Working With

The times are tough for surf companies. They’re even tougher for professional surfers. When the recession was in full force, companies were forced to slaughter their spending budgets and often their team riders suffered. Surfers had to look towards other forms of income and prospered on any kind of cash they could get their mitts on. So, what do some surfers do for the bit of extra cash? That’s what you’ll be finding out over the coming weeks. This week, we called up Gold Coast shredder, Clint Kimmins to see how he pays the bills.

Where are you employed?
Throughout the summer, I’m a full time lifeguard with the Gold Coast City Council. During the winter it’s a bit harder working on the beach so I turn to helping a mate with his rendering company. There aren’t always shifts lifeguarding during the winter, so doing a couple days of labor helps pays the rent.

What’s your normal day like?
It depends on where I’m working. If I’m labouring, we’re leaving during the early hours of the morning to be on site and ready. We’ll usually bang out a hard days work and leave around 2pm. If the waves are good, I’ll try and go for a paddle otherwise I’ll go the gym. If I’m on the beach, I’ll start at 8am and set the beach up. We don’t normally knock off until about 6pm so it’s a long day. I normally try and sneak in a couple of waves during my lunch break.

Clint: still tearing.

How many Japanese tourists have you saved?
(Laughs) I’ve saved too many of them. They’ll drown in their own puddle of sweat. It’s pretty heavy.

What’s the heaviest thing you’ve seen on the beach?
We had a young kid get smashed by blue bottles and they ended up wrapping around his neck. He lost consciousness and things weren’t looking too good. We chucked the oxygen machine on him and he pulled through.

Was lifeguarding something you’ve always wanted to do?
It wasn’t when I was 100% focused on being involved in the surfing industry but since things went south, I love it. A few of the local boys were doing it and told me to apply. There’s nothing better than being paid to work on the beach all day. I’m hoping to move onto something bigger and better but for the time being it’s perfect.

-Sam Paterson

Tags: Clint Kimmins