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All the drysuits that I've seen have been owned by local divers, and, while
they don't think of themselves as being professional, they do consider
themselves rather serious about cave diving (though sometimes not about
other things). I don't know what you consider cold, but a lot of divers
I've talked to consider decompressing in 73 degree water to be rather
chilly, considering it may be some time of doing virtually nothing. In any
event, most of what I hear them complain about is little leaks as opposed
to tears and rips. While drysuits used by kayakers may be of lighter
construction, they aren't made of flimsy material either. Unless one is
completely submerged, it is difficult (though not beyond the realm of
possibility) for me to imagine a circumstance in which a kayaker might have
their drysuit flood to the point of becoming a hazard in itself.


The shop I dove with (I haven't been diving in quite a while) provided
dry suit certification with each sale of product. If you were not
associated with the shop, you did not have a card on file. If so, you
were asked what certifications you had prior to renting equipment and
were required to provide (at the very least) your NAUI or PADI card.
While these did not indicate dry suit certification, they did suggest
the level of achievement of the diver and made them feel as though they
followed reasonable process in case of liability.

Here in the west, the ocean is seldom above 55F (in Monterey, the
temperatures don't fluctuate much due to the cold water upwellings) and
drop to mid to low forties as you go deeper (70-100 ft). This is fine
for wetsuits (6mm), even during decom stops, though those who dive "dry"
tend to be happier afterward (grin).

What I know about immersion protection could be put in an ant's brain and
it would roll around like a B-B in a boxcar, which is one of the reasons I
generally stick to the warm waters of Florida. I don't have to deal with
shoveling snow out of the driveway, either.


It really isn't that much different, you just need to dress
appropriately (which often means too warmly since it can be quite warm
out here 3 seasons of the year). Often this means lots of rolling or
rescue practice to cool off.

Rick