Description

Learn to configure and dive with cylinders mounted at your sides rather than on your back, a setup that’s grown hugely popular with recreational divers. Sidemount improves your trim and streamlining in the water, makes it easy to reach and monitor your valves, and offers built-in gas redundancy for added peace of mind. You’ll master proper harness and cylinder rigging, refine your buoyancy and body position, and practice managing your gas supply across multiple tanks. Comfortable, balanced and flexible, sidemount is a great alternative to traditional back-mounted systems and a favorite for travel, and it lays the groundwork for more advanced diving down the road.

Dives included: 2 open water dives.

Prerequisites

• SDI Open Water Scuba Diver or equivalent
• Minimum age 18; 15 with parental consent
• Complete a medical statement where relevant

What You Will Learn

• Sidemount harness and BCD configuration
• Rigging and mounting cylinders correctly
• Trim, buoyancy, and streamlining in sidemount
• Gas management and switching across multiple tanks
• Valve and regulator management and problem-solving

Required Equipment

• Sidemount harness and buoyancy system
• Two cylinders with appropriate regulators
• Dive computer, SPGs, and cutting tool
• Exposure protection appropriate to conditions

Course Requirements & Standards (SDI)

• Minimum of open-water training dives with an SDI Instructor per standards
• Recreational sidemount configuration
• Emphasis on configuration, trim, and gas management

After This Course

A strong foundation for technical diving and overhead-environment training with TDI.