Local lifeguard races began over a century ago, when Atlantic City Beach Patrol members Harry Yates and Jack Woodworth won a doubles rowing competition in 1924.
Over the last 100-plus years, lifeguard racing has expanded and evolved into one of the most popular events on the local summer sports calendar.
What began as a competition among rowers has developed into a showcase of the Jersey Shore’s top rowers, swimmers, paddleboarders from Cape May Point to Brigantine.
The races are a part of summer at the Jersey Shore, just like watching the Fourth of July Fireworks in Atlantic City, catching a concert at the Ocean City Music Pier and fishing off the Ventnor Pier.
Each event on the South Jersey Lifeguard Chiefs Association schedule draws large crowds. Hundreds of spectators routinely stand near the shoreline to root for their favorite beach patrol teams. Chants like “Oh See, Oh See” from Ocean City fans and “Sea … Isle, Sea … Isle” can be heard along the beach while rowers power through waves and swimmers try to gauge the currents.
The 2025 season opens Tuesday, July 1, when competitors from beach patrols from Long Beach Island, Atlantic County and Cape May County will compete in the 43rd Buzz Mogck Memorial Cape May SuperAthlon.
The triathlon-style event featured a 2.3-mile run on the Cape May Promenade, followed by a 1.5-mile row and a quarter-mile, out-and-back swim.
The event was the brainchild of Mogck, a former Cape May Beach Patrol Captain who wanted to stage an event that differed from the traditional lifeguard format and showcase the talents – running, rowing, swimming – competitors often use on a daily basis.
Mogck passed away June 23, 2024 at age 80.
The race almost always features a tight, exciting finish due to a strong current that adds an extra challenge to the swim leg.
It’s not unusual to see a competitor reach out and grab it to pull himself around the halfway marker before heading back to shore.
Last year, for example, Wildwood’s Patrick Clemons held a slight lead after the row as the competitors entered the ocean for the out-and-back swim leg.
While four-time champion Rob Moran of Cape May and defending champ Brandon Hontz of Avalon took a more direct route to the beach after the turnaround, Clemons swam more with the current and was carried to the other side of the jetty before running about 50 yards across the finish line.
The season begins in earnest on July 7 with the Cape May County Lifeguard Championships at Rambler Road Beach in Wildwood Crest and the Chief Bill Kuhn Brigantine Lifeguard Invitational at 17th Street Beach in Brigantine.
Avalon is the three-time defending team champion at the Cape May County Championships.
To me, that event is the best one on the schedule because of its variety. A few years ago, organizers made the wise to decision to expand the races to accurately depict the changing of the (life) guard on most local beach patrols. In addition to the men’s singles and doubles row, swim and surfdash relay, it now includes women’s swimming and paddleboard races, plus a women’s surf dash relay that was added last year.
As I’ve been saying for years, the South Jersey Championships – this year’s race is August 8 in Avalon – should also be expanded to feature one or two women’s events. Without question, the all-female races on the summer schedule – Longport Women’s Lifeguard Invitational, Ocean City Beach Patrol Women’s Invitational, Cape May Point Women’s Lifeguard Challenge, Bill Howarth Cape Atlantic Women’s Races – do a great job of showcasing women’s lifeguard talents. But I believe they deserve the opportunity to join their male teammates in competing for a biggest team title.
As always, the season will be highlighted by the “Big Three” races, which include the Dutch Hoffman Memorials in Wildwood (July 25), the Margate Memorials (August 1) and the South Jersey’s.
This year, the 85th South Jersey Championships will be hosted by Avalon, which won last year’s event for the first time since 2015.
A decade ago, Chip Kelly was preparing for his third – and ultimately last season as the Philadelphia Eagles’ head coach, Jalen Hurts had just finished his junior year of high school and a certain sports writer was married for 33 years to his high school sweetheart.
Karen and I celebrated our 43rd anniversary on June 19, which happen to be our son Kyle’s 40th birthday and my brother Paul’s 63rd.
We enjoyed a huge party a few days later, which included good friends, family and our four grandsons.
Hopefully, Poppy will be taking them to a few lifeguard races this summer.
Boxing returns to A.C. July 25
July’s local sports calendar also features the return of professional boxing to Atlantic City on July 25th, when Atlantic City promoter Larry Goldberg stages his fourth card with Boxing Insider Promotions at Tropicana.
Unbeaten Smithville heavyweight Bruce Seldon Jr. (6-0, 5 KOs) is scheduled to fight his first six-round bout against an opponent to be named.
Pleasantville junior-welterweight Julio Sanchez III (1-1, 0 KOs) will be seeking to bounce back from his first loss in a four-rounder against Alexander Stone (1-5-1, 1 KO), of Jackson, Tennessee.
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.
