After 12 months of preparation, these past two weeks have been an absolute whirlwind of experiences. My qualifying summer (2019/20) coincided with the last visit from the American guards, which is the first time I realised that this great opportunity would also be available to me in a few short years. Unfortunately, this was around the same time Covid-19 initially hit, which meant a lot of uncertainty followed.

Fast forward to April 2023, when the first communications confirmed an absolute dream: Huntington was back on, and would be held the next year. Moving up to Kings’ Birthday, the trial weekend, nerves were running high: time trials had been issued (and I was certainly not under the limit). After a gruelling wait I got the good news, I had made the team! Our first training camp was held mid-winter in freezing conditions, and was arguably one of the most difficult weekends of my life. Between a Peak to Peak, a Sailor’s swim, deathly team-building and lots of chilli-eating, friendships were strengthened in the face of adversity and our group progressed from acquaintances to a real team. They say you have to be broken down before you can be built back up, and this camp definitely achieved this! Coming home, I knew I had a big decision to make and decided to redouble my efforts before the next camp.

The next two camps went relatively smoothly as my fitness abilities increased, but one experience definitely stood out in particular: my first half-marathon! I don’t think anyone was expecting this, particularly not after the channel swim to Pauanui, so it was a real test of wills (and baby oil) to make it to the end, which I am proud to say I did. This experience especially made me realise I am capable of a lot more than I realise and boosted my confidence. My final camp occurred in April and this marked us meeting of the remainder of our team: Piha. Swapping training experiences with them made us Tairua guards shocked: we definitely had on edge on the fitness side of things (Thanks Coaches).

I had successfully lived through the camps, so the final thing to do was achieve my times. Amid my first year of study in the rather chilly environment of Dunedin, this was easier said than done. Despite this, I managed to stay consistent and achieved a record time of 26:48 in early June (coming from a 30:30 time at trials!). A year of progress and I was overjoyed with the results.

So, finally came the day to don the beautiful Under Armour uniforms and trek to Auckland Airport will my very close to overweight bag and experience my first overseas trip without parents. About 16 hours later, we were climbing off the plane into sunny LA. Meeting my host family for the first time is not something I will soon forget, nor is the amazing welcome the Americans gave us on their end. Plates and plates of food, friendly faces and many speeches, but I can’t lie by this stage it was a bit of a battle to stay awake. Attempting to dodge the jet lag knowing our first day at Junior Guards was looming, I managed to battle through to an acceptable bedtime: 9:00pm. Most people would group beaches in the same category, but after walking onto Huntington for the first time I can confidently say that I have NEVER seen anything like it. I was most fascinated with the pier and all of its various events, in addition to the sheer amount of people. The next two weeks consisted of a routine of Junior Guards, mixed between fitness events and learning the ‘American’ way of guarding. I think my time there may have been the most time I have ever spent running on sand, which resulted in many nights with burning calves. To mention a few of the extreme exercises, we completed a 2 mile, a 6 mile, a pier swim, countless buoy swims and many, many push ups for my use of the word ‘yeah’. I deduced from this that there are 8 year olds in better shape than me, and that their lifeguards are a whole new level of dedicated.

A particular honour was bestowed on our team when we got to jump off the pier. While a lot of nerves were present, our team took it in stride with true Kiwi confidence and efficiency, meaning we also got to complete the leap twice. This was particularly special to me as this was a main event I remember hearing about from the 2019 team, and I couldn’t believe it was now my turn.

As a Marine Science student, the Catalina Dive Trip was one of my favourite days, starting off nothing short of spectacular with pod after pod of dolphins taking turns riding the boat’s waves. Additionally, California (more specifically Catalina) is renowned worldwide for its kelp forests (which are a large part of focus in my degree) so having the privilege to see them in person is something I am incredibly grateful for. Other amazingly cool aspects of this day included soaking up the sun, rock jumps, learning many new fish species, and even being lucky enough to see an enormous sunfish for the very first time.

It wouldn’t be a trip review without a nod to the eating habits of the team, from Dairy Queen, Chipotle, TK Burger and In and Out, to ridiculously cheap berries and comically large sizes of anything in the supermarkets. The food that especially stands out is the Dole Whip consumed amidst the boiling temperatures of Anaheim during our day at Disneyland. While our time here was rather hot and long, I can now understand why they say it is like no place on Earth. From getting over a general fear of rollercoasters, to eating nothing but sugar all day and finally watching one of the most magnificent displays of fireworks I’ve ever seen with a close friend, this day was nothing short of magical and I will cherish it forever.

This opportunity has made me realise how important lifeguarding can be in life and how much this environment is good for the soul. It has definitely ensured that I won’t be going anywhere far from TSLSC in the coming years, despite my distance during the off season. I was lucky enough to not only make new friends, but also new parents and sisters, and anyone present on our last night can inform you of the heart-wrenching goodbyes ending in hours of tears. It is particularly rare to be lucky enough to have such special people to miss. As I sit here writing this in my Huntington Beach hoodie reminiscing about the recent adventures, I can honestly say the friendships I have made will last a lifetime and I cannot wait to host the Americans and give them an iconic Kiwi experience in the coming summer!