Rod "R.O." Riehl

Rod "R.O." Riehl

Beach Lifeguard, Captain, and Supervisor

Guarded 1955-1973

When I was first hired as a Laguna Beach lifeguard in 1955, there were no swimming tests. The guards were mostly local boys who had lived along the beaches and were generally good ocean swimmers.

Carl Mays, who ran the local ambulance service, was the Chief Lifeguard. I don't know if Carl could even swim, as I never once saw him enter the water. Carl was given a contract by the city to hire and supervise the guards, who all worked on a seasonal basis. I believe we were selected by word of mouth, knowing Carl, or being recommended to him.

Our salary in 1955 was $1.25 per hour. We guarded from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. six days a week. We didn't have any towers or rescue equipment. We provided our own Churchill swim fins. I took my own beach umbrella and backrest to the beach, and set up a station at a good observation spot. If someone got in trouble we would pull on the fins, sprint across the beach, swim out and grab the victim by the arm, and sidestroke to shore.

One of our early uniforms I remember was the white "Waltah Clark" swim suit with a blue and red stripe down the side. We pinned a metal star-shaped lifeguard badge to the suit to make it official.