Tuesday, March 26, 2013

"Rowing the Surf Dory's...1970's", by Tom Allen Sena

Head's up, Recurrents!  Get a cup of coffee and sit back cuz you are all going to really enjoy this story by (now retired) L.A. City OLS and LACo OLS (aka, Permanent), Tom Allen Sena, who along with his brother Randy Allen, and many other lifeguard-dorymen, were up and down the California coast in the late 60's and '70's participating in the lifeguard dory races.  Ready?!... Here goes!






Photo above shows Tom Sena, in the stern, and Ralph Collins, in the bow, during the Oct. 1975 Pismo Beach Clam Festival Dory Race. Photo courtesy of Tom Sena. Photo by Bob Howe. 



Rowing the Surf Dory’s… 1970’s, by Tom Allen Sena

The surf dory has been used in Life Guard Services up and down the Southern California Coast as lifesaving equipment for many decades. With a crowded summer day on the beach, with bigger surf causing "rip" currents, and dragging groups of people in the near surf areas out into deeper water, a surf dory was very good for rowing out and bringing people into the boat, or letting them hang on the gunnel, until it was safe to bring them back in. A two man dory allowed the stern man to control the boat with his oars, and the bowman to ship his oars, and help the people in the water needing assistance. Older dory's were modeled off the east coast lobster dory's, and the original boats on the west coast used by the lifeguards were the Peterson wood dory. This was a two person craft, ~20 ft. long, and weighing ~ 350-400 lbs. with two thwarts to sit on, and a double set up of oar locks bolted to the wood gunnel. These boats provided good service to the lifeguard crews in Southern California for many years, with guards from the 40's, 50's, and 60's like L.A. City guards Myron Cox, Bud Clark, Ed Perry, Bob Williams, Don Rohrer, Ed Hoffman, and Jerry Balonich, using the dory's for surf rescues and as a work out to stay in shape, and be strong and ready for big surf days. The experienced Lifeguards would teach the new guards dory technique, and the tradition lived on.

Modern dory's evolved in the late 60’s with the new "Schock" dory, molded out of fiberglass, with a false bottom installed just above the water line. This was an outstanding new design, because it made the dory "self-bailing". The Peterson dory did a good job of breaking through the waves to get out through the surf, but would invariably get water into the boat, so you had to bail the water out at some point. Hit the wave wrong, and the wave would swamp the boat, tumble it, sink it, and throw the two rowers around like leaves in a strong wind.

The new self-bailing dory's were fantastic, because the Dorymen could be more aggressive in the surf, and take more chances with the waves, both busting out through the waves, and Surfing them in! You could still get tumbled by the waves, but it was really nice to have the ocean water spill out of the scuppers along the side of the boat, and be able to keep rowing. Rowing a dory required strength, good equipment (the boat, oar locks, and oars), and skill and timing in and out of the waves. Obviously the bigger the waves (huge power in big waves), the more skill and caution was needed. Small waves, no problem, take off on any small wave and ride it in, with a good stern man steering, bowman pulling, and both Dorymen having fun. Even if you broached sideways, the boat was big, and you still had some control. A Schock dory was 20 ft. long, and a minimum of 300 lbs. (standard NSLSA). Some dory's were heavy for many reasons, but if you could tune your dory down to 301 lbs., you could make them glide, and fly over the water. Heavy boats sat deeper in the water, so you had to pull more water to move them.

In the early and mid 70's there were many Lifeguard crews from L.A. City, L.A. County, Santa Monica, San Clemente, Long Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, and San Diego that got their boats fine tuned and very competitive. The NSLSA (national surf lifesaving association) and the Doryman’s association, set standards, and organized races up and down the SoCal coast during the summer for competition between the lifeguard crews...What Fun! Get weekends off (to represent your Beach and Crew), and travel up and down the coast all summer racing, and having a ton of fun at a different beach every weekend, all summer.

So the art of going through the surf, and riding the waves into the beach became highly competitive, all for trophies, representing your crew, and drinking beer with your mates, and camaraderie with fellow Southern California lifeguards. The result was a true "family" of athletic, professional, lifesavers all along the southern California Coast.

