Swimming Without A Lifeguard

It was not the ideal night for a lifeguard tournament with strong winds and rather cold water but it did not hurt the performance of the beach patrol from Surf City as they claimed the annual Seaside Park Lifeguard Tournament. Captain Mark DiLeo led his group past nine others as Surf City finished with 45 points, ten more than runner-up and host Seaside Park. Defending champion Ortley Beach had to settle for a third place finish and Island Beach came in fourth. The event was sponsored by Seaside Park Service Center, Surf Taco, B&B Department Store and the Sawmill Café. As I usually do I served as a lane judge working with the group from my home beach Seaside Park who had to be very pleased with their second-place finish. All in all a good night of competition and camaraderie by men and women who know and respect the ocean.

It was interesting to me that even while the lifeguard tournament was being held there were several after-hours swimmers nearby as hot weather has been and will result in many staying late on the beach this week. An article in today’s Asbury Park Press addresses the dilemma this presents for towns and their lifeguards as in most cases tragedies result when beaches are not protected. Especially on hot weekends it’s not unusual to see hundreds of people in the ocean before and after lifeguards leave for the day and in most cases we are talking about bathers who don’t swim well and know little about rip currents and water conditions. While signs and even announcements may tell them they are swimming at their own risk
to them it’s a small price to pay for a cool dip on a hot day. The dilemma is whether or not resort towns have an obligation to take extra measures to protect these swimmers by keeping some lifeguards on duty, especially if water conditions are rough and dangerous. Of course like most everything else it all comes down to money and budgets….that is until a drowning takes place.