By Cordelia C.
For many new nauts, the prospect of SLAM training may seem like a drag. It’s hours of classwork and note taking and then more time in the pool completing boring exercises just so you can finally get to do the fun dives. However, SLAM is a bonding experience with other nauts that teaches you vital skills you must know while diving. Based on a course once taught by the YMCA, SLAM stands for SCUBA Life Saving and Accident Management.
We must show that we know these skills every year. And though it may not seem so at first, SLAM is a lot more than just a learning experience – you get to have time with your friends in SCUBAnauts as well as learn about their equipment, problem solving skills, and various preferences. Some nauts may be very methodical and others may go with the flow – you learn who does what and how they do it and thus can understand the dive buddy who best compliments your strengths and weaknesses. And let’s not forget that after all of the classwork you do, you get to go on as many dives as SCUBAnauts may offer for an entire year until you have to do it again. Makes that day of learning seem worth it, right? Some of the exercises, such as towing, unconscious diver, tired diver, and panicked diver are actually pretty fun – not to mention they mimic real-life situations and are memorable experiences – ensuring that you know what you’re doing when you encounter one of these situations on a dive. So, don’t worry about the work, notes, or fear of boredom because I can assure you that SLAM will be full of good times and memorable experiences.
