eqrqhome
Evolve · Freediving Education
EVOLVE EQ Rescue
When the mask fails, go deeper.
The protocol that gets stuck beginners to their first equalization — so they don't quit the sport, they go further into it.
Every rescued beginner is more students, more courses, more training, more trips. We're giving 1,000 instructors a free goggle to prove it at scale. Join the field study, or run the program yourself today.
Ten students per goggle is only the minimum — one instructor might rescue a hundred. 1,000 goggles could easily mean 20,000+ divers given another chance with a simpler tool.
Two ways in
Free goggle — or start today
Qualify for a free goggle and join the study — or start the program right now on your own gear at 20% off. Same protocol either way.
Get a free goggle
For working instructors with a teaching history.
- 1 free FREEQ Dry Goggle, yours to keep
- Be part of the first wave of the movement
- Full protocol + digital field report template
- 20% instructor pricing on all gear
- Your findings included in the final published study
Start today — 20% off
For new instructors, non-qualifiers, or anyone who won't wait.
- No waitlist, no application review
- Your own FREEQ Dry Goggle at instructor price
- Same protocol, manual & buoy card
- 20% off goggles, lanyards & gear
- Prove your cert to unlock the protocol + discount
What this is
Three things, all true at once
A proven protocol
EQ Rescue gives stuck head-down beginners a successful first equalization — then transitions them back to mask.
One free goggle
One FREEQ Dry Goggle, yours to keep — reuse it to rescue as many stuck students as you can. Ten over ten months is a guide, not a cap.
Part of the evolution
You’re among the first to field-test EQ Rescue at scale — and part of why the sport grows: more divers who pass, stay, and go deeper.
The descent
How it works
Five steps from sign-up to putting it in the water.
Sign up
Confirm you qualify and send your details.
Get accepted
Reviewed within 14 days. Kit ships.
Get your goggle
The FREEQ Dry Goggle itself is completely free — you cover shipping only.
Run it
Use the protocol with stuck students. Document each.
Add to the findings
Your results feed the study. Your name is optional — sharing it just helps move the whole sport forward.
One goggle. Ten students — minimum. Ten months.
1,000 goggles means at least 10,000 divers given another chance with a simpler tool — and likely far more.
The protocol in the water
Breathe up. Descend. Ascend.
Goggles on, clip on, nose in plain sight — the whole rescue happens on one buoy, in one session.
The ripple effect
One rescue starts a current
A beginner stuck on equalization is a beginner about to quit. Unstick them, and they don't just stay — they go deeper into the sport, and pull the whole thing forward with them.
Unstick a beginner
EQ Rescue gets them to their first equalization.
They stay
Instead of quitting in frustration, they keep diving.
More courses
Confident divers book the next level — and the next.
More training
Depth work, technique, ongoing coaching.
More competitions
Depth comps, club events, national records — a whole calendar.
More trips
Travel, tours, expeditions — a fuller calendar for you.
↻ And every diver who stays sends the current back around — a bigger, healthier sport.
More students. More courses. More training. More comps. More trips.
A growing sport
Freediving travel is booming — millions book dive trips every year. Every diver who stays adds to the current.
More gear sold
Divers who keep going keep buying — masks, fins, wetsuits, clips. Retention is repeat business for your shop.
Calmer, healthier divers
Freediving builds breath control, focus, and calm. Students who feel the benefit come back for more.
More ocean advocates
People protect what they love. Every diver you keep in the water becomes a voice for it.
Safer water
A coached beginner is a safer one than a frustrated diver teaching themselves from videos.
A stronger community
Confident divers bring friends, partners, and family. One rescue rarely stays one diver.
Share the breakthrough
Catch a rescue. Tag it. Inspire the next.
The moment a stuck beginner gets their first equalization is the best ad we'll ever have — and it's not ours to make, it's yours. Film it, post it, tag it.
#EQRescue
"Three failed dives on the mask, total frustration. We switched to the goggle and clip — first equalization on the next breath. She actually teared up. So did I."
— Instructor testimonial (your story here)"I'd basically given up on freediving. The dry goggle let me feel what equalizing was supposed to be. Two weeks later I booked my next course."
— Student testimonial (your story here)"Best teaching tool I've added in years. I keep one clipped to every buoy now. Game-changer for the students who'd normally quit."
— Instructor testimonial (your story here)Go deeper
Click for more
The essentials are above. Open these only if you want the full detail before signing up.
The opportunity — what this is + open– close
01 · A field-validated protocol
The EQ Rescue Protocol gives stuck head-down beginners a successful first equalization — then transitions them back to mask. Built across 18+ years of instructor experience. Now we test it at 1,000-instructor scale.
02 · Part of the evolution
We’ve spent years refining EQ Rescue — now you’re among the first to put it to work in the field at scale. Your teaching becomes part of why the sport grows: more beginners who get past the wall, stay in, and go deeper. Your findings feed the published study. This isn’t a leaderboard — it’s a shared push to move freediving forward.
