There are now many Surf Life Saving Clubs (SLSCs) around the UK Coast, but Bude was the very first, established in 1953 with a donation of training equipment from Australia. Mark Wade, Bude SLSC’s Chief Instructor, brought a range of their equipment to illustrate his lively talk about the club to Bude and District U3A’s November meeting.
The aim of Bude SLSC is saving lives and preventing drowning. Visitors to the coast can be unaware of the possible dangers presented by the waves that attract them to Bude. Club members with their distinctive red and yellow caps volunteer in beach patrols during the holiday season, advising the public and sometimes becoming involved in rescues.
Members also provide safety cover for swimming events, for example lifeguards on rescue boards accompany participants in the annual Northcott Mouth to Crooklets swim. Lifeguard cover at Crooklets is provided for a short time on Christmas Day, with lifeguards on rescue boards surrounding the hundreds of people who briefly enter the water. Mark stressed that Bude SLSC does not organise this traditional dip, but their insurance covers them to provide lifeguard cover on the beach.
Back in the fifties women were deemed unfit to become lifeguards but Cornish women quickly ensured that lifeguarding qualifications became open to women as well. Training starts young with Nippers aged 7 – 11 with awareness of water safety, what can be dangerous, how to look after yourself, and how to float. At the junior stage, ages 12-18, children begin to learn how to look after others. Seniors are aged over 18.
The first equipment used by Bude SLSC was a line on a large reel. A lifeguard would swim out with the line, hook himself and the casualty to it, then be pulled slowly back to shore. Helpful bystanders trying to join in were a major hazard – pull too quickly and the people on the end of the line would disappear under the water. This equipment is now obsolete! Lifeguards now swim out with a long buoyancy aid, known as a big yellow banana, and make sure the casualty clings onto it rather than the lifeguard themself.
Current equipment also includes rescue boards, long thick surfboards with grips on the front that can take two people. Bude SLSC also has an Inshore Rescue Boat (IRB) which is designed for surf and can spin within its own length. It would be used no more than 500 metres from the shore.
Surf Lifesaving is a professional level international sport based on lifeguarding skills. Events include a one kilometre run on sand, beach sprints, a swim race starting from the beach, and races with racing rescue boards. Lifeguards may have to run some distance across dry, firm, or waterlogged sand with their equipment before entering the water, and the shortest route is not necessarily the quickest.
A porpoising technique involving hands as well as feet is quicker than wading into the water. Such sports develop judgement and skills! This summer the Bude Seniors won the National Championships for the third time running, with the Nipper and Junior sections also doing well.
Mark finished with some safety advice. Dangerous rip currents can sweep swimmers out to sea at around five mph. Calm safe-looking areas without waves are deceptive, as this indicates deeper water where rip currents can form. Waves appear where the beach is raised and the sea shallow, and will be the safest area. Sands can move between tides and therefore rip currents may form in different places from day to day. If caught in such a current, relax, float on your back and don’t let go of your board or flotation aid. Don’t try to swim against the current, when the current lessens swim out to the side towards shallower water.
Cold water swimming is becoming popular but has its hazards – cold water shock, cardiac arrest, becoming unable to swim, and hypothermia. Gasping is a reflex action when entering cold water and causes drowning if the person is submerged when they gasp. Wear a wetsuit, go in slowly – don’t jump, allow a couple of minutes for breathing to settle before swimming.
Mark’s talk was followed by questions and enthusiastic applause, with some members saying how much their grandchildren appreciated the training. Further information about Bude SLSC is available at https://www.budeslsc.co.uk/.
Other Bude U3A news: The next Open Meeting will take place on January 15th at the Parkhouse Centre, when Prof Karl Ritz will talk about ‘Plant Roots – the Hidden Half’. Full details of groups and activities are available at www.budeu3a.co.uk.
