Athletes run, paddle, swim through CMPBP’s Women’s Lifeguard Challenge
CAPE MAY POINT – Wildwood Beach Patrol’s Tess McVan took first place in the 14th annual Cape May Point Women’s Lifeguard Challenge, turning in a time of 26:49.
The 21-year-old has participated in the race in three previous years. She joined the Wildwood Beach Patrol at the age of 16.
The July 27 race consisted of a consecutive 1.3-mile soft sand run, a 1-mile ocean paddle and a half-mile ocean swim.
McVan had taken the lead by the first flag of the soft sand foot race and maintained it to the end. She was trailed in the run by Cape May Beach Patrol’s Maddie Hawks with Upper Township’s Rebecca Millar in third place.
The Cape May Beach Patrol took second and third place overall with Emma DeMario turning in a time of 29:17 and Madi Bickford finishing two seconds later. Bickford, age 16, was competing for the first time.
The 2-3 finish was good enough to give the Cape May Beach Patrol duo the first-place team title.
Wildwood Beach Patrol’s Katie (Collins) Joyce finished fourth with a time of 29:36 followed by Sea Isle City Beach Patrol’s Kylie Fry in fourth place with a time of 30:30.
McVan maintained her lead in the paddle board leg of the race followed by Cape May’s Bickford and Wildwood’s Joyce in the third position. McVan was the first participant into the water for the ocean swim and the first competitor out of water.
“The current is always really tough here,” McVan said. “It all comes down to how well you can read those currents and today we had the opportunity to get down here early enough to look at the water and see how much that current was moving.”
She said she was able to judge the locations of jetties for the water portions of the competition.
“I guess it all paid off, just the pre-race talks and meeting, analyzing what to do during the race,” McVan said. “It’s all kind of trial and error when it comes down to it. I’m fortunate enough to have all those lessons learned.”
The water temperature was 68 degrees with an incoming high tide and a light south-southeast wind. McVan said the water was the coldest she had felt during her years of competing in the race.
A bank of fog just offshore enveloped participants at times. McVan said she lost sight of a race buoy at one point during the paddle competition as did Cape May’s DeMario and Bickford.
“For all those first-time competitors, the thing that’s important to remember is not to get discouraged your first or second time around because it’s all learning lessons and experience,” she said.
McVan lifeguarded in San Diego, Calif., and New Zealand. She said she is considering a career as a first responder possibly in firefighting. She comes from a family of lifeguards.
The top three teams in cross country scoring were led by Cape May’s DeMario and Bickford with 5 points followed by Wildwood’s McVan and Joyce in second place with 5 points and Upper Township Beach Patrol members Lindsay Robbins and Millar in third place with 21 points.
“The current was pretty rough, but it was fun all the way through,” DeMario said. It was her third year of the race.
She said the Cape May Beach Patrol held a trial to determine who would be on the team.
“We trained together and worked hard,” she said. “Now we’re here and very happy.”
Bickford noted when the buoy wasn’t visible, “everyone on the water helped us out.”
DeMario and Bickford said they would be on the Cape May Beach Patrol for life.
DeMario said her career goal is to become an architect and stay in Cape May County while Bickford plans to be a neurologist.
A tie-breaker was used between the first- and second-place teams. The second scoring team member that scores the highest determined the winner. Wildwood Beach Patrol’s Joyce placed fourth while Cape May Beach Patrol’s Bickford placed third, allowing Cape May to win the tie.
The event consisted of 35 competitors from 11 beach patrols.
Missing this year was Harvey Cedars Beach Patrol and five-time winner Jenna Parker, who turned in a time last year of 24:46. Stone Harbor, Surf City and Longport were also absent from the event.
The race was dedicated to Meredith Scott who passed away in May. Race director Kristen Moorby said Scott as a teacher and a coach was longtime volunteer at the race.
By JACK FICHTER/Cape May Star and Wave