03 · The tools you need
A FREEQ Dry Goggle (free). The full instructor manual + buoy card + field protocol. Optional accessories at 20–30% instructor discount. A documentation system designed to match how real teaching flows.
04 · This isn’t about pride
We know instructors don’t love documenting the students they couldn’t get through — it can feel like it reflects on you. It doesn’t. A stuck student isn’t a failure; it’s the exact case EQ Rescue exists for. The point is simply to name the problem honestly and start putting the solution in the water.
Who can apply + open– close
The program is open to working freediving instructors meeting all of the following:
- Active certification with a recognized agency: AIDA, Apnea Academy, SSI, FII, Molchanovs, PADI, NAUI, PFI, CMAS, or equivalent.
- Minimum 30 students certified — passed and certified under you.
- 12+ months actively teaching — at least one course taught in the past 12 months.
- Open to documenting stuck-student encounters as they naturally arise over the next 10 months. No pre-listed roster required.
- Comfortable with monthly cadence — one report per month minimum, spread across the 10-month documentation window.
- Honest documentation — including what didn't work. Your name is never published without your explicit opt-in.
Don't meet all six yet? You can still run the program yourself with your own goggle at instructor price.
Your free kit & the discount stack + open– close
The FREEQ Dry Goggle is your free teaching tool. Everything else — nose clips, lanyards, fins, additional gear — comes at exclusive Founding Instructor pricing.
Your teaching kit
- 1 × FREEQ Dry Goggle (current production)
- EQ Rescue Instructor Manual (digital)
- Laminated buoy card with clip-loop
- Digital field report template + welcome letter
- Digital Evolve Education card — works across Evolve programs
- Sticker pack
Source your nose clips & more
- Octopus nose clips: Classic, Carbon, Aluminum
- Mix-and-match 3-packs & 5-packs
- Safety lanyards & line gear
- Additional FREEQ goggles (backup teaching units)
- The EQ Rescue product line & ready-made packs
- Educational add-ons: masterclass & coaching
Founding Instructor discount stack — stacks across all categories. Mix and match nose clips, lanyards, fins, anything in the store.
All accessories. Applied automatically to your Founding Instructor account.
Buy any 5 items in one order. Mix-and-match nose clips, lanyards, anything.
Buy any 10 items in one order. Maximum savings. Mix and match freely.
Browse the full accessory store → Nose clips aren't in the kit on purpose: a Classic fits one student, a Carbon another, an Aluminum a third — so you source the variety rather than receive one clip that won't fit everyone.
How documentation works (private) + open– close
Your progress is private — only you see it. Nothing about your participation is published without your explicit, written opt-in, and it is never a ranking against other instructors.
Everyone starts at 20% instructor gear pricing with a direct support line. The more stuck-student encounters you document honestly, the further your gear pricing can stack — up to 30% — so it reflects a real contribution to the study rather than a tier you climb.
That’s the whole of it. No stages, no Zooms, no perks to chase — just honest documentation that helps the sport, at your own pace, kept private to you.
Your data & your privacy + open– close
Evolve Apnea owns the aggregated dataset. Your name is never published without your explicit, written opt-in. Student identities are anonymized in every report — we use codes like "Student #3", with no real names or identifying details.
We will publish: aggregated success rates, anonymous case studies, and environmental comparisons.
We will NOT publish: raw individual reports, identifying student information, instructor-vs-instructor comparisons, or any individual instructor's results. Tier progression is private — only you see your tier. Full data-ownership terms are in your acceptance email and the launch plan, Section 7.
Frequently asked + open– close
Do I need to have 10 stuck students lined up right now?
No — there’s no roster and no cap. Document stuck students as they come up in your normal teaching. If you run into more than ten, even better: use the goggle to rescue as many as you can. You can also invite past students who gave up on equalization back in to try the protocol. Ten over ten months is just a comfortable rhythm, not a limit.
What happens if my goggle breaks?
It’s covered by the manufacturer’s 1-year warranty. After that, we service it exactly as we would for any customer. If you’d like spare FREEQ goggles for redundancy, they’re available at your instructor discount.
Why aren't nose clips included in the kit?
The goggle has a universal fit, so one model works for everyone — that’s why it’s the free item. Nose clips are different: the right clip depends on the student’s nose and your dive conditions, so you’re the one best placed to choose. We keep them separate and give you 20% off (stacking to 25% on any 5 items, 30% on any 10) so you can pick the right variety. The Octopus 3-pack is a good default starter.
Can I do this in cold water?
Yes. It's easiest in warm water — a thin suit and free hands mean the mask is the only obstacle to isolate, and a relaxed, comfortable student can focus on the mechanic. Cold water works too; there's just more to account for: a stronger dive reflex, a hooded suit and gloves that change how the goggle and clip seal, more mucus, and thermal stress competing for attention. We flag all of this in the manual, and we actively want honest cold-water reporting — it's high-value to the findings.