The trick was... to not get yourself seriously injured! Big waves have tremendous power, and a 300 lb. boat, with four 10 ft. oars flying around were dangerous articles. I rowed a big summer swell one late afternoon at Will Rogers Beach Summer '72, with my good friend Tim Mooney, and coming in on a 6-8 ft. wave we broached, the bow dug in, we flipped, a shore side oar caught between the boat oarlock and the sandy bottom, it snapped, and the loose shard (~4 ft. long with sharp splinter end) went through Tim's left triceps, Ouch! He came up surprised, but smiling, walked into shore where I pulled it out of his arm, and sent him off for some stitches. I gathered up the boat and gear and went to the "barn" under the light house headquarters, with repairs needed the next day.

Pismo beach winter 1975 was a big surf day (8-10 ft. waves), and you had to use a lot of skill to get out through the surf, and ride the waves back in, and stay in one piece. So we went out and practiced. Rowing out required good timing between the two Dorymen; you have to have momentum to hit a peaking wave. The bigger the wave, the more momentum you need, and when your boat hits a rising wave, you want to have your bow split the crest, and you have to "set" all four oars in the wave. You have to pull your boat through the wave, and you can only do that if your oars are digging in the water as you go up and through the wave. If your oars are not set, and you are not pulling through the wave, then the wave picks you up, and throws you back toward the beach with power and thousands of pounds of water crashing all around you. Hold your breath and duck, because you are in for washing machine type of ride, with the boat, and all the oars flailing about. It is also a good idea to get out through the waves between sets, easier, but not always available to you during races.

So, the point of getting out through the waves, is to ride a wave back in! Riding a wave in a 20 ft., 300 lb. dory can be a lot of fun; it takes a bit of skill, because if you screw it up, it is possible to get hurt or maimed.  Riding a wave into shore in a dory requires timing dropping in, and some momentum so you have some speed when you catch the wave, and you want to be going straight. If you drop into the wave at an angle, you will most likely broach the boat and tumble, not a good practice. Drop in straight, the boat is big enough to handle a lot of white water crashing around you, and the Bowman, being out in front of the wave, can dip one oar, and pull with the other to steer, and stay straight into shore. The Stern man, ships his oars (gets them out of the water so they do not fly up and hit you), steps up and off his thwart, and goes and sits on the stern. Great position; the stern may is sitting on the back end of the dory, with a view going into the beach. He can help call out to the Bowman, a little pull to the right, a little dip on the left. You wind up on shore, you made it!  And not dead! 

OL's Randy Allen and Mike Kent surfing a wave.  Photo courtesy of Tom Allen Sena. Photo by Bob Howe.

Now, one might wonder why anyone would want to ride waves with a 20 ft. dory. Well, one really good reason is it can be instrumental in winning a surf dory race!  Dory racing is an exciting sport and a very exclusive event for Beach Lifeguards. Riding waves with your partner in a dory provides plenty of thrills; with the Dorymen, the boat, and the waves all in sync, good fun. In a dory race, add a Pier out into the water which you row around two or three times, and twelve to twenty other boats, then it becomes a spectacle event. The boats are lined up on the inshore shallow water (two oar lengths between each), the bowman is in the boat holding it steady, the Stern men are on shore, and all run down to the boats at the starting gun.

Dorymen are now all in the boats, pull! The boats are off and into the surf with short, strong strokes, the stern man sets a fast pace. Get the boat moving, and hit the waves, pull through, inside waves (don't get tangled up with the dory next to you), then to the bigger outside waves. Don't let up, keep pulling and get through the waves (so you don't get hit and tumbled!). Finally through the waves, lengthen out your stroke, and pull to the far turn buoy, or around the pier... then into the waves going back to shore. If you can drop into a wave with your dory, and ride into shore, you gain a lot of distance, and can win a race. A minor problem with riding into shore in a dory race....you have timed it right, got momentum getting into the wave, dropped in, kept the boat straight, you’re out in front of the wave, life is good......... then a dory comes down that same wave at an angle, and rams into you! X0#%! you crash, both boats tumble, you wind up on shore with oars all over the place, the bowman is running around pick up the oars and straightening out the boat and gear, the stern man runs up the beach tags the turn flag, and runs back, out you go again! Three times around the Pier!

