the oil companies always had the most money they ended up shouldering most of the liability. Ending someone dive carrere was a minimum $500,000 setelment while ending someones life started at $3,000,000.

What the oil companies did to remedy this was to just not hire companies with a poor safety record. Now instead of salesmen going to oil companies and saying "Look how fast and cheap we can do this for you" they were saying "Look at our safety record, It may take us a little longer but we won't hurt anybody."

The race for the best safety record was on and the oil companies liked it so much that they insisted dive companies do even more. So formal training and inspections are now comon place. Safety is #1 to the oil companies. To dive companies Safety is tied for #1 with profit. If you don't make a profit you don't stay in business. If you want to get work to make a profit you better have a safety record better than your compition.

So all the safety tools are there. As the one risking your life at the end of the hose it is your job to make sure they are used. It's more about awareness and trust than about cojones.

[Lazgoat]

$750/day for a dive? Damn, I'm in the wrong business here! Where are my Speedo's at...?

Laz.