Who owns the data I submit? Is my information made public?
Evolve Apnea owns the aggregated dataset. Your name is never published without your explicit, written opt-in. Student identities are anonymized in every report. We publish aggregated success rates, anonymous case studies, and environmental comparisons. We will NOT publish raw individual reports, identifying student information, instructor-vs-instructor comparisons, or any individual instructor's results. Your pricing progression is private.
How does documentation affect my pricing?
It’s simple: everyone gets 20% instructor gear pricing and a direct support line. The more stuck-student encounters you document honestly, the further your pricing can stack — up to 30%. It’s private (only you see your progress), there are no Zooms, tiers, or perks to chase, and nothing is published without your written opt-in. It’s about contributing to the study, not a ranking.
What if I can't complete all 10 reports?
Partial completions are still valuable data. We accept 5+ reports as a meaningful contribution. We do personal outreach at month 4 to anyone falling behind — not to pressure, but to check whether you need support, more nose-clip variety, or to identify what's blocking. The program matches teaching reality, not compliance. Your progress is never shared with other instructors or made public.
Free resources & downloads — no sign-up needed + open– close
Free for any instructor — you don't need to sign up to access these. Read the protocol, print the buoy card, study the illustrated guide. The field study is for instructors who want to validate it at scale.
The Instructor Manual
When the Mask Fails — the complete protocol manual. PDF, A4 + Letter.
Buoy Card
The field reference card. Print, laminate, clip to your buoy.
Illustrated Guide
The visual walk-through — the seven-action skill stack and the three-step ladder.
Video Tutorials
Coming soon. Real rescue sessions, cue-language demos, common patterns.
Short Manual
The condensed version — one printed sheet, for the instructor who already gets it.
Stuck Student Patterns
Anonymous case studies from past rescues. Patterns that surface, language that lands.
Prefer to apply by email? + open– close
Email hello@evolveapnea.com with subject line: EQ RESCUE FIELD STUDY
Include: agency, certification level, years teaching, number of students certified, a brief description of 3 stuck-student situations you've encountered or anticipate, and any optional accessory selection (20–30% instructor discount).
Applications reviewed in the order received. Selected instructors notified within 14 days. All applicant information is held strictly confidential.
Or just use the sign-up form →
Agency-aligned
Works with your agency, not around it
EQ Rescue is a teaching aid used alongside your agency's standards — the safety freediver stays in mask, and every certification skill is completed in mask. Our instructors come from across the agencies:
Names shown for alignment only — not an endorsement. Drop official agency logos into these tiles once you have written permission to display them.
Go get a goggle.
Two minutes to sign up. Free if you qualify, instructor price if you don't.
Path A · Step 1 of 2 · Eligibility
Before your free goggle
The 1,000 Goggle Field Study is open to working freediving instructors. Confirm each item — all are required to continue.
Tick all five to continue.
Get your own goggle at 20% instructor price and start today.
Path A · Step 2 of 2 · Sign-up
Claim your free goggle
We review every sign-up in the order received and reply within 14 days. All information is held strictly confidential.
Add gear to your welcome shipment
Instructor price · 20% offOptional. Every item is at your Founding Instructor price — 20% off retail — shipped with your free goggle. Or skip it and order later.
FREEQ Goggle — backup unit
A spare teaching goggle for redundancy.
$119.99$149.99✓ AddedSafety Lanyard
Quick-release, stainless hardware. Required for line dives.
$31.99$39.99✓ AddedCarbon Fins
Lightweight carbon blades for teaching and dives.
$239.99$299.99✓ AddedOctopus Nose Clip — variety set
One each: Classic, Carbon, Aluminum. Covers student nose anatomy.
$67.97$84.97✓ AddedBy submitting you agree to honest, anonymized reporting. We reply within 14 days. Your information is never shared with other instructors or made public without your written opt-in.
You're in the running.
Your sign-up is in. We review every one in the order received and email you within 14 days.
Aloha from Kona — the Evolve Apnea team
Path B · Run it yourself
Start today — no waitlist
Don't qualify for the free-goggle study, or just don't want to wait? Get your own goggle at instructor price, grab the protocol, and start rescuing stuck students now. Document your results and you can move into the cohort later.
Build your order
Verify cert for 20% offChoose your goggle and nose clip, then verify your certification to unlock the protocol and 20% instructor pricing. No free goggle on this path — but no waitlist either.
No qualification or review required. Verified instructors get the protocol + 20% pricing; we may ask to confirm your cert. The goggle and add-ons are confirmed at checkout in the store.
You're set up.
Welcome aboard. We'll email your protocol links and the checkout for your gear shortly.
Aloha from Kona — the Evolve Apnea team