Why does the Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce invite the "Dorymen" to the annual Pismo Clam Festival each year, because OMG what a spectacle! The Pismo Beach Pier is crowded with cheering spectators, as are all the other piers down the So. Cal Coast, where cities host festivals, and Lifeguards race surf Dory's 16-18 times each summer. The crowds love it, and the lifeguards have a blast. Modern day gladiators?

What do the lifeguards get for their effort, $50-$100K prize money like triathletes? Nah… maybe a trophy, a lot of fun, definitely staying in great shape, and drinking beer with your friends and other lifeguard mates every week.

Brothers, Lifeguards, Dorymen:  L2R: Tom Allen Sena and Randy Allen. Photo courtesy of Tom Allen Sena. Photo by Bob Howe.

The Pismo Beach Clam Festival was all of that, plus the boys of '75 & 76 brought their Hobie Cats to challenge the surf with as well!

Aloha, Tom Allen Sena, L.A. City and L.A. County Lifeguard
March 24, 2013

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"Rowing the Surf Dory's...1970's", by & Copyright Tom Sena 2013.  All Rights Reserved.  Published here with permission.

***  Wow!  Tom!  That was Spectacular!  Thank you so much! 
The gauntlet has been thrown and your dory contemporaries are going to have to put up too!  We are very hopeful of more dory stories because of your wonderful effort. Tom also asked us to mention that he got some very good information and help on this article from his lifeguard buddies and fellow dorymen, Jimmy Doman and Randy Steigely.  So we want to include a shout out to Jimmy and Randy for their participation.

Editor's note:  Tom didn't mention that if you won the Pismo Beach Clam Festival Dory Race, back in the day, that you also got to kiss the Festival Queen who was always a good looking young local bathing beauty! 


Top Photo: L2R:  Tom Allen Sena and his dory mate, Ralph Collins, receive the First Place Trophy from the Pismo Beach Clam Festival Queen;  Bottom Photo: Tom lays a big swooping kiss on the Festival Queen in classic style!  Photo courtesy of Tom Allen Sena. Photo by Bob Howe.

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*** Lifeguard Trivia:  In the background in the photo above is a Classic VW Van with a surfski on its roof  rack  AND  according to Jimmy Doman both belonged to Ron Richmond. 

10-4

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. ***

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Sunday, March 24, 2013

Gabe Campos' Four Point Winter Workout Regimen

OL Gabe Campos, aka, The Mayor, on duty at SMN Tower #1550. Photo by Will Maguire.
It's late March, Recurrents!  If you are not working out and training for your late May or June recheck, then get ON IT NOW!  We've already pitched this sounding call and we've relayed Lifeguard Capt. Tim Arnold's previous halycon call to "get in shape" for rechecks.  Now it's time to really bring it on and who better to bring us all in line than multi decade veteran LACo OL, Gabe Campos, aka, The Mayor of 1550!  In a telephone interview with Gabe this morning while he was toweling off with his custom copyrighted SMN Beach Towel, we asked Gabe how he stays in shape.  Listen up all you legends that are now 40 plus years old...   :-)

Here it is!

Gabe Campos' Four Point Winter Workout Regimen:

1.   From the day after Labor Day (Sept.) through Dec. 31st:

•  1,500 yards of swimming, 4 days per week.

2.  From Jan. 1st thru the end of February:

•  2,000 yards of swimming, 4 days per week.

3.  For the month of March:

2,500 yards of swimming, 4 days per week.

4.  April and May/June:

A.  4 days a week, Gabe swims with the Masters Swim Team at Mt. SAC College.

and

B.  4 days a week, Gabe also does 1 hour of cardio at the Mt. Sac College Fitness Center/Gym using one of three machines: treadmill, stationery bike, elliptical.

---

Per Gabe, staying in shape to be an LACo County Ocean Lifeguard requires year round fitness training, esp. for our baby boomer corp. of veteran beach lifeguards.

10-4, Gabe!  We really appreciate you sharing your experience and commitment to excellence and for your continued service to the County, esp. to the multitudes who visit and swim north of the Santa Monica Pier.  As the designated mayor of SMN #1550 and SMN #15, those who know Gabe understand and appreciate that Gabe is the reason that there is crowd control north of the pier.  When he talks on the megaphone, patrons listen and hear the word in two languages.  There is no ambiguity.

