The GUE event in Lebanon at the Calypso Diving Center was a large one,
comprising of DIRF, Rec Triox, Tech 1, Tech 2 and a scooter course. I will
try to muster a useful write-up for divers interested in the Tech 2 course.

Intro:

There is a definite change in the approach to the Tech 1 and Tech 2 courses, at least when taught by Andrew Georgitsis and Mario Arena. As Andrew puts it, in Tech 1 he is your teacher while in Tech 2 he is your mentor. Andrew made us go through drills, which I will comment on further down, taught us new things, but most importantly, he had this hands-off attitude that gave way for developing our own approach / assessment on things. He would intervene at opportune moments to stir us away from a bad idea, to fine-tune a good idea or to add on something he judged important. He also focuses on finesse at that level where the gas switches, the logistics and the diving techniques need to reflect notable smoothness and fluidness.

The difference in expectation between Tech 1 and Tech 2 is way more than what is portrayed in the consecutiveness of the numbers 1 and 2.

Day 1:

No matter how much preparation we had done, we still needed to tweak, fix
equipment and rig up additional equipment. That was the focus of the first
part of the day. We were two persons doing the course; we left the dock
with BG, one stage (bottom gas) and two deco bottles (50% and O2). At that point, all gas in tanks was air since we were doing the drills in 8-10
meters of water. The emphasis that day was on stage management and being able to properly hand out and clip stages efficiently. Multiple valve and S drills were done before each stage drill. There is a sequence to how you clip and unclip, a logic to how you move a bottle up from the leash that is attached to the waist D-ring, an efficient way to swing the bottle acrossyour body. By the end of the last drill, we each had four stages clipped at one point. The last drill was a simulated dive in 9 meters of water. In a one meter increment ascent we had to switch twice (50% and O2). Preciseness, awareness of buddy / environment, and timing were all critical to the success of that drill. We did not get to the last drill, which was exchanging all three bottles and having six stages clipped at once. Day was over. From the instructors feedback (Andrew G and Mario Arena), we did well and we were well set for the continuation of Tech 2

Day 2:

I wake up with a full-blown cold. All blocked and a head like a basketball.
How nice Tech 2 with a cold. Oh well, I decide that I am going through no
matter what as long as I can clear, and I managed to do that with pain and
discomfort but I did it. The day started with dry runs of practicing
bottle passing and the proper procedure for doing that. Andrew had brought
with him three bottles for himself, and he was to be our third team member.
So we had three stages each for a total of nine, which means that at one
point we would have 9, yes 9, stages clipped at once, so eleven tanks on one diver inclusive of the BG doubles. We juggled with the stages first and
passed them to each other. Then Andrew demonstrated with 9 bottles clipped on him. He did that with full control, stable pace, without losing any
awareness of anything. That was a performance that yet set another bar for us. It was time for my buddy to have all 9 stages on him. That took one full hour. I am looking at him as we are passing him all nine bottles. He had two clipped on his chest and waist D-ring and six clipped on leashes and were wedged between his legs. When he had everything clipped on him, Andrew gives him the OOA sign, he makes a clean pass and they more or less float up together.

We went back to lunch, refilled and it was my turn for the nine tank thing.
After having a total of six clipped, balance was hard to maintain as well as
general composure. I was tired from the first long dive and the effect of
the cold I had. I look at my buddy and he has three more stages to give me.
Oh man. I start singing mentally in my head (Dont you cry tonight  Guns
and Roses) to keep things light. I focused more and asked him to bring them
on. I had all nine now. Very messy but all were there. Andrew unclipped
them from myself and we were to stay in the water for a simulated dive using
a BG stage and two deco bottles. We did the dive from 9 meters. Andrew was captain. He made it work like clock work, in one minute increments with switches and all. Then we did the same with my buddy as the captain. That was a rough day but a great and invaluable experience. Andrew decides that it was time to start diving. We have the diving center fill up the tanks and we were off for the night.

Day 3

The first part of the day started with a long discussion of how to plan the
dive. BG was 21/35, one stage filled with 21/35, Nitrox 50 and O2. Points
discussed were: deco, how long to breathe the stage, then BG, how does the schedule differ if one diver is OOG, what if you loose the 50% , the O2 etc we had our set of questions and the discussion was expanded as much as we wanted to. The dive was a 45 meters, 30 min real BT on a wall here in
Beirut. All went well, except that we lost the up line a bit on our 6-meter
stop. But overall, we performed well.

Day 4

We filled BG and a stage with 18/45 and had the 50 and O2. The dive site
was a wreck called: The Lesbian. She was a mix of civil military ship that
used to transport arms to militias during the war. Its top lay at 57m and
bottom at around 68 meters. That morning, we had a deco lecture where
Andrew expanded heavily on decompression procedures and theory. Andrew and Mario showed us how to logistically drop the extra tanks. We were to kill
the stage at the bottom and switch the BG and deco out. The dive was great, viz was nice and we all enjoyed the wreck. At 12 meters, we were moving the O2 bottle from the leash up to the front in preparation for the O2 switch at 6m. I miss the front clip and the bottle zooms down to the wreck All was planned so that was no big deal except for feeling clumsy at that stage. I would have liked if me and my buddy took full control of the situation, yet we did not. Andrew orchestrated the loss of O2 procedure and the stop went uneventfully. Although it was explained to me that this happened with the experts, being the perfectionist that I am, it bugged me.
Yet, it was a nice real life experience of a small thing that can happen and I later learned that I have to be less of an idealist.

We took a break for 5 days (during which Tech 1 was conducted) before our
final dive in Tech 2. I did not take care of myself during that time and
the day before the dive I had some fever. Took some medicine and slept
early. From the early morning, I did not feel all that well, especially for
the dive that we planned on The Lesbian, which was essentially the same dive we did before. Option 1 (not to dive) needed to be considered by me.

We went on the boat and at the dive site, I was not all that smooth from a
feeling perspective. I felt it was a good time for Option 1 and I exercised
it. My buddy and Andrew did the dive.

The Verdict:

I had a long discussion with Andrew where my feedback was solicited and he
asked me what I thought and he told me what he thought. We were not far off in our assessment. There was the cold / fever and the added task loading of the Tech 2 range on myself, which gave certain weak elements in my overall performance here and there. It could have been a weak pass but a provisional status was more appropriate. Andrew is coming here again sometime end-September. He gave me clear guidelines on how to gradually work myself in the Tech 2 range in preparation for his arrival. All stage work, logistics and dive procedures should become second nature and the Tech 2 diver should smoke the dive with comfort, confidence and competence. I had been focusing too much on the little details. My buddy passed the course.

Hindsight:

Me and my buddy's goal is to do exploration work on the Lebanese coastline. That is what a Tech 2 course is designed to help you achieve. In my case, it clearly showed me my strengths and my weaknesses and the result of it gave me a clear picture of where I stand and what I need to work on to get permanent status. What I love about this is the high standard that it pins you against. Prior to my exposure to DIR, dives in the Tech 2 range and beyond were the norm for me. But I was missing the diving part, the fun part. It was all about doing it. Now, I see extensive diving from a different angle, a wider one. The Tech 2 course provided me with the tools
and mindset I need to become the diver I want in the near future. It is
really going on overdrive, and you have to play real comfortably with the
bits and pieces so that you and your team can safely have fun engaging in an activity where the margin of error shrinks significantly.

I encourage anyone interested in extensive diving to opt for Tech 2. It is truly levels beyond what I had experienced in Tech 1 in terms of depth of knowledge and water time.

Again, thanks AG and Mario for a priceless education.

Best to all,

Mozi