Something Old, Something New

The Sea Isle City & Upper Township Lifeguard Racing Update

Brendan Shaw and Nick Matousch

Molly O'Neill

Innovation and tradition share the South Jersey Lifeguard racing circuit spotlight.

Women form the innovation, with female events now scattered throughout most racing programs each weekend. The women’s competition counts toward overall team scoring and, for the first time ever, women will author their own version of the fabled South Jerseys competition. It will unfold in Ventnor Aug. 6, two days before the men stage their classic singles row, doubles row, and singles swim menu that dates back to 1924.

As for tradition? Some names that have graced the Sea Isle City and Upper Township stage already roar prominently as midseason approaches.

Here’s an overview of the Upper Township and Sea Isle City Beach Patrol teams.

SEA ISLE CITY

Chief Renny Steele was an early proponent of female guards and racing events several years back. His instincts foreshadowed a growth that energized the entire lifeguard circuit.

“Years ago, it was thought that females were not capable of rescuing bathers in distress,” he recalls. “It was thought they should not be permitted to sit on a lifeguard stand. As evidenced by females competing in traditional lifeguard races, that belief has been proven false. The races have shown the naysayers that women are very cable of performing the tasks of an ocean lifeguard.

“I applaud the South Jersey Lifeguard Chiefs’ Association for providing the female lifeguards of Atlantic and Cape May counties the opportunity to compete against their peers in a females-only South Jersey Lifeguard Championship Race,” he adds. “I believe this race is the last step in the female lifeguards of South Jersey being recognized in the same manner as their male counterparts.”

The Sea Isle women started notching credits early this summer, gaining second as a team in the Longport Invitational. Maura Quinn won the singles row shortly after seizing the doubles row with her sister Molly. At the Ocean City women’s race, the Quinn sisters placed second in n the sprint doubles.

After a stout freshman year in the University of Tennessee’s crew program, they have hit the summer water running.

On the men’s side, Danny Rogers continues to be a force. In 2021, Rogers gave the patrol its first individual South Jerseys event champion since 1966. After a late training start this year, he enjoys a stellar July.

At the Cape May County Races in Wildwood Crest, he placed fourth in the singles row. Four days later, he won the Beschen/Callahans in North Wildwood.

James Carr

Across the patrol, accomplishments evolve.

“Our swimmers Mary Kate Leonard and Jack Christian have had great showings this season,” Steele says. “Paddlers Kylie Fry and Dusty Laricks have placed in the out-of-town races. I am very excited about Connor McNamara and Pat Scannapieco entering their first out-of-town doubles competition at Avalon’s Kerr Memorial Race. They have looked fantastic rowing in town and just took over as Sea Isle’s No. 1 doubles crew. Sea Isle entered its first female contestant, Ellie Kutschera, in the women’s division of Cape May’s SuperAthalon.”

Beyond competition, Steele has seen the emergence of many young athletes turn into stellar adults. He praises guards who volunteer to work in programs such as Shooting Stars and Heart of Surfing. These programs provide fun activities for special-needs children.

“I am truly amazed at the quality individuals we have been able to attract in recent years,” he says. “They look for the best in your fellow guards, not the worst. They take care of each other both on and off duty. I am proud and blessed to work with so many exceptional people.‘’

Lorna Connell

UPPER TOWNSHIP

There’s a new way to measure lifeguard competition this year. It’s the Philanthropy Circuit.

The Upper Township Beach Patrol not only marked the 33rd renewal of its Bay Race, which donates proceeds to MS research, but it has reached new territory. The patrol raised an unprecedented $11,000 last year, more than double most of the previous editions.

Several neighboring patrols join Upper Township in this effort. Participants generally find a sponsor who pays a $100 fee for the athlete to enter the six-mile race.

Regardless of who wins the race, it’s a victory for the cause.

Chief Bill Handley, who credits the Avalon, North Wildwood and Cape May patrols with exceptional fundraising efforts last year, takes pride in what this movement has accomplished. The Bay Race has raised approximately $175,000 for MS research over the years.

“We are very happy to be giving back,” Handley indicates. “I talk to MS officials all the time and they are working hard to find the causes of that and to help people experience a higher quality of life. I hope our efforts have contributed to that. MS has also become personal for a lot of people in the patrols. Some of them have family members going through this.”

The beach patrol initially teamed with the Deauville Inn, which was sponsoring an ugly bartender contest, in this effort. Over the years, the event became the domain of the patrol and has grown both by word of mouth and with an expanded menu of events.

Handley has long been drawn to charitable causes. He took the idea several steps further back in 2008, rowing with partner Rod Tice from Strathmere to the Statue of Liberty in New York. They represented groups connected with Ovarian Cancer, the Ocean Foundation, and Organ Donors.

Chase Brown and Ryan Manning

“I had read a book about two guys who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean for a cause,” Handley recalls. “I didn’t want to do that, but this was about 130 miles and seemed like a great thing do to. It took us six or seven days.”

The partners would row about seven hours a day, camp in an RV and continue the next day. They found calm September conditions for the most part, but a torrential storm hit one day.

“If we hadn’t been going all-out, we actually would have gone backwards,” he laughs.

Handley says his son-in-law Ryan Fisher may try to beat the mark by going from Cape May to New York next year.

Meanwhile, Handley believes the patrol has been infused with its strongest blend of young talent in recent years.

“We have a great young team,” he asserts. “We hired five rookies who are already helping the team in competition and we have a lot of returning veterans.

“This is a product of several things,” he adds. “We have created a great culture here in that the Upper Township Beach Patrol is a great place to work. These are exceptional athletes who have recruited their friends, who are also great athletes. The system is building itself. I have known many of these kids before they were old enough to be lifeguards and expected them to do well.”

One of the strong newcomers is rookie Logan Manning, a rising junior at Egg Harbor Township High School. He finished second at the season-opening Cape May County competition and then won the Beschen Callahan box swim.

Doubles partners Jimmy Nelson and James Garoh have excelled. They finished second in the Cape May doubles row and have previously captured the Bay Race.

They are joined by Ryan Manning and Chase Brown, who have been running neck-and-neck with Nelson and Garoh for the right to represent the patrol in out-of-town races.

Rookie James Carr placed in the paddle board event at the Beschen-Callahans.

Swimmers Ava Smith and Katie Carlos placed for Upper Township in some of the early-season events.