Catching Trouble Instead of Waves : Surfing: Lifeguards crack down on offenders who take their boards too close to demolition work on the 77-year-old Municipal Pier.

Surfers beware: Shooting the pier may cost you a fine or your surfboard, and could result in a trip to jail.

That’s the message lifeguards have been sending out to Surf City locals, who know the gnarliest waves break in the shadows of the pier.

But since November, the waters surrounding the Municipal Pier have become perilous, as workers wielding massive machinery continue tearing down the 77-year-old landmark to make way for its replacement.

The pier area has been off limits to the public since the project got under way. But, as many surfers failed to comply, lifeguards in the last month have begun cracking down on those who have snubbed authority in search of the perfect wave.

Lifeguards are issuing warnings, taking the names of dozens of offenders and ticketing recalcitrant surfers. This month, lifeguards have cited five people, two of whom had their boards impounded and were jailed for other outstanding offenses, said Bill Richardson, the city’s marine safety captain, who is directing the operation.

The city’s lifeguards, as sworn officers of the Police Department, have banned surfing within 150 feet of either side of the pier. The boundaries are marked beyond the first wave break by gold triangular buoys and on the sand by gold signs bearing a black circle, the familiar “black ball” symbol indicating that surfing is forbidden in the area.

Lifeguards are authorized to confiscate surfboards from any surfer straying into the pier area “who’s really obnoxious,” Richardson said. Offenders who refuse to sign a ticket or give false identification can be arrested, he said.

Citations carry a potential $500 fine and six-month jail sentence, although the offense is rarely punished by more than a $60 fine, he said.

“Nobody wants to get arrested for doing something that’s pleasurable,” Richardson said. “But, by adding some teeth into the ordinance, we’re able to keep things under control a bit better. And generally, things have gotten better since we’ve stepped up enforcement.”

Before citing a violator, lifeguards first warn the surfer by an announcement over the public address system at the lifeguard tower, by patrol boat or by Jeep after the offender returns to shore, he said. Richardson has developed the strategy in concert with Gary Davis, project sponsor for Reidel International Inc., the firm contracted for the pier reconstruction.

The stringent effort to keep surfers away from the demolition area is necessary, Richardson and Davis say, to protect surfers from falling debris and the city from a potential lawsuit. If someone were injured by one of the chunks of concrete that frequently tumble into the water, or if a mishap were to topple one of the towering cranes working on the project, the victim “would probably end up suing the city and the construction company,” Richardson said.

“And if that were to happen, they’d have to stop working on the pier. And then we may not get one, if we have to pay off a $9-million lawsuit because somebody didn’t listen,” he said. To many surfers, however, the new policy is unduly harsh.

“The lifeguards are going out of their way to show their authority to the fullest extent,” said Everett Gesford, 21, one of two surfers whose citation led to an arrest--for surfing in a black ball-marked area a few years ago.

This time, Gesford said he heard a warning announced from the lifeguard tower. Upon returning to shore, he was ticketed. “I don’t see how they can pick just one person to give a ticket. There were 30 or 40 people getting out of the water at once, literally” when he was cited, he said.

“I think it’s kind of a joke, myself,” he added. “How can something so free be so costly?”

Mark McGrath of Corona del Mar said he has not yet drifted into the restricted area, but he also objects to the rule.

“I don’t think it’s right at all. This is a public beach,” McGrath, 29, said. “Obviously, if you’re paying attention, you’ll be out of the way” of danger.

McGrath and others acknowledge the city’s need to take safety precautions. But they argue that can be accomplished without writing citations or impounding surfboards.

“I think it should be left a little bit more to the surfer to use his own judgment,” said John Mantle, 17, of Huntington Beach.

The opposition among surfers is pervasive, though not unanimous.

“If something dropped from that crane, it wouldn’t break the board, it’d break your back,” said Sean McDonald, a 24-year-old Long Beach man. He said he favors issuing citations to repeat