PADI Sidemount Diver Courses

PADI Sidemount Diver Courses: Discover the Freedom of Sidemount

Ready to experience the streamlined feel, enhanced flexibility, and unique advantages of sidemount diving? We offer two PADI Sidemount Diver courses, tailored to your experience level:

PADI Recreational Sidemount Diver:

This weekend-long course is your comprehensive introduction to the world of sidemount. You'll learn to:

• Configure Your Gear: Properly adjust your harness, cylinders (steel or aluminum), regulators, and other equipment for sidemount diving.
• Master Cylinder Attachment: Explore different methods for attaching and managing your cylinders.
• Perfect Your Entries and Exits: Learn how to get in and out of the water smoothly and safely with a sidemount setup.
• Develop Essential Skills: Practice buoyancy control, trim, and propulsion techniques specific to sidemount.

This course is ideal for PADI Open Water certified divers (or equivalent) with at least 12 logged dives in local Midwest waters (recommended). A student manual is required.

PADI Technical Sidemount Diver:

Take your sidemount skills to the technical level! This course builds upon the Recreational Sidemount foundation, focusing on the advanced techniques needed for diving with 3-6 cylinders. You'll learn to:

• Trim Multiple Cylinders: Achieve perfect balance and streamlining with additional stage/deco cylinders.
• Don and Doff Cylinders Underwater: Master the skills to add and remove cylinders during dives.
• Perform Gas Switches Safely: Practice efficient gas switching procedures.
• Plan and Execute Technical Dives: Learn to plan safe technical sidemount dives, working with a mixed team or a sidemount-only team.
• Handle Potential Failures: Develop the skills to respond to equipment issues specific to technical sidemount diving.

Required Equipment (Varies by Course - See Below):

Both Courses Require:

• Sidemount BCD
• Mask, Fins, Exposure Protection
• Necessary Weights
• SMB and Finger Spool
• Slate
• Light (recommended)

Recreational Course:

• (2) Cylinders rigged for sidemount
• (2) Regulators properly setup for sidemount diving
• Computer

Technical Course:

• (2) Main cylinders rigged for sidemount
• (2) Deco/stage cylinders rigged for sidemount
• (2) Regulators properly setup for main cylinders
• (2) Deco/stage regs setup for stage/deco
• (2) Computers

While not mandatory, we highly recommend taking the PADI Recreational Sidemount Diver course before the Technical Sidemount course.

PADI Recreational Sidemount Diver

• Harness adjustments
• Cylinder configurations (steel or aluminum)
• Regulator configuration
• Entries and exits
• Sidemount-specific skills
• Prerequisites: Open Water certified, 12 logged dives (recommended)

PADI Technical Sidemount Diver

• Trimming multiple cylinders
• Donning/doffing cylinders underwater
• Safe and efficient gas switches
• Planning and executing technical sidemount dives
• Responding to failures
• Working within mixed or sidemount-only teams