Lifeguard receives race in honor of rescues

After 58 years of hard work, Newport Beach Lifeguard Buddy Belshe received an unexpected retirement gift from his employers: a race created in his name.

At 8:15 a.m. this morning, hundreds of the city’s seasonal lifeguards will rush the waves in honor of Belshe, who spenT the last few decades protecting the millions of visitors and residents of the city’s miles of shoreline.

The race commemorates Belshe’s 58 years as a lifeguard, 48 of which were spent in Newport Beach. The other 10 were up the shore in Huntington Beach.

Belshe, 73, will act as the race’s starter, watching the 200-yard swim that kicks off from the base of the Newport Pier and wraps around a buoy nearby known as “Buddy’s Buoy.” Many of the guards who will be swimming today were trained by Belshe.

The top times from year-round staff and fastest seasonal men and women’s times will be recognized after everyone has come ashore.

Belshe worked 27 full-time years with Newport Beach and has stayed with the city as a seasonal lifeguard since 1988. He has spent most of his seasonal years guarding the smaller beaches of Corona del Mar.

Feeling most at home in the water, Belshe, who learned to swim when he was just 3, was the first paid year-round lifeguard in Huntington Beach.

In 1999, the Newport Beach City Council honored Belshe for his dedication in the field of marine safety.

He has continued to stay involved in the swimming community mostly at Blue Buoy Swim School.

KELLY STRODL may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at [email protected].