FYI:  In the off season when Gabe is not on schedule all summer long on Santa Monica North, for the past 23 years, Gabe has worked full time at Mt. SAC College, where he is the Athletic Equipment Tech and also serves as a part time Professor teaching Lifesaving, First Aid and CPR.

-----

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. ***

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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

On To Pismo...

Per Tom Allen Sena: "dory surf play...one of the boats in the big waves, and doing good."  Pismo Beach Clam Festival Dory Race, Feb. 26, 1975.  Photo by Bob Howe. Used here with permission.

"Back in the day"... as Veteran LACo Recurrent, Chuck Locko, would say... there were winter dory races (circa 1970's) that our beach lifeguard - warrior class would participate in.  One such event were the dory races around the pier during the annual Pismo Beach Clam Festival.  "County Recurrent" was told of this event by lifeguard story spinmaster, John Thomas, recently.  It captured our attention and enthusiasm and we just had to write about it and share it with our brothers and sisters.  JT rowed with Bill Powers in 1975 at the Clam Festival Dory Race and his recollection of that race is a story for the ages and he is currently in the process of transcribing that event.  In the meantime...

Where to start... Some Google searches got us thinking it was in October. Turns out "back in the day" the Clam Festival was held in February. This was the case in 1975 when huge surf and cold water caused the powers that be to cancel the dory races because of the extreme conditions and the reasoned opinion that there could be substantial injuries.  Nevertheless, the majority of the dory crews voted to race anyways... doesn't that just sound like a boatie?!...   A couple of teams said "No way!"... but the rest of the lot which included teams from L.A. City, Santa Monica City, L.A. County and a few others went ahead and battled the ocean with some very exciting and disastrous results.

Do we have your attention now?!...    :-)

So we interrogated John Thomas and got the names of other lifeguards who participated or attended this dory debutante-not weekend, and heard some infamous names, including but not limited to, Jimmy Doman, Bill Powers, Tom Allen Sena and his brother Randy Allen, Ralph Collins, Tom Snyder, Randy Steigely, Bob Howe, Charlie Acker, Steve Saylors, Ron Richmond, Tom Kiesewetter, Bill Barker, Richard Mark, Terry Flanagan, Guy Wells, Steve Snyder, Paul Matthies, and others.....  Phil Topar says he wasn't there but Tom Kiesewetter swears he rowed with Topar at Pismo that year... so the jury is out, though we think Topar is repressing the whole thing...   In other words, a massive and incredible congregation of testosterone fueled Southern California lifeguards!

--- To Be Continued! ---


:-)

OK, just kidding!  We've received some replies to our email pleas for details so we will whet your appetites, as follows:

•  Per Terry Flanagan:

"I was there but I did not row. Huge waves and really dangerous. Check with Mark Thompson, Jim Doman, or JT."

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•  Per John Thomas:

"YEA, I ALWAYS THOUGHT TOPAR WAS AT EVERY ONE OF THOSE THINGS.... BUT LOOKING BACK, HE MAY STILL HAVE BEEN A STATE GUARD THEN. BEFORE HE JOINED LA COUNTY.... NOW I REMEMBER STEIGLEY /SNYDER, I RECALL CHARLEY ACKER AND RANDY ALLEN.... TOM ALLEN WAS THERE AS WELL WITH DOMAN ( I HAVE HIS PICTURE TAKEN THERE)  BILLY BARKER AND BOB HOWE WERE THERE AS WELL..."

Also, Per JT, regarding Ron Richmond rowing with Steve Saylor at Pismo:

