Until Friday evening, Cape May lifeguard Clay Stephens hadn’t changed his cell phone wallpaper in a year.
It was an image from last year’s Dutch Hoffman Memorial Lifeguard Championships. Stephens was leading the men’s paddleboard race when a competitor caught a wave and zoomed past him to earn the victory.
Stephens gained revenge with a picture-perfect effort last Friday that not only enabled him to win the race but helped Cape May win the team title for the first time in nearly 30 years.
“I used the picture as motivation when I was training,” Stephens said. “Whenever I opened my phone, I’d see it. It reminded me not take anything for granted in this year’s race.”
Stephens’ win started an impressive rally for his beach patrol. Teammate Madelyn Cassiday followed Stephens with a victory in the women’s swim, then Matthew Fitzpatrick capped the competition with a thrilling triumph in the singles row to give Cape May the team championship.
Cape May scored 21 points in the eight-race format. Upper Township finished second among the 15 teams with 14 points, while Atlantic City had 12.
According to beach patrol chief Harry Back, it was Cape May’s first Dutch Hoffman team title since 1997.
“I knew we had a good chance of winning it, but you really never know until you actually get here,” Back said. “This is the first race of the season where you have all 15 teams (in the South Jersey Lifeguard Chiefs’ Association) competing, plus the conditions can also be a factor. That’s the beauty of the ocean. You never know what’s going to happen.”
The singles row demonstrated that unpredictability.
Fitzpatrick, Cape May Point’s Ben Swan, Longport’s Michael McGrath and Atlantic City’s Vince Granese were all in contention with about 200 yards to go.
All three boats caught a late wave. Fitzpatrick steered his across the finish line a scant second before Swan.
“I didn’t think I was going to catch that wave, but I did,” Fitzpatrick said. “This is the best win of all time. I’ve always been second or third. To win this is an unbelievable feeling.”
Upper Township didn’t win an individual event, but it placed in four events, including second in three races behind Chase Brown and Ryan Manning (doubles row), the men’s swim (Logan Manning) and men’s paddleboard (James Carr).
Atlantic City started the championships off with a victory in the doubles row behind Granese and Nick Guidara. Charles Schreiner edged Logan Manning to win the men’s swim and promptly collapsed in the sand from exhaustion.
“This has always been a tough race for me because it’s shorter than most of the others,” Schreiner said. “That’s what makes lifeguard racing so fun. No beach is the same.”
Other winners included Brigantine’s Grace Emig in the women’s paddleboard, Wildwood’s Noah Deckert in the men’s one-mile beach run and Margate’s Sofia Day in the women’s beach run.
Day, a 2025 Mainland Regional High School graduate, now runs for Vanderbilt University.
Deckert win for the host patrol enabled him to continue a family tradition.
Father Don Deckert and his twin brother, Ron, were former standouts at Oakcrest High School who dominated the beach runs for Wildwood back in the 1980’s.
“My uncle Ron told me they never lost this race in the 80’s,” Noah said. “He was here today and his only words to me before the race were, ‘You better win.’”
A large crowd lined the beach in the shadow of the famous boardwalk to watch the event.
Cheers filled the air, along with the famous message to “Waa, waa, watch the tramcar, please.”
For my money, it is the best lifeguard race of the summer.
Although there are two more major events on the schedule – the Margate Memorials Friday and next week’s South Jersey Championships in Avalon on Sept. 14 – they don’t compare to the Dutch Hoffman’s.
All three have exciting atmospheres, but the variety in Wildwood is what separates it from the others.
For some reason, both the Margate and South Jersey have stubbornly stuck to the same, three-event format for decades.
The South Jersey’s in particular has been resistant to change. It unofficially started with a doubles row in 1919, then added a swim in 1938. A singles row didn’t become a permanent part of the race until 1973.
That’s it. Three events. No paddleboard, no surf dash relay and more importantly no women’s events.
Traditionalists like to use the time factor as a reason for keeping the current format, but that doesn’t hold water.
The Dutch Hoffman’s started at 6:30 p.m. and had finished eight events before the sun had dipped behind the roller coaster at Morey’s Pier.
Organizers ran several events simultaneously, which only added to the excitement. The women’s paddleboard race was halfway done when the men’s swimmers were charging into the ocean.
Both beach runs were conducted just minutes apart.
“Having this many people watching and racing is cool,” Emig said. “It’s exciting to watch and it’s exciting to race in this atmosphere. It’s part of what makes lifeguard racing so fun.”
Here’s hoping the Margate’s and especially the South Jersey’s will adapt and expand.
Maybe they could even add a tram car.
David is a nationally recognized sports columnist who has covered Philadelphia and local sports for over 40 years. After 35 years with The Press, he has served as a columnist for 973ESPN.com and created his own Facebook page, Dave Weinberg Extra Points. Send comments to weinbergd419@comcast.net.
