Exciting Beach Day in Walton County
Overview of the Event
MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. (WMBB) — The fourth annual junior lifeguard competition brought an exciting day to Walton County’s Miramar Beach. The event saw 50 kids of various ages splashing, swimming, and running, all vying for bragging rights between the Destin Beach Safety and South Walton Beach Safety divisions.
Competition Details
Events and Activities
The competition, part of the Emerald Coast Junior Lifeguard program, tested participants on various skills, including rescue swimming and running. Brandon Brown, a beach safety official, explained the origins of the events:
“All of these events are based on lifeguards saying, hey, I bet I can make a rescue faster than you. And the other guy says, no, you can’t. And next thing you know, you’ve got the board rescue race.”
Lifeguard Program
Each participant had completed the summer junior lifeguard program before the competition. Brown elaborated on the program’s structure:
“It’s all based on surf racing. The US Lifesaving Association, they’ve got a surf racing series, nationals, regionals, all of that. And this is based on that template so that the kids get an idea of what those competitions are like.”
Participants and Goals
Age Range and Goals
The competition featured 50 kids from Destin and South Walton, ranging in age from 9 to 19 years old. All participants shared a common goal: to win and contribute to community safety. Cydney Flinn emphasized the importance of awareness:
“Stay out of rip currents and why they form. And ours are really dangerous because they move almost every single day and they don’t like stay from one place and also, like, knee deep is too deep for tourists if you can’t swim.”
Community Impact
Brown highlighted the broader impact of the junior lifeguard program:
“I can only talk to so many people sitting in Tower every day, but if I take 200 kids every summer, and teach them about the dangers of rip currents, about what sort of tides can create problems, dangerous marine life, those few hundred kids go back to school in a couple of weeks and they teach their friends, they go back home and they teach their younger siblings. And that exponential impact that this program can have creates a safer community. For all of us.”
Conclusion
The competition ended with the winning programs on both the male and female sides earning bragging rights for the year. Those interested in participating in next year’s event should look for the junior lifeguard announcement at the beginning of 2025.
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