I WAS SPEAKING TO RON RICHMOND RECENTLY AND WE WERE TRYING TO RECALL WHO HAD WON THE RACE. HE CANT REMEMBER IF HE AND STEVE SAYLORS MIGHT HAVE WON.... HE REMEMBERED THEIR WARM UP.... HE AND STEVE ROWED OUT AND TRIED TO MAKE IT THROUGH A TEN FOOT SET, THE DORY WENT UP THE FACE OF A WAVE AND WAS PITCHED/HURLED THROUGH THE AIR. RON REMEMBERS  BEING IN THE BOTTOM OF THE BOAT FLYING THROUGH THE AIR FOR A LONG TIME BEFORE IMPACTING THE WATER. IT TOOK HIM AND STEVE QUITE A TIME TO GET THE BOAT TURNED OVER IN THE FIVE TO EIGHT FOOT OF WHITE WATER. BY THE TIME THEY GOT THE BOAT TO THE BEACH AND COLLECTED THE OARS, THEY WERE HYPOTHERMIC FROM THE 52 DEGREE WATER. THAT WAS THEIR WARM UP. RON ALSO WON THE PADDLE BECAUSE HE WAS THE ONLY GUY TO MAKE IT OUT. WHEN THE RACE STARTED, HE RAN DOWN TO THE PIER AND PADDLED OUT UNDERNEATH THE PILINGS. HE AVOIDED THE IMPACT OF THE SURF BY HIDING BEHIND THE PILES, LETTING THEM TAKE THE BRUNT OF THE IMPACT. THE SURF WAS SO LARGE IT WAS FILLING UP ALL THE SPACE UNDERNEATH THE PIER AND CRUSHING RON UP AGAINST THE BOTTOM.  HE RECALLED THINKING, "OH SHIT, I'M PROBABLY GOING TO DIE " BUT HE  MADE IT OUT FAR ENOUGH TO CUT OVER AND CLEAR THE TOPS OF THE OUTSIDE SETS. EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE RACE WAS EITHER WASHED BACK UP ON THE BEACH OR HOLDING ONTO THE THEIR BOARDS ON THE INSIDE GETTING THE SHIT POUNDED OUT OF THEM.... I'M TELLIN YA IT WAS HELL OF A DAY...

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•  Per Ralph Collins (who rowed with Tom Allen):

"I remember the festival very well. I rowed there a couple of years and one of them had tremendous surf. I rowed with Tom and the day before the dory race we practiced ins and outs. The waves were steep shorebreaks and if you got caught in the wrong position you would have terrible end over end wipeouts. This happened to us on several occasions but there was one that I will never forget and we had a horrible wipeout. This spooked the shit out me. Thankfully, we learned to back off the peaking waves and ride the whitewater. It was impossible to prevent the boats from broaching.

I recall this same afternoon was when Powers and Barker wiped out in the Hobie Cat. I can still see it. I thought the Hobie belonged to Powers and he was not happy with all the damage. They were lucky not to have been seriously injured.

Editor's note:  Just in from Bob Howe, who took the three photos below showing the surf and the waves that the described Hobie Cat encountered that day in 1975.  Per Bob Howe:  "(that) was Bill Powers and Bill Barker trying to sail Bill (Powers) Hobie thru the surf without enough wind and getting nailed by a wave overturning the boat in the surf line."

Photo by Bob Howe. Used here with permission.

Photo by Bob Howe. Used here with permission.

Photo by Bob Howe. Used here with permission.

Picture raging huge Winter surf and freezing water.

Maybe the others will remember the crowd of 'yahoos' that arrived from Bakersfield the day of the race. There was almost a riot when a couple of girls (who I won't name) took their tops off and flashed the crowd. Great mammories...

Who was the person that brought the kites?? Does anyone remember how he spooked the horse while flying the kite?

Doman should remember....

Kind regards: R. Collins"

---

•  Per Bill Barker:

Hi Will,
Yes I remember it well. Bob Howe and Bill Powers brought their Hobie 16's up to Pismo for the early season dory races. Bob Howe and I were going in and out of the surf in the morning when the wind was still blowing strong. The surf was pretty good size and was breaking out far enough so you could pick your spot on where to punch out through the surf without getting killed. It was great fun until the wind started to back off and that made going in and out of the surf a bit more fun... Powers decided that he wanted to go out through the surf a few times just as the wind almost dropped off completely and the surf got bigger. I was Powers deck hand in the Hobie destruction pictures. I remember telling him that it wasn't good going out without a strong wind but he still wanted to and so we went....We got out about half way when one of the outside clean up waves hit us. I looked up to see the wave breaking half way up the mast and then the Hobie went back over the falls, breaking the rudders and the mast off. It was a lot of fun.

Later,
Bill Barker

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•  Per Tom Kiesewetter:  

"I remember being at Pismo and I could swear I rowed with Topar but Phil, by his statement below, doesn't seem to remember.  What is that old saying? If you remember the 60's then you didn't live them."

