Jr. Lifeguard Camp teaches skills

With the rain clouds having dissipated, the 14 Sarasota County Junior Lifeguard campers assembled on Turtle Beach last Thursday morning weren't dripping wet from the humidity as they had been earlier in the week.

But they weren't dry for long, as camp manager Ann White, a full-time Sarasota County lifeguard, had them in and out of the surf.

"This is the day where they get to use the skills that they've learned," White said.

The other half of the 28 campers were taking CPR instruction from Sarasota County EMTs.

The camp was moved from Siesta Public Beach to Turtle Beach this year, White said, because of the availability of an air-conditioned room for that CPR certification.

Two earlier camps were held at Lido and Nokomis beaches.

With the help of county lifeguard Robert Martini and other volunteers on Turtle Beach, White was honing the campers' skills in preparation for a July 1 Siesta Beach grand finale - what county Parks and Recreation staff characterized as "a friendly competition similar to United States Lifeguard Association Junior Lifeguard Competitions."

That finale was a preliminary to July 16 - the third day of the 2011 U.S. Lifeguard Association James "Mac" McCarthy Memorial Southeast Regional Championships on Siesta Beach. Adult lifeguards will be competing in numerous events on July 14 and 15; then, the junior lifeguards will have their chance to shine on Day 3.

Last year, four of the camp "graduates" participated in the Southeast Regionals, which were held at Pompano Beach.

This year, White is hoping for more team members. "We've got some good student athletes," she pointed out.

The Junior Lifeguard Camps have been designed to allow the young people to experience as much as possible what it is like to be a lifeguard White said, though "we try to whittle it down and give them [just] a taste ...."

The campers not only learned water safety and rescue techniques, they also learned how to identify marine life. Every participant received a rash guard and a T-shirt and bag.

White said she was delighted with e-mails she had received from parents telling her of their children's enthusiasm for the camp. Those e-mails were readily supported by the smiles on the faces of the Turtle Beach participants, who ranged in age from 9 to 16.

Sage Lyons, 13, a camper for the second year in a row, said she loves the Iron Guard event, which entails swimming, paddleboarding and running.

A veteran of all three of the county's Junior Lifeguard Camps this summer, Sage added, "I'm a big beach person, but I can't swim that good." The running is her favorite part, she said.

For Abby Babor, 13, the best part of the camp is that "we get to push ourselves harder. ... We get to exercise and have fun at the same time."

This was also Abby's second year at the camp.

Caitlin Kingery, 13, said her favorite part had been the surfing, which she didn't know how to do before coming to camp.

Caitlin agreed with Abby about how good a workout the activities were.

"This," she said, "is the best camp."