SURF LIFE-SAVING SHOULD BE STARTED IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Southland Times, Issue 23676, 26 November 1938, Page 15

SURF LIFE-SAVING SHOULD BE STARTED IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

By

LIFEBELT

CLUB HOURS Monday, 6.15 to 7.15 p.m.—Murihiku. Tuesday, 5.45 to 6.45 p.m.—ExPupils. Wednesday, 5.45 to 6.45 p.m.—Collegiate. Wednesday, 8.30 p.m.—Water polo. Thursday, 6.15 to 7.15 p.m.—Murihiku. COMING EVENTS Today at 2.45 p.m, Oreti Surf Club opening. December 5-10.—“ Learn to Swim Week.

December 15 (approx.).—Southland junior and intermediate championships. January 21.—-Watson Cup. Open water swim at Bluff.

January 26-28.—New Zealand junior and intermediate championships at Rotorua. >

February 14-18.—New Zealand senior championships at Invercargill. The official opening of the Oreti Surf Club takes place this afternoon at 2.45 p.m. The Mayor (Mr J. R. Hanan) has accepted an invitation to preside at the ceremony and on him will fall the duty of declaring the season open. After the ceremony a display of land drill will be given by the Southland Boys’ High School team which won .the inter-secondary schools life-saving championship at Dimedin early this month. After*- this display the Oreti team will give a demonstration surf runout showing the • latest methods of surf rescue and resuscitation.

Mr A. J. Kingsland, president of the club, will again be leading club affairs this season, and judging by the large and enthusiastic annual meeting recently held the club is in for a busy season. The club hopes for a good attendance of the public attoday’s opening and the exhibition teams have been putting in some hard training for this display. Because of the smallness of the local population the only surf club; the Oreti Life Saving Club, is rather handicapped. It is also true that ' swimming is more or less a young sport in Southland with the result that senior active members are as yet ’ rather few, and also that the club has been particularly unfortunate in' that all those senior active members who were lost to the province last season by business transfers were all active members and helped to comprise the main body of representative surfers. Club officials realizing the neccessity of building up a senior membership have in the past endeavoured, with good results, to interest younger swimmers in this particular branch of swimming. ' Surfing and surf life-saving are most popular pastimes and have thousands of adherents ;at the present time and every season sees bigger, memberships of the surf clubs. Official support is growing for this movement year by year and rightly so, for no other similar organization can boast of being so useful to . the cominunity. Every year thousands of surf bathers go to the beaches and the great majority of them bathe under the watchful eye of these amateur guardians; every year sees these same amateurs saving valuable lives. Unfortunately fnany of these rescues receive little or no publicity, the rescuers usually being modest young men who quietly disappear after doing their good deed with the result that, although their value is gradually receiving greater recognition from both public and Governrnent, the true importance of their services is as yet still unrecognized by the great majority. Very surprising too is the attituoe of many bathers in their quiet assump-

tion that these lifesavers are there for their protection and they bathe cheerfully between the safety signs knowing they are under the watchful eye of a patrolman. Time and time again they come from further along the beach to bathe in the supervised area or send, their children there and very many of them look blank on the few occasions the surf club sends round a collection box. These collections >by surf clubs are not taken'to provide the clubs with easy revenue; they are to assist to to maintain a high standard of safety gear, the purpose of which is to save human life. The demonstrations and competitions in which the gear is used is not only sport but is in fact really serious practice with the actual object of saving life if necessary. All club members pay their club subscriptions for the privilege of being members of a club and that should be sufficient financial responsibility for them, as the rest of the work devolves upon them also. Last year saw the Oreti club endeavouring to interest the school boys in surf work with very good results but it is doubtful if the club is going far enough even in doing that. At least one northern club goes to the primary schools for its nursery, and with wonderful results. Not only, does this club give instruction in life

saving but it has even gone so far as to institute a competition for them and it is found possible to field four or five teams of six aside. Of course the buoy is neccessarily fairly close in so that the swim is not too hard. Is it not possible to provide the same type of fare for the Invercargill juniors? Swimmers there are in plenty in the local primary schools and judging by the keeness of the children when they receive their swimming instruction at the baths, recruits should not be hard to find. What youngster could resist the temptation of being in a team with a proper instructor and a real surf reel shining with paint and chromium. Add to this the thrill of competing school against school—with proper organization, quite a good event could be made out of this. The result would be that the future membership of the Oreti Life Saving club should be very secure, as once introduced to the sport very few of the keen spirits would be inclined to drop their opportunity of partaking in it.

SLOWER STROKING Several swimmers in training have been definitely attempting to slow down their arm strokes and those who have succeeded certainly appear to show some benefit from it. If a swimmer has a rapid arm-cycle he must tire more than the man with a slower movement and it stands to reason that the latter will gain more from his leg beat. Swimmers who have improved their leg beat and lengthened their stroke successfully are D. Berry, Miss McGrath and D. Kirkland. Berry is still too fast away at the front portion of his pull as yet to gain the full benefit of his kick. The recent visit of Norman Wainwright showed the difference between the fast-stroking local swimmers with their weak kicking, and a man with a slower cycle and splendid kick. W. Johnson is another object lesson to most and must surely be one of the most relaxed swimmers seen in action here.

Commenting on the swimming styles observed at the European championships one writer says: “It speaks volumes for the strength of his pull and the power of his leg drive that, stroking at the rate of 31-34 pulls a length, (50 metres) Bijom Borg was able to win the 1500 metres against the Empire champion, Lievers, who was oyer 40 pulls a length and swimming like a lion all the way.” It is worthy of note that many swimmers require 30 or more strokes to negotiate one lap of the local pool which is only 33 1-3 yards in length, so it would appear that those swimmers attempting to lengthen their stroke are on the right track. The following dives have been fixed by the New Zealand council for the national junior and intermediate championships. These dives will also probably be the Southland standard foi the local championships. Intermediate Boys.—No. 3, running, high board (flying somersault forward; No. 15 B, running, high board (Mollberg full Gainer with pike); No. 27 A, running high board (one screw forward, straight). ’lntermediate girls.—No. 8 A, high board, (backward headter, straight); No. 20 B, high board, (backward spring forward with pike); No. 25 A, running, high board, (half screw forward). Juniors, (for both boys and girls.— No. 2 C, low board (Somersault, forward with tuck); No. 25, running, low board, (half screw forward). In addition to these dives competitors will be required to give an equal number of voluntary dives. All intending competitors are advised to keep this notice for reference.

Among the various matters of interest which came up at the New Zealand conference held at Wellington was a recommendation that a coach, or coaches, should be brought into the country from overseas. As the New Zealand council did not have enough revenue to pay for such a step a suggestion had been made that all dubs should charge a minimum subscription of 10/- to senior swimmers, or swimmers who would benefit considerably from such coaches. From this 10/— the council would get 2/6 and another amount from each subscription would be paid into the individual centres to defray travelling and other incidental expenses. The scheme was not very favourably received but a gramophone record is to be made setting out the advantages of such a scheme and copies of the record are to be sent to the various centres. It may be of interest to know that for all general purposes the income of the New Zealand council is less than £lOO. Results of events held by the ExPupils’ club: — 33 1-3 yards Handicap.—R. Spence 1, J. Randle 2, J. Jones 3. 100 yards scratch race.—A. C. Millar 1, F. W. Springford 2, J. Alexander 3. D. C. Berry also started. Won easily. Time 1.3 3-5.