---

•  Per Phil Topar:

"In regards to Pismo Beach, I never rowed there, but Steve Saylors/Ron Richmond, Randy Allen/Charlie Acker, Steigley/Snyder.....rowed there in huge, rolling surf in the mid 70's."

---

•  Per Mark Spyder Thompson, Ph.d:

"I have no recollection of the day, other than a vague memory of a splintered dory, stopping to clean up the Lizard's puke in the well behind the front seat of T's bug, the aforementioned destroyed Hobie, and large, very large (12'+) surf...."

•  Per Tom Allen Sena:

"The year of the big surf was 1975... The highlight was beautiful big surf, sunny weather, lots of good friends there for the weekend..."

Per Tom Allen:  "This is a photo of myself (stern) and Ralph Collins (bow), bustin' out through the surf. This appears to be during the race." Photo courtesy of Tom Allen and used here with his permission. Photo by Bob Howe. Feb. 26, 1975.

"Why does the Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce invite the "Dorymen" to the annual Pismo Clam Festival each year, because OMG what a spectacle!  The Pismo Beach Pier is crowded with cheering spectators, as are all the other piers down the So. Cal Coast, where cities host festivals, and Lifeguards race surf Dory's 16-18 times each summer. The crowds love it, and the lifeguards  have a blast. Modern day gladiators?

What do the lifeguards get for their effort, $50-$100K prize money like triathletes?  Nah, maybe a trophy, a lot of fun, staying in great shape, and drinking beer with your friends and other lifeguard mates every week.

The Pismo Clam Festival is all of that, plus the boys of '75 & 76 brought their Hobie Cats to challenge the surf with as well!"

---

Additionally, "County Recurrent" sent a research request for which we forked over $60 to the San Luis Obispo (SLO) County Library to do some microfiche research of the local newspaper and the research librarian struck gold when she discovered that the Clam Festival was held in February "back in the day" rather than in October as we had thought.   Check out the photos that the librarian provided us with.

Photo courtesy of SLO Library.
This photo is from Page 9 of the Five Cities Times-Press-Recorder, February 26, 1975

Photo courtesy of SLO Library.
This photo is from the cover of the Five Cities Times-Press-Recorder, February 26, 1975




Photo courtesy of SLO Library. Per Lynn Wiech, Research Librarian at the SLO County Library: "This (photo) was out of a special "edition" included with the Feb. 26, 1975 Five Cities Times-Press-Recorder entitled "Clam County Clam Festival Souvenir Edition Part 1 Feb.22,23 [1975]".  As such, that picture was probably taken the year before."
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That's it for now, folks!  We want to thank each of the above-referenced and quoted lifeguards for their participation and a special thanks to Research Librarian, Lynn Wiech, of the SLO County Library for her research skills and findings.

10-4

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. ***

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Friday, March 8, 2013

The 1978 L.A. County - Central Section Taplin Team Victory, by OLS John Thomas (Ret.) and Capt. Mike Cunningham (Ret.)

Photo courtesy of Adrian Crook.  That's Adrian leaping from the dory at the finish!

I stopped by CSHQ this afternoon and was loitering a bit when I saw the Taplin Bell Trophy (x-ref: Central Section Shout Out!) and remembered recently hearing the story of Central Section's victory back in 1978, esp. because it was a neck and neck battle with then perennial favorite, Zuma!  And so, I took a photo of the victorious team members' names that year of 1978 and asked John Thomas to recount the exciting story of his team's sweet first place finish.  I also lobbed an email off to a handful of the other guys on this team and got a great commentary from Mike Cunningham that is an absolute Classic!  Added bonus commentary and two great b/w photos are included as well courtesy of Assnt. Chief, Phil Topar (Ret.).

Photo shows the First Place Plaque that each team member received; Photo courtesy of Eric Shargo

Close up of team member names from Taplin Bell Trophy. Photo by Will Maguire

The 1978 L.A. County - Central Section Taplin Team Victory, by OLS John Thomas (Ret.) and Capt. Mike Cunningham (Ret.)

