Every time I enter the water I have a goal, that being to return to the surface safely after completing my dive. DIR is great for the environment it was developed for, but not necessarily applicable to all environments. When you are diving tunnels large enough to run a freeway through, then a buddy cannot be beat; however, when you are pushing tunnels that require you to push your cylinders ahead of you in order to fit, a buddy is little more than a liability. Same goes for gear configurations, manifolds are great for those dives where a buddy can actually prove to be beneficial to have around, but in situations where the passage is tight and silty I would much rather have the reliabiltity that comes from independent air supplies (it really is not that difficult to change regs occassionally.) Match the gear and the plan to the conditions and you will find that the dive will be a lot more rewarding; try to fit a single mantra to all situations and you find yourself passing up some truly amazing experiences. I will be the first to admit that I'm a stroke - Self-Thinking Responsible Open-minded Karst Explorer