“I’m going to help you back in. You do exactly what I say, or I’ll twat you with this camera” !
Surf for long enough and you will be the last line of defence as some unsuspecting tourist charges out to sea in a rip.
35 years ago, more maybe, I remember my Dad, along with 5 or 6 other surfers, pulling a family of 5 people out of the sea. Pulling people out of the sea can save them, but it can ruin your day.
The crowd in the water emptied and re-formed into a human semi circle at the waters edge. That was a long time ago, I remember the woman screaming and grabbing at men’s arms, trying to throw them back into the sea to go and save her husband and daughters. The beach was Constantine and there was a happy ending.
Fast forward to 2 or 3 years ago, I received a short e mail. That e mail is long since lost, but the kid (possibly 15 or 16 ish) had written “I just remembered the name “surftwisted” on your camera housing and I wanted to say, Thank You“.
I remember the day, I could see the pair of them, a father and son, right against the rocks, in the rip, kicking hard but going nowhere except backwards. We were 40 or 50 feet apart. I remember the kid had training shoes on, every now and again they splashed in and out. By the time I had made up the distance, his Dad had disappeared, “I’m going to help you back in. You do exactly what I say, or I’ll twat you with this camera” !
spread the love, T
I rescued a guy in Equador. He was caught in a rip at a river mouth break and was really really bricking it. He nutted then nearly drowned me when I paddled over (100m+ through a heavy rip so I was weak as a kitten) - then when I got him to the shallows he got all south american macho embarassed and stomped off not saying anything. It was cranking - by the time I’d done with him I was super tired and the tide was changing.
I saw him that night - he was hammered and nearly knocked me out again when he ran over and started screaming “angle of the sea” at me…..so he not only ruined my surf, he then fightened the crap out of me and made me look like a chief in the middle of a very small village. so I am with you tony - you help out and it makes you day rubbish.
I would help him again. just maybe give him a bit longer in the rip to tire out whilst I get a few more waves.
weird..it kind of happened to me too, in Mexico but in a slightly different way. This time the kid had pretty much gone by the time I got to him- just a bundle of clothes being tossed around in the waves. Took a good solid bit of CPR/ mouth to mouth for me to get him back, with about 100 people all gathered around… but then the kids dad seemed almost cross with me, pride & panic I guess… just rushed him off to hospital and never looked back. I never saw or heard anything afterwards from the family- just news from a passer-by that the boy had survived ok. Just left with an intense gap in my soul that for a few minutes I had this super intense connection with this child… he came back to life…filled us with joy…like witnessing the birth of your own child almost…and then he was gone from my life forever. I still wish to this day that I had some way of getting in touch- I often have an urge to hug him.
I was so angry with the father because he had ditched his son, he swam for the rocks, scrambled out and sculked around in the distance ! When we got to the beach he didnt even approach, he stayed up high on the rocks, the kid ws ok, I had to leave before i ran across the beach and belted his father ! Its not a good feeling
on a lighter note I have witnessed a guy trying to save someone who does not need or want saving….very very very funny.
HA ! brilliant, evangelical life guards !, did you video it Kookie ?
Video?? you must be joking mate. far too clever for me!! I remembered it though. I could recount it over a hot mug of bovril if I had to.
rips suck