Per JT:

YEEEOWWWZA...... THAT WAS BACK WHEN RUDY COULD STILL PULL AN OAR WITH THE BEST OF THEM.... ERIC SHARGO, AKA SHARK, LED OFF FOR OUR SWIMMERS... WHO WERE ALL REALLY FAST!... FOLLOWED BY LES, SAMMY AND STEVE ANCHORING.  SHARK WAS OUT OF THE WATER 45 SEC. AHEAD OF THE NEXT SWIMMER AND THAT LEAD WAS EXTENDED FOR THE HAND OFF TO THE PADDLERS....

BILL MOUNT WAS THE FASTEST SPRINT PADDLER ON THE COAST WITH THE EXCEPTION OF MIKE STEVENSON, WHO WAS FASTER IN A SHORT SPRINT.... actually, there was a lot of discussion in those days who was the fastest paddler between Mount and Stevenson.... they were both incredibly fast... legendary fast. I really couldn't say who had the edge. it was amazing to watch them paddle. Never seen anything like it.

MARK THOMPSON AND I ROWED THE THIRD LEG. WE HAD A VERY FAST EXCHANGE AND GOT A GREAT PUSH OUT.  THE WIND HAD INCREASED A BIT DURING THE RACE BUT THE DRIFT WAS NEGLIGIBLE. THE SURF WAS MOSTLY SHOALING WHITE WATER, PERFECT CONDITIONS FOR A DEAD SPRINT TO THE BUOY.  THE SWIMMERS, PADDLERS, AND PREVIOUS DORY TEAMS HAD GIVEN US A HUGE LEAD ALREADY. WE WERE CONCENTRATING ON SLOWING DOWN A LITTLE BIT WHILE STILL SPRINTING TO HAVE A PERFECT STRAIGHT RUN OUT AND BACK.

WE HIT THE MARK DEAD ON, REVERSED LEFT AND PULLED HARD RIGHT AND SPUN THE BOAT RIGHT ON TOP OF THE BUOY, AND PULLED FOR THE BEACH.  WE CAUGHT A LITTLE SPILLING TWO FOOT WAVE AND MOTORED IN STRAIGHT. THAT MADE IT THREE PERFECT ROWS AND EXCHANGES. WE HANDED IT OFF TO PHIL TOPAR AND HIS PARTNER ADRIAN "SILVER TONGUE" CROOK.  THOSE BOYS COULD SPRINT WITH THE BEST TEAMS ON THE COAST.  CROOK MOUNTED UP WHILE THOMPSON SPRINTED UP TO TAG PHIL. I BEGAN PUSHING THE BOAT OUT WHILE PHIL BOUNDED INTO THE WATER AND LEAPED INTO THE BOAT. I JUMPED OVER THE INSHORE HOLE AND PUSHED THEM UNTIL I WAS IN NECK DEEP WATER. 


PHIL AND ADRIAN ROWED ANOTHER DEAD STRAIGHT COURSE AND IT LOOKED LIKE WE MIGHT LAP THE NEAREST TEAM.  PHIL AND ADRIAN SURFED THE BOAT IN AND ADRIAN RAN ACROSS THE LINE TO COMPLETE A DOMINATING VICTORY FOR THE TAPLIN BELL.  IT WAS A GREAT TEAM AND A GREAT TIME TO BE LIFEGUARDING!

---
Per Mike:

It was quite a year.  We knew we were good, but some of our swimmers were less than ocean specialists. Steve Baxter was one of my swim teammates at UCLA and had the fastest 100 yard butterfly in the world that season. Sam Stein was at USC and he was super fast,  Eric Shargo was at CSU Northridge and a good distance guy.  Jim Hester was our water polo holeman at UCLA and nicknamed "The Tree" because he was 6 foot 8 inches tall and guarding him was like guarding a tree... except no tree did backhand shots like he did.

Bill Mount was the defending one mile National Surf Lifesaving Association paddleboard champion, and Mike Stevenson was a 5 time NSLSA Iron Man and like the 8 time National Paddleboard champion.  Rudy Kroon just had to get on the Taplin Bell after a career of lifeguarding and his future son in law was Mike Eurs, our other paddler.  Phil Topar and Adrian Crook had been on the rowing circuit all season and were very fast and consistent.  Mark Thompson and John Thomas had been on our team at the Laguna Niguel Taplin and we won it there too.  Jim Doman was about as solid a oarsman as we had in the County.

