Posts

Australia and Surf Clubs

/in , , , , /by

Australia is Mecca for Surf Lifeguards.

Lifesaving in Australia started around the same time as it did in the rest of the developed world. The old system of “Lifesaver Men” who stayed for weeks at a time in lighthouses looking for ships that wrecked along the shoreline began to transition to modern lifesaving with the advent of a leisure class around the turn of the century.

“Surf bathing” became popular in Europe, Australia, the US, and parts of Asia around the same time. The fad spread rapidly. At first this required the use of “surf bathing machines” that were rolled out into the water so people could change and take a dip without being seen by the crowd. By 1905 people were flocking to the ocean to take part in this new fad. Here in Galveston the beach was already really popular, but the difference was now thousands took to the water, despite little or no swimming ability. It was a time for rebellion against Victorian mores, with the woolen bathing “costumes” showing more and more skin.

The beaches around Sydney, Australia can have heavy surf and horrible rip currents. As people realized the danger of this new craze, there was a need for protection. The first volunteer surf lifesaving club was formed in 1907. As the beach and swimming fever grew and spread across the continent, so did the system of volunteer clubs.

The difference in Australian beaches vs. places like Galveston or other important US beach destinations was and is that 90% of the inhabitants of the continent live within a few miles of the coast. The surf club served many functions. It was a social club, gym, and a way to volunteer for the community. If you joined a surf club, you could stay there, eat there, and you had a readymade social set. The beach everywhere is a great social equalizer where social status in other parts of society doesn’t matter. After the wars, soldiers could find the type of discipline and structure they were accustomed to which helped many readjust to normal society. Above all, they provided a venue to serve in a positive and fun way.

Today the Australian surf club fills the niche of an American health club, and a large percentage of the population are members. Typically, you have a place to exercise and many offer food and drink to the public, with a requirement to take “lifesaving patrols” once or twice a month. Instead of lifting weights and going to spin aerobics, you may take a swim and go for a surf ski paddle. Competitions are a regular event with those who don’t race helping to officiate or support in other ways. Since practically the entire country is involved the depth of field ensures the highest level of performance. The Aussies almost always take gold in the international lifesaving competitions.

The Galveston Beach Patrol has a surf club modeled after the Australian model. If you are a swimmer you may be interested. Information is available on our website.

photo courtesy of ILS (Facebook)

Veracruz Training Wrap-up

/in , , /by

At 7:15 our little band stood in the lobby of the Hotel Louis rubbing the sleep out of our eyes and filing into the van of the “Proteccion Civil” (Mexican equivalent of Emergency Operations). By 7:45 we were in the auditorium provided to us as a classroom for the 60 students of the lifeguard academy.

It was the last full day in Veracruz. The culmination of 60 hours of training over a 6 day period. We were tired to the bone after all the teaching and mandatory extracurricular activities that were required of us by Mexican customs and the formalities required of a delegation from Veracruz’s sister city.

From the written test we went directly to the beach and the large group was quickly divided into a subset of 4. Smaller groups of around 15 participated in 4 separate scenarios on the beach. Two were simulated medical emergencies that were designed to happen on the shoreline and the other two were water emergencies, which were complicated by the 8 foot surf. By 11:30, thanks to the help from some additional volunteers, we’d run the scenarios and done a debriefing to talk about the good and bad responses to the simulated emergencies. After the daily mandatory group photo shots and autograph sessions protocol dictated, we ate a hasty meal that our host brought us. Then we and reunited with a couple of members of our group who were assigned the arduous task of grading the 60 exams and putting the scores in the course matrix alongside the swim, run, attendance, teamwork, and first aid/CPR course columns. To receive certification from the International Lifesaving Federation- Americas Region they had to pass all of the columns. 26 ended up passing and the others received an acknowledgement of participation in the course, and in some cases a certification in first aid and CPR.

The completion ceremony filled the municipal hall of Veracruz and there were high ranking officials present from the mayor to an admiral in the Navy to the heads of both tourism and civil protection for the state. The mayor is the son of the mayor that was there when Galveston and Veracruz formed their sister city relationship, and that relationship is clearly very important to the entire city. We were treated like royalty by everyone we came into contact with.

We actually got two glorious hours off to change, rest and prepare for the big celebration. At the celebration we distributed second had buoys, whistles, fins, lifeguard competition shirts, Galveston stickers and other things we brought to donate. Nothing goes to waste down there.

Hopefully the training will come in handy to the 14 groups from all over the state in the upcoming couple of weeks. Carnival starts today and they expect around 2 million people to visit the city alone in the next week. Semana Santa (Easter) follows shortly after and it just as big. They’ll definitely have their hands full.

Our crew returned Sunday exhausted but with renewed commitment. Our own challenges start shortly.