Ride with me

Lesson 10 – 40 minutes

Learning outcomes

• Recognise how a board can be used to secure and support a conscious patient.
• Demonstrate the skills required to secure and support a conscious patient.
  

Preparation

• Nipper Boards (1 between 2).
• Water Safety Personnel (1:5).
  

IMPORTANT

• If you are not confident coaching the skills in this lesson, bring in a lifesaver or trainer to help deliver the lesson.
• Discuss the surf conditions and safety considerations before entering the water.

Coaching Points

BOARD RESCUE BASIC STEPS:

1. Aim to keep the board on the shoreward side of the patient.
2. Straddle the board slightly towards the back.
3. Tell the patient to reach across and take hold of the handgrips.
4. Grab the patient’s nearest leg to pull the patient onto the craft.
5. Put the patient on the board with the patient’s assistance.
6. Take a paddling position between the patient’s legs, turn the craft around and paddle towards the shore.
7. Make sure on your return to shore that the rescuer does not catch any unbroken waves as there is a risk of losing their patient.
8. When you reach the shore, signal for assistance required if necessary.
   

Demonstrate

• Take the participants into knee deep water accompanied by water safety personnel.
• Choose a confident participant to help with the demonstration.
• Demonstrate a board rescue by following the board rescue basic steps.
  

Activity 1

1. Instruct the participants to pair up, one board per pair if available (if there’s not enough boards then make bigger groups in multiples of 2).
2. Have participants practice board rescues in small waves in an area close to shore and marked out by Water Safety Personnel.
   

*AGE MANAGER TIPS

Let the participants know that this rescue technique is also the technique for board rescue competition – so they can try practicing it at speed once they have mastered the correct lifesaving technique.

ASSUMED SKILLS
This lesson assumes participants have acquired previous skills from earlier awards:

• Positioning on a board and basic paddling technique.
• Entering the surf and bunny-hopping with a board.
• Sitting over a wave and paddling through a wave.
• Exiting the water with a board.
• Catching a broken and un-broken wave.