Local duo win Lifeguard Dory race at International Surf Festival
Lifeguards Dave Cartlidge, left, and Tom Seth won both the Dory race and 1-man rowing challenge at the International Surf Festival. Photo
L.A. County lifeguard Dave Cartlidge realizes the importance of team chemistry. Whether assisting ocean goers in distress or rowing a dory in competition, team unity is of utmost importance.
After finishing in first place in 2010 Dory Races with John Van Duin Wyk, his partner for the last three years, Cartlidge switched partners this year, teaming with fellow South Bay resident Tom Seth.
The tandem worked well from the onset as the team got through the shoreline breakers to gain a lead they would never relinquish. Cartlidge, of Redondo Beach, and Seth, a Manhattan Beach resident, held off a strong Santa Monica team of Van Duin Wyk and Andrew Czer to capture this year’s edition of the annual competition.
“The first race we had a good, clean start,” said Cartlidge, a Redondo Beach resident. “Tom is extremely experienced in the bow and positions the boat in the exact right spot. It’s so critical as far as the depth of the water [is concerned]. If I’m jumping in the boat in waist-deep water as opposed to knee-deep water, it makes a huge difference. He has total control of the boat in the white wash when the waves are pounding him that it makes my job easy. All I do is run and row hard. He’s the brains. He’s the hustle, I’m the muscle.”
The teamwork of Tom Seth, left, and Dave Cartlidge propelled the local lifeguards to a victory in the Lifeguard Dory race at the International Surf Festival. Photo
Starting on the south side of the Hermosa Beach Pier, four 2-man teams battled each other as they rounded the pier. When they reached the shoreline on the north side, one team member was required to race up a few yards on the hard packed sand and quickly return to the dory which had been turned around by his partner.
“It was rough,” Seth said. “It was really high tide and the waves weren’t big but when they break right on shore like they were, it makes it really difficult to surf in the dory. We got caught a couple of times when we were dead in the water but we managed to pull through.”
After the first competition, the four teams remained on the north side of the pier for what was termed a “fun race” with each competitor rowing the dory solo out and around a buoy before switching partners. As the lifeguards caught their breath and exchanged handshakes and pats on the back, they all agreed it was much more difficult rowing the boat alone.
“That was a blast,” Cartlidge said. “It was insane. One-man rows are so much fun surfing the boat. At the buoy, I got spun pretty good by Dane DeBoer who is a very experienced rower and was in second place. But after that, my partner made up the difference.”
Redondo Beach resident Dave Cartlidge jumps into the dory as Tom Seth, of Manhattan Beach, keeps the vessel straight in the Lifeguard Dory competition. Photo
The San Clemente team of Dick and Dane DeBoer placed third while Nathan Hadar and Miles Shuler of Pt. Magu finished fourth.
The victory was a fitting way to cap off a successful weekend for Cartlidge. Friday evening, as a member of the Venice lifeguard team, Cartlidge rode the surf ski in the Bud Stevenson Lifeguard Intracrew Medley Relay and was one of six members in the 6-Lifeguard Run Relay. Venice took first place in both events.
Hermosa and Manhattan finished second and third, respectively, in the Bud Stevenson event and the Hermosa team of Mike Murphy, Derek Linsley, Austin Bates, Jeff Lombardo, Chris Malloney and Tyler Morgan took top honors in the 6-Lifeguard Rescue Board Relay.
Dockweiler won the 4-Lifeguard Shallow Water Sprint Relay.