By Maddy Vitale
The Ocean City Beach Patrol won the Red Bull Surf and Rescue Championships Tuesday night, handling choppy waters and a pending storm with talent and ease.
OCBP team of Bryan Theiss, Maggie Wallace, Brian McGroarty, and Frank Brady took first in the competition and won a Polaris rescue vehicle for the patrol.
Bruckner Chase, media liaison for the Red Bull Championship, said 50 teams made up of 200 athletes competed in what he described as an intense event.
There were men and women across all ages from 17 to their 40s in the competition. All 50 teams made up of four people, participated in the Relay Surf Swim and the top 25 teams advanced into what turned into a final round, due to the weather, which was the Relay Paddleboard.
“I will tell you Bryan Theiss crushed it this year. He was a key player, along with Maggie Wallace, Brian McGroarty and Frank Brady,” Chase said.
Teams competed in some of the roughest conditions in four years, officials said. (Courtesy Aimee Schultz)
The competition kicked off at 5 p.m. and for the first time members of the United States Coast Guard competed.
“We were getting really accurate weather forecasts,” Chase said. “We had the roughest ocean conditions in four years. We had three foot swells and 20 mile an hour winds and extreme fog.”
Chase said the swim was under some of the roughest conditions.
“All 50 teams started together for a swim through some rough and challenging competitions. They shot out to a buoy 100 feet offshore. They had to cover a lot of sand. It was a true lifeguard test.”
Theiss, Wallace, McGroarty and Brady finished sixth in the swim round and had a really strong finish in the paddleboard relay, Chase said.
A swim with rough currents and whipping winds didn't bother these athletes. (Courtesy Aimee Schultz)
That strong finish by the OCBP team assured a win in the overall championship. All three teams from the OCBP advanced to the final round.
Ocean City Beach Patrol Chief Mark Jamieson said the win is a true testament to the Ocean City lifeguards.
Jamieson said the way the lifeguards performed in the Red Bull championship just shows how skilled they are.
“The main focus of why we race is to get better at rescuing. It is a testament to the quality of the lifeguards we have in Ocean City,” Jamieson said.
There are 156 lifeguards in Ocean City. Jamieson said this year there have been more saves than in previous years.
“We have an approximate number from Fourth of July of about 100 saves,” Jamieson said. “We have had some depressions out in the ocean,” he said. “The wind, surf, population, a combo of all three is a factor.”
Chase said while the lifeguards are skilled to handle dangerous conditions, within two minutes of the final round competition there was thunder and lightning.
“Safety was first. We wrapped up the final getting everyone off the beach safely. It was a safe competition and extremely challenging,” he said.
There is more at stake than a championship, he noted.
“This race was really important last night,” Chase said. “But the most important race they do might be Thursday morning at 10:30 a.m. when a tourist gets caught in a current.”
The winning team from OCBP is made up of Bryan Theiss, Maggie Wallace, Brian McGroarty, and Frank Brady. (Courtesy Aimee Schultz)
