With the 2019/20 surf lifesaving season now under way all our local clubs, Peregian, Sunshine Beach and Noosa Heads are indeed very busy.
At Peregian Beach patrols are once again under the supervision of lifeguards and Noosa volunteer patrol members.
Their nippers are again active, with some 150 members. Another plus is that Peregian Beach, which is an open beach and therefore more exposed to big surf, is now a regular training ground for the Noosa competitors. Regular training teams in attendance plus rostered patrols can only ensure that beach safety is at its best.
Noosa has also started its nipper activities for another season and with Noosa and Peregian on the same register there is a total of some 700 members.
This would have to be the biggest number ever and with the work and responsibility involved it speaks volumes for the dedication of club officials and parents.
For parents interested in enrolling their children in the Nipper movement, it is not too late as registration is still open.
Both Noosa and Peregian hours are similar with Sundays being 8am till 9; at Noosa there are also mid-week training sessions, Monday and Wednesday 3.45pm with a 4pm start.
It is good to see that during school holidays many took the next step and obtained their Surf Rescue Certificate: once this is obtained the members can take their place on the beaches and start to learn the finer points of patrolling and beach safety. Nippers are great organization and we wish our three clubs all the best.
Word from the senior ranks of the Noosa boat section is that their masters will again contest the George Bass Marathon boat race.
This event, which is now in its 42nd year, is contested every second year. The race starts at Batemans Bay and finishes at Eden NSW and is contested over a period of seven days.
Starting 29 December and finishing 4 January2020, it is generally considered the toughest event of its type (covering 190km) in the world.
Despite not finishing in the top three their performance for a novice crew was well received; with most crewies returning for another attempt this will gain them great support from their club mates.
Over the hill at Sunshine Beach their season is also full on.
On Sunday’s Patrol 11, it was good to see the number of new SRCs on duty with the beach patrol.
“These 12 new members have passed their certificates and as such have come up through the ranks,” said Patrol Captain Steven Boyd. “Now working with senior members they will get the necessary experience to make them good patrol members.”
Jet rescue skis and IRBs are now on permeant patrols, new radio beacons have been installed and a new channel has been added.
“This will serve to increase coverage of the A Bay (Alexandra Bay) area; a beach which is unpatrolled isolated and considered to be dangerous,” said a club spokesman.
On 27 October a group of Patrol Captains from Sunshine Beach plus representatives of the Westpac Helicopter and QAS will hold an Activities Day. The purpose of this will be to familarise and update members with procedures and local knowledge necessary to cover all aspects of rescue work in A Bay.
‘’This is just the piolet for such a project and if it is a success we will consider doing it again on a larger scale,” said Steve Boyd.
With beach visitations on the increase it is this type of project that must be supported.
Well done to all involved.
