WHAT WILL I LEARN?

Course outcomes include, but are not limited to: GUE equipment configuration and use, trim and buoyancy, propulsion techniques including backwards kick, valve management (the course can be done using a single tank or with a double tank configuration), gas sharing, and SMB deployment. If you wish to do the course with double tank configuration, you will have to have either 15 dives on double tanks or have completed the GUE doubles primer before the course.

You will receive access to GUE’s online learning platform, which you can utilize before the in-person portion of the course. This online learning system will adapt to you, ensuring it focuses on teaching you what you don't already know. You can learn at your own pace, so all students will reach a level of mastery of the material. Your time with the instructor can then be spent covering the practical elements of diving. You will be introduced to the benefits of having a standardized equipment configuration, standardized procedures, and how a team-oriented approach to diving can be used to maximize safety, efficiency, and fun. You will build a solid diving platform, based on balance, trim, buoyancy and propulsion techniques. 

This course will supplement training that you may have already received and will give you more confidence in your basic skills even if you do not desire to go on for more advanced training. The course also includes the theory and use of nitrox.Applicants for a GUE Fundamentals program must:

• Be a minimum of 14 years of age.
• Be physically and mentally fit.
• Be a non-smoker.
• Be able to swim.
• Obtain a physician’s prior written authorization for use of prescription drugs, except for birth control, or for any medical condition that may pose a risk while diving.
• Be certified, at a minimum, as an autonomous entry-level scuba diver (or equivalent) from a recognized training agency.
• If using doubles during the course, have conducted at least 15 non-training dives in the GUE double tank configuration or hold a GUE Doubles Primer certification.
• If using a drysuit during the course, have conducted at least 15 non-training dives in a drysuit or hold a GUE Drysuit Primer certification.
• For a full list of course prerequisites, click here.

The GUE Basic Fundamentals course is normally conducted over three days. It requires a minimum of six dives and at least twenty-four hours of in-person instruction, encompassing land drills and in-water work. Additional time is required for theory (conducted online and/or in-person).

At the instructor’s discretion, GUE Performance Divers may have a portion of their training counted toward GUE Basic Fundamentals qualification.

GUE EQUIPMENT CONFIGURATION 

Standardization is one of the most powerful forces in group collaboration, enhancing effectiveness, promoting more efficient learning, and supporting logistically complex activities. Because of this, GUE training programs and activities require a standard equipment configuration.

GUE’s standardized base equipment configuration adheres to our “begin with the end in mind” philosophy. Not only will equipment operation and the related procedures learned in the first GUE course follow divers for the rest of their diving careers, but the modular system removes the need for gear replacement as divers progress, allowing them to add components as required for advanced applications. From day one, divers will practice in equipment configurations used by leading explorers.

In addition to supporting muscle memory, team compatibility, and familiarity, the GUE equipment configuration is a tested and proven no-nonsense system that emphasizes minimalism, streamlining, and reliability. If this equipment is good enough to support some of the most advanced and exploratory dives done on the planet, it is good enough for any diver, anywhere!

Students recieve a 10% discount on all equipment purchases. Once registered for your course you'll recieve your discount code by email. (In store pickup only)

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BASIC GUE EQUIPMENT ITEMS 

Backplate – A solid base for your diving system with a harness made from a single piece of webbing for more security and a comfortable fit, minimally equipped with D-rings in optimal locations for clipping off your accessories. Supplied with a crotch strap, along with a well-fitted waist band, the backplate allows for a snug and comfortable fit that stays in place on your back regardless of the position you are in or the equipment you attach to it.      

Wing – Attached to your backplate is your buoyancy compensator. The sleek, simple, streamlined, circular, and back-mounted design allows for easy operation, enables comfortable in-water body positioning (proper trim), and ensures adequate lift capacity. Even fully inflated, it will not restrict your movement or maneuverability. 

Regulators – Whether a single-tank setup or doubles, the regulator’s configuration stays the same in front of you. The only difference will be what happens behind your shoulders, which will be one first stage for a single tank or two first stages for doubles configuration. The principles, configuration, and application stay the same.

Primary regulator with a long hose – The primary regulator you breathe from is mounted on a 7 ft/210 cm long hose that is routed down your right hip, across your chest, and back around your neck. It is the regulator you donate in an out-of-gas situation. Not only are you sharing gas from a regulator you just breathed from (so you are certain it works), but you will have plenty of space and maneuverability to manage the situation regardless of the environment in which you are diving. 

Backup regulator – Mounted on a shorter hose, under your chin on a bungee necklace so that it is always secure and ready for you use when donating your primary regulator teammate, or in any situation where you need to switch to it from your primary regulator.  

Primary light – GUE dive teams rely on proper communication, and the primary light is not only a light, but also a tool for communicating due to the very focused and bright beam. A primary light allows you to get the attention of your team without the need of swimming to them. The battery canister is on your right hip and can be used to secure the long hose.

Backup lights – Just as with regulators, primary lights need to have a backup in case they malfunctions. The two backup lights in the GUE configuration are simplistic in design, with a rotate-to-switch-on design. They are robust and reliable in any environment that requires divers to carry lights. They are stored comfortably on the harness, ready to be deployed at any time.    

A much more detailed orientation of both the GUE equipment configuration and its proper application is offered in every GUE entry-level class. Equipment itself cannot compensate for divers’ shortcomings; however, thorough and proper instruction as well as consistent practice will greatly enhance your comfort, enjoyment, and safety.