25 Oct 08 - Photos from the Southampton University Lifesaving Competition
On Sat 25th October 2008, two teams from Keynsham Life Saving Club made their way to Southampton to compete in the first BULSCA competition of the season. BULSCA (The British Universities Life Saving Clubs Association) was formed to oversee competitive lifesaving between university clubs, and to help develop the sport of lifesaving as a whole. Keynsham Life Savign Club was invited to take part in this event because we have strong links with BULSCA and with Southampton University in particular (Our current chairman, Blondie, also used to be captain of Southampton Uni LSC).
Unfortunately only seven KLSC members were free to compete, but Lauren Dyson from Southampton University generously agreed to make up the numbers and captain the B-Team. With over forty 4-man teams trying to register at once the registration desk resembled a rugby scrum, but eventually both teams were signed-in. The random draw favoured the Keynsham teams: the B-team (Lauren, Emily, Michelle and Helen) were second to tackle the incidents and the A-team (Blondie, Rebecca, Rachel and Hannah) were sixteenth. This meant that we didn't have to spend too long in isolation and that both teams got the opportunity to see plenty of university teams tackle the wet incident. After getting changed into our brand new club kit, we made our way to isolation
Lauren quickly set about putting her team at ease – giving Emily, Michelle and Helen a quick overview of what to expect from the incidents. Meanwhile, I briefed Rebecca, Rachel and Hannah so that everyone was clear on their role before entering the incident.
The B-Team went out first to tackle the dry incident – with seven casualties in total this was a challenging scenario to deal with. As always, the captain’s first job was to prioritise the casualties. On entering the room, the team was confronted by a man with a 3ft long metal stake through his thigh. Despite bleeding profusely he was still conscious, which meant that the baby next to him (who had stopped breathing) took priority, followed by the unconscious casualty hidden behind the screen at the back of the room. The teams also had to deal with a casualty suffering from an asthma attack and several bystanders who needed to be reassured and treated for shock. Teams could pick up extra marks for spotting and using the first-aid kit hidden in the corner of the room, and for communicating well with each other and the casualties.
The large number of casualties made this a particularly difficult incident. Both our teams lost a few marks for failing to control the incident as a whole – but our communication and teamwork will improve with practice. I also expect that we’ll get more confident in dealing with individual casualties as the year progresses. Many experienced teams lost a lot of marks because they missed the two casualties behind the screen. But the sharp-eyed teams from Keynsham spotted these casualties and treated them successfully. Well done!
The wet incident also had a large number of different casualties, and with only 2 minutes to tackle the pool-wide incident, there wasn't much margin for error. Both captains correctly identified the non-swimmers at the far end of the pool as the top priority. The teams' fastest swimmers were immediately dispatched to bring the non-swimmers to safety. Both teams picked up lots of marks for ensuring their own safety during the rescue - using a floating aid and keeping a safe distance from the casualty (unlike several university teams who attempted a contact-tow and got grabbed and "drowned" by the casualty in the process)!
Both Keynsham teams attempted to shout and signal to the weak and injured swimmers next, only entering the water as a last resort. The B-team in particular picked up loads of marks for a safe and effective rescue of a non-swimmer and a weak-swimmer, and were ranked 12th and 13th for these specific casualties. I was pleased to see that every team member from Keynsham remembered to take an aid when entering the water, and there were some excellent individual rescues. Unfortunately our speed was no match for the older university teams who cleared the entire pool in less than 60 seconds!
The next event was the rope-throw relay, with both Keynsham teams in the same heat. Since this was a university event we were throwing 12m (4m more than youngsters would normally be expected to throw). Nevertheless there were some superb throws, with Rachel and Michelle both managing to reach their casualties. Rebecca and Helen made some good attempts but unfortunately we ran out of time.
After the rope-throw relay was a speed-lifesaving event: the obstacle relay. Competitors swam 2 lengths passing under a swimming gate once on each length. The trick with this event is to pass smoothly under the gates with minimum interuption to your normal stroke. After practicing on Sunday, Rebecca had it down to a fine art - passing smoothly under the gate. For some KLSC competitors this was the first time they'd ever swum under a gate, but we still did well. Finishing 31st (A-team) and 34th (B-team) in this event. Not bad considering we up against univeristy swimmers at least 6 years older than us!
The final event of the day was the swim and tow relay. After swimming 2 lengths, competitors tow their casualty for 2 lengths. There were some really close finishes, with the A-team overtaking two university teams on the final length!
Overall the KLSC A-team finished 35th and the B-team finished 36th - beating the Birmingham D team and the Warwick B team. Great results from a really fun day!
Download the full results from the BULSCA website...
