A Day That Changed My Perspective — Lifeguarding at an Adaptive Surfing Event

Riding The Wave of Perspective: Lifeguarding at an Adaptive Surfing Event

One day that will stay with me forever was when I was engaged as a professional lifeguard to provide specialised water safety at a surfing event for people living with disabilities. This wasn’t your average beach day. These were athletes—true warriors—ranging from amputees with prosthetics to quadriplegics, all out there giving it absolutely everything they had.

I’d been around surf and rescues my whole life, but nothing prepared me for the inspiration and intensity of this day.

Watching quadriplegics ride waves with the help of adapted boards and a highly coordinated team was something else. These surfers had to develop breath-holding techniques just to give themselves a chance—knowing that when they got dumped, they’d often be floating face down in the water, waiting for assistance to flip them over and tow them back out for the next wave. And they kept going. Again and again. Fearless. Determined.

From a rescue point of view, this was next-level. I had to learn and adapt quickly—how to assist without causing injury, how to work together with the carers and our team as a seamless unit, and how to anticipate the needs of each individual surfer based on their condition and communication style. Every rescue was personal and precise.

What I thought would be a challenging day turned into one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. It reminded me that setbacks are just setups for a different kind of greatness. These surfers weren’t defined by what they couldn’t do—they were charging forward, wave after wave - all they needed was people around them who believed in them and who were willing to be prepared for the risk that was involved and be equipped to step in in the inevitable life and death moment.  Being prepared turned chaos into confidence.

Are you prepared to do what it takes to support your loved ones or yourself to reach full potential?  We know that being prepared for the risks involved builds the confidence to keep pushing forward!

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