Pittwater Life June 2023 Issue

Bec and call of the beach
News
For most of us a day at the
beach is relaxing – catch
a wave, soak up some
sunshine… hot chips from
the local take-away, chill out;
nice.
Bec Capell of Newport SLSC
was recently crowned Australian
Champion Lifesaver
(40-49 years) at Scarborough
Beach, Western Australia. Bec
explains her day at the beach
can be very different.
Champion Lifesaver events
test the all-round skills and
abilities of competitors – it’s
surf lifesaving’s version of
the Olympic decathlon.
Bec outlines the energy sapping
event:
Run – 70-metre dash on soft
sand: “I can’t say I love that!”
Swim – 500 metres: “I’m
better in the surf than in the
flat I’ve discovered… I always
bank on a wave to carry me
in.”
Board – 600-metre paddle.
Tube rescue – 300-metre
swim with fins and rescue
tube: “Out of all of them that
one is the hardest.”
CPR – starts with a live patient,
then compressions on a
dummy (precision timing is
required).
Theory – 40 multiple choice
questions from a 300-page
manual, encompassing surf
forecasts, first aid… even obscure
questions on hat brim
width.
Bec said competition days
could run from 7am marshalling
through to 6pm.
Physical and mental fitness is
examined. Training is often
squeezed in late after Bec’s
day as a Support Education
Facilitator at Mona Vale Public
School.
She comes from a social
work background and now
works with autistic children
in Kindergarten up to Year
3 – a rewarding and challenging
career requiring patience.
Bec enjoys being able to work
one-on-one with children in a
small class environment.
“My job can be quite stressful
some days and it’s that
training… because we train
almost an hour every afternoon
doing something… that
makes me able to go home
and ‘face the music’ for the
family,” she explained.
Health, and mental healthwise,
it’s been a godsend.
“I think I get more out of it
than I ever expected and the
competition is just a bonus,”
AUSSIE CHAMPION:
Bec Capell on
Newport Beach.
she said.
Bec’s training partners,
Guyren Smith (Australian
Champion Lifesaver 50+
years) and Phoebe Savage, encouraged
her to enter Masters
events (30+ years). The pair
have been her guides.
“Guyren and Phoebe just
took me under their wing and
it was such a slow progression,
they just kept putting
my name down as a Master. I
think I came last in my first
Aussies!” Bec said.
“Every week they just kept
me going. They’ve become my
second family.”
Bec’s husband Brendan
and children Sam, Harry and
Abi are all active members of
Newport SLSC. The Capells
are in the famed Patrol No.2
(the Love Patrol).
“These dates are the first in
the calendar and we work our
life around them. Sometimes
it’s the only time in the week
that all five of us get together,”
she said.
Certainly hers is a busy life.
“I think that’s why I respect
so many Masters, because
we’ve all got family, we’re all
working and we can still find
time for each other and train.
I think that needs to be given
credit.”
Synchronised swimming
was Bec’s water background
before discovering her love
for the beach and the surf.
She first got involved
with surf lifesaving in 2009
when Sam and Harry joined
Newport Nippers after she
and Brendan decided their
children needed to do Nippers
and learn to surf, or at least
learn to ‘read’ the surf.
A Bronze Medallion, Nippers
water safety and stints
as Junior Activities Chairperson
and the Club’s Member
Protection Information Officer
have all followed.
Bec is also a member of the
six-person Patrol Competition
team (a super mix of Masters
and teenagers) and the
Masters water team. She’s also
recently joined the Inflatable
Rescue Boat team – she says
just so she can “hang out with
Harry”.
On 3 June, Newport SLSC
is holding its Annual Awards
presentation, The Bernies
(named after Club legend
Bernie Howard). The Capell
family feature strongly – with
seven nominations.
– Greg McHugh
12 JUNE 2023
The Local Voice Since 1991