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Lifeguard
Ireland would never have worked as a setting for Baywatch. Blue-skinned, shivering people supervising Jack Russells at play on Dollymount wouldn't perhaps have been as successful as Erika Eleniak and David Hasselhoff. However, this doesn't mean that the country doesn't need a few good lifeguards.
The Irish people, god bless 'em, are a tenacious lot. Come the first sunny day in April, they are off to the nearest beach, armed only with a light green bath towel, a bottle of factor 30 and JWT's summer brochure. They, too, need to be saved if they get into difficulties, if only to preserve the tradition down future generations.
And there is also the chlorine-addicted to consider. Ireland has a large amount of pools, both corporation-run and in gyms. Who else but lifeguards can tell the public when to get out, to straighten up their legs and to take the water wings off their feet?
With a beach lifeguarding course, you will learn how to judge tides, weather systems and currents and how to prevent an emergency situation from developing. You should also be instructed in open-sea rescue skills, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), spinal injury prevention and first aid. The basic skills you will be taught on a pool lifeguarding course are similar but you also learn how to supervise diving and other poolside activities.
In general, to become a lifeguard, you will need to be over 16 years of age, be basically fit and confident in the water. The Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) Ireland offer well-recognised qualifications for both pool and beach lifeguards. Both courses last a minimum of 33 hours and an independent appraiser will assess your skills.
Approximately 1,000 RLSS National Pool Lifeguard Qualification certs are awarded each year. The course consists of two units - the foundation module and the site-specific module. The foundation module is delivered by qualified RLSS trainers, who have undergone specialist training and teaches candidates the essential lifeguarding skills necessary to supervise a pool.
After this, the course participants undergo 14 hours of site specific training at the pool where they work or where they attended their course. The RLSS qualification is endorsed by the world governing body for lifesaving, ILS, and it is widely recognised in Britain and also in the US and Australia.
To complete the RLSS National Beach Lifeguard Qualification, participants must already be able to complete a 400m timed swim in less than 9 minutes. It is available in two formats - coastal and surf beaches and inland water sites.
Bear in mind that becoming a lifeguard won't necessarily afford you the Baywatch lifestyle. Red swimsuits and sexy mix-ups with your colleagues will not be the order of the day. Instead you will most likely sport a luminous anorak and runners and spend a lot of your time looking windswept and interesting.
If you are still fascinated (after all, the people you rescue are going to be fairly grateful, aren't they? Perhaps expressing their gratitude in monetary terms…)
- Sailing
- Swimming
- Water Sports
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