I had made the swim team and the paddle, and had led off on the winning 1976 South Bay team in the swimming leg.  But it was felt we were strong enough in the swim, and I was needed more in the paddle.  So I paddled for the team.  I was so proud to compete on a team with Mike Stevenson and Bill Mount, legendary guys who I had always looked up to when I was a junior guard.

However, that year the Taplin was held right next to the Redondo Pier, and it was no more than a small shore pound.  Guys flew down the sand and just dove in.  No dolphining, or wave karma that night!  The bottom was steep and deep early.  Paddlers got righteous skims and just went off like it was a flat water race.  We led after the swim and never looked back. Paddlers got great railroads back in, but really no waves.   Dory teams went straight and true...no crashes or flips that I can remember.  Just a couple of near misses.

Unfortunately, for the rest of the teams we drew lane 1, right next to the pier.  If you know the Ainsworth area at all, there is a really deep area right there.  It's the beginning of the Redondo Canyon.  It goes from around 25 feet deep to about 100 feet in a sharp drop off.  Well, that's where they put the end anchor of the line of buoys... and ours never made it to the bottom it seemed.  The Baywatch tried to reset it twice.  Each leg, the distance changed a bit as the buoy drifted and waved in the current all night.

As in most Taplins, there is usually some controversy.  There were those who said our team did not have to go as far as their teams did, and we felt it drifted out further sometimes and we actually had to race longer.  Either way, at the end of the race, the 1978 Central Section team was the first to the beach, we raised our arms in victory and carried our dory all across the beach and screamed the cheer of victory.  It was the first of many victories for the newly formed Central Section and the first for most of the guys who had recently merged into the County from the LA City and Santa Monica agencies.  Screw em...we won it. 

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Story by & Copyright 2013 John Thomas. All Rights Reserved. Used here with permission.  Photo Courtesy of Will Maguire.

Story by & Copyright 2013 Mike Cunningham. All Rights Reserved. Used here with permission.

*** Many Thanks to John and Mike !  

***  Bonus Content ! ***   Wow!  Just in from Assnt. Chief, Phil Topar (Ret):

"I have attached two b/w pictures (not sure who to give the credit to) that commemorate this win for Central Section.  The race was on the South side of the Redondo Pier: no surf; deep inshore, lateral hole (one push for the stern man before hopping in); big swim lead.  Our swimmers gave us a lead we never gave back. I believe AC and I rowed the final lap as I remember being greeted by a huge bear hug from JT (John Thomas).  I had my 2 year-old son, Beau (now, 36 years old & a Deputy Sheriff for LACO) with me in my back pack.  I also remember getting grief from the other County teams saying we had the shorter buoy.... anyway, Will, keep spreading the word, and thanks for including me, Topy (Phil)"





And here is one more photo below which Adrian Crook shared with us and which is of the same group of guards immediately above and which shows John Thomas, Adrian and Jimmy Doman each signaling the "L.A. City Lifeguard" Solidarity hand gesture, reflecting their loyalty and pride even in 1978 (after the merger with LACo in 1975)... (index finger and pinky extended; fyi, 10-4, copy).



Topar P.S.:  "One more fact to add to this story.  The Taplin Bell has all the previous winners listed on plaques by year, as shown on the photo of our '78 Winning Team that you included at the top of this blog post.  It took me years to realize that Mickey Gallagher had removed my name and had replaced his name in place of mine.  I do not how many years Mickey's name was on the Taplin Bell without my knowledge, but I did rectify it when I found out....

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(Two b/w photos courtesy of Phil Topar.  Topar commentary by & Copyright Phil Topar 2013. Used here with permission).

*** Thanks Phil!  Great prank by Gallagher too!  Hilarious!  We are also glad you rectified it so that the Taplin Bell rings true. ***

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And Just in from Jim Hester who rowed with Steve Eslick as one of the 4 dory legs of this 1978 Victory Taplin Team:

“What a night that was! 1978 was my last summer guarding full time. Steve Eslick and I had been rowing that year so we had at least some skills built up in a dory. Our swimmers were fast, our paddlers were awesome and the dory crews rowed clean and straight. It was truly an honor to compete with such a great group of guys and our win that night made an unforgettable memory.”…..Jim Hester

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*** Many Thanks to Jim Hester for sharing this great memory! ***

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Until next time.....


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