It's on: Riddo's rebels take on SLSA Fight to rule waves

12.04.2010

SURF Life Saving Australia will
review its controversial guidelines
on beach rips after former
ironman champion Craig Riddington
set up a breakaway
safety body to challenge it.
The new organisation, Surf
Educators International, has
won the support of leading surf
bodies and individuals.
These include businessman
and former ironman Grant
Kenny, Manly Lifesaving Club
president David Pullinger, leading
surf scientist Dr Rob
Brander, Bondi Rescue star
Bruce "Hoppo" Hopkins, the
Australian Professional Ocean
Lifeguard Association, and Kids
Academy of Surf.
Mr Riddington said SEI would
focus on research, education and
the promotion of a unified surf
safety message for all beachgoers
by working with community
groups, including schools
and surf life saving clubs.
"We want to firstly establish
ourselves as the authority in surf
education and then secure funding
so we can adapt our program
nationally," he said.
"We want to become the
accreditation body so standards
are high within surf education."
One of its first targets is Surf
Life Saving Australia's controversial
campaign of last summer
advising swimmers to escape a
rip, swim parallel to the beach"
which Mr Riddington said bred
complacency about rips.
SLSA has defended the campaign,
but it has now invited Mr
Riddington to a stakeholder
review on May 8 in Sydney to
assess its effectiveness.
Mr Riddington, who runs his
own surf-education company,
SEA Australia, said he hoped the
review would be a stepping stone
to collaboration with the SLSA in
putting out a clear and simple surf
safety message to all Australians.
"We're now in a situation
where we can be heard as one,"
he said.
Mr Riddington has long been
engaged in a struggle against the
power of SLSA.
"We figure that (rip advice)
campaign has already done too
much damage," he said. "There
needs to be a clean slate.
"It was wrong. It shouldn't
have been out there and now
there's a group which can include
SLSA that has come up
with a new campaign."
Bondi Rescue's star lifeguard
Bruce "Hoppo" Hopkins has
signed on as an affiliate of SEI.
He said he was hoping to get
funding from the Australian
Water Safety Council.
But his recent attempts to
contact politicians, including opposition
leader Tony Abbott and
federal sports minister Kate Ellis,
have gone unanswered.