(Photo above shows CSHQ OLS, Dom Holden, at the wheel of the Central Section Call Car. CSHQ is, of course, has its collective hand on the heartbeat and pulse of all that is Central Section with its 24 hour HQ crew. Looking good, Dom! 10-4. Photo by Will Maguire.)
Dateline: Friday, July 1, 2011
"County Recurrent" assigned one of its staff... to do a walk thru/walk about along Santa Monica South just past 5 pm to get a look at the beach crowd and this summer's SMS Lifeguard crew and, of course, to shoot some photos of all of that, as well as to take a swim and body surf some waves. We were rewarded with a potential double rescue that turned into a wet prevent for two of LACo's finest recurrents... but more about that as we take a stroll along SMS from the Pier to Tower #28 and back. We hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane and perhaps your senses will even conjure the sounds of the beachgoers at play, the smell of the salt air and the taste of summer...
And so we began our mission upstairs at CSHQ whereupon we discovered a young beach patron using one of the HQ's vehicle access traffic cones as a writing instrument to create some sort of message in the sand, which our collective lot was unable to figure out... but there you have it... onward...
... we cut a path from HQ and took a shortcut between Towers #16 and 17, so our first shots are toward the pier with Tower #16 and the pier as our focal points...
... and with the sun at our back we were able to capture this next photo showing Tower #17 and the backdrop that is SMS!... God's Country... where men are men, where some of LACo's brightest, strongest, fastest female and male lifeguards cut their teeth on rescues, one after the other, through a minefield of inshore holes and hoovering rip currents... but we digress... onward...
And who is that at SMS Tower #17, below? None other than SMS Veteran OL, Nick Kartychok! Always on top of it, this veteran recurrent is the backbone of the seasonal SMS summer crew setting an example of excellance and a great attitude. Keep on keepin' on, Nick! 10-4.
Next up, Towers #20 and #22. We will get back to T-18 in a bit, so stay with us...
As we were walking along in front of and past Tower #25, we noticed that the guard there had his eyes on a rip and the inshore holes just to the left of his tower... and realizing something may be developing... this recurrent, Taylor Manuel, began moving quickly into position and utilized his whistling skills to try to gain the attention of two female swimmers yet unaware of the lateral current and the developing rip...
Taylor's got his hat off... so something is afoot...
LACo Recurrents, Amanda Mohagen and Taylor Manuel decide its time to get wet...
*** Editor's note: If you are wondering how this all turned out..... be sure to check out the video, namely:
"When In Doubt, Go!": The Video [HD] (posted on July 1, 2011)
we've posted on our Facebook Group, "County Lifeguards and Alumni". You will have to join our group, if you haven't done so already, and since it is a "Closed Group" you have to be a LACo Recurrent or Permanent Lifeguard, past or present. 10-4.
SMS Rescue Vehicle in service to location of rips at SMS T-25...
SMS Capt. Kirk Thomas walking down the ramp at Tower #27, helping shut it down so the guard can shift to T-28
You know, KT never helped me shut a tower down when I had to shift over to T-28...
... and forget about getting a ride... :-)
And here is where we made a flip turn and started retracing our steps back to where we started...
Meanwhile, T-25 also shuttered and the guard there shifted to T-24
Aah, the sentimental favorite, SMS Tower #24. Lots of activity still happening at this tower and the guard on a foot patrol backing up a rescue at T-22...
Have fins, will travel...
SMS Tower #22 is within our sight now...
Nick Kartychok at SMS Tower #17 giving us the thumbs up on our return journey...
Baywatch Santa Monica patrolling Santa Monica South
LAPD Chopper responding to disturbance in the area...
LAPD Chopper overhead... and a seagull sharing the same airspace...
and we conclude our SMS foot patrol back where we started... at Tower #16...
---
Editor's note:
*** All photos by & Copyright Will Maguire 2011. Used here with permission.
Until next time.....
"County Recurrent" News
http://CountyRecurrent.blogspot.com
Service • Training • Commitment
*** Keeping the County Recurrent "in the loop"..... whether he/she likes it or NOT ! ***
DISCLAIMER: County Recurrent is not affiliated with nor sponsored by LACOLA or LACoFD.
*** PLEASE forward to other Recurrents, past and present, so that we can add them to our mailing list. ***
*** OPT IN *** Just send us an email and we will add you to the list.
***** ***** ***** ***** *****
No comments:
Post a Comment