The Viking Way
Our Nipper Program (for Under 12s)
Nippers start learning about surf awareness and safety through the Surf Life Saving Education Program. They are also able to participate in board paddling, swimming, sprinting, beach flags, wading, other water-based activities and beach games.
Viking Nippers offers a program of surf awareness, skills coaching, and an introduction to competition at an intra club level and in the future, hopefully with other clubs and competitions abroad.
While competition is an important element, the surf awareness and education aspect is a primary aim. Children are taught from the youngest age how to respect and read the surf and to use it to their advantage. This is done in an environment of fun, healthy lifestyle and camaraderie which is unique to surf sports.
The main aims of the nippers program are to:
- Develop surf awareness
- Increase confidence and skills in beach related activities
- Encourage enjoyable and healthy participation in sport
- Promote a positive non-threatening environment
- Build teams and meet new friends
Viking Rookie Lifesavers (Age 12-18)
Vikings can train for and achieve accredited Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) Awards. We will be running the Survive & Save Programme. In the RLSS Survive & Save course there are four award areas to experience: the Medallion Awards, the Beach Awards, the Stillwater Awards and the Sport Awards and members can choose to specialise in one area or learn a broader range of skills by completing multiple awards. The highest achievement in the Survive & Save Programme is the Distinction Award, which is awarded to those who achieve 3 Gold Level awards within a 24-month period.
Your child’s pathway through the Nippers and/or Rookie Lifesavers Program:
| Age Group | Preliminary Assessment (Pool or open water) | Junior Development Program Award |
| Under 6 (must be 5 at the start) | 25 m swim (any stroke) (mostly shallow water activities with progression to deeper water) | Surf Play |
| Under 8 | 25 metre swim (any stroke)1 minute survival float | Surf Aware |
| Under 10 | 50 metre swim(any stroke)90 seconds survival float | Surf Safe |
| Under 12 | 50 metre swim(any stroke)90 seconds survival float | Surf Smart |
| Rookie Lifesavers (12-18) | Complete an unaided swim of 100m in a pool or open water | SLSA – Surf Rescue CertificateRoyal Life Saving Society – Survive & Save |
| Assessors | Coaches and Age Managers |
Nipper and Rookie Lifesaver Surf Education Awards:
Surf Play (Under 6)
Surf Play focuses on play, participation and fun. Activities and games will be the main aim of sessions, with a number of simple beach safety and awareness lessons available such as: guidelines, the importance of having an adult with them at the beach, supervised guided deep water activities such as kayaks and Stand Up Paddle Boards (SUPs), what a lifesaver is and what they do, bodyboarding, wading, beach sprinting and beach flags.
Surf Aware (Under 8)
Surf Aware is all about understanding, identifying and demonstrating behaviours to keep themselves safe. Nippers learn to recognise when they or someone else is in an emergency situation and how to get help. Surf sports skills focus on body-boarding, wading, dolphin-diving, swimming, kayaks, SUPs, beach sprint starts and beach flags starts.
Surf Safe (Under 10)
Participants learn about rip currents, recognising unsafe behaviours and relating these areas to preventative actions. Resuscitation is introduced for the first time with an opportunity to learn the basics of CPR. Rescue techniques are also introduced for the first time as participants learn to use the body boards to assist distressed swimmers and experience rescue tubes. Surf sports skills focus on entering and negotiating the surf on a board.
Surf Smart (Under 12)
First aid and CPR skills are enhanced along with developing rescue techniques. Board skills come into play as participants learn how to conduct a board rescue. The focus of surf sports skills is to complete all the skills in each skill set and includes; catching waves, surf swimming techniques, rolling under waves on a board, SUP, kayaks and diving under large waves.
Viking Rookie Lifesavers (Age 12-18)
Vikings can train for and achieve Surf Rescue Certificate (SRC) and the accredited Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS) Awards. The SRC will allow rookie lifeguards to gain accreditation as a qualified water safety assistant and is a great lead in for future beach lifeguard training opportunities.
We will be running the Survive & Save Programme. In the RLSS Survive & Save course there are four award areas to experience: the Medallion Awards, the Beach Awards, the Stillwater Awards and the Sport Awards and members can choose to specialise in one area or learn a broader range of skills by completing multiple awards. The highest achievement in the Survive & Save Programme is the Distinction Award, which is awarded to those who achieve 3 Gold Level awards within a 24-month period.
Nippers and Lifesaving Club in Dubai 