You’ve probably seen them on the dive boat or at the lake: divers standing perfectly upright with no tank on their back, only to clip two cylinders to their sides the moment they hit the water. Sidemount diving used to be a highly specialized configuration reserved exclusively for hardcore cave divers squeezing through tiny rock restrictions. Today, it has completely exploded into the mainstream recreational scuba world. But is sidemount just a cool-looking, gear-heavy trend, or is it actually a better way to dive? Here is the honest truth about taking the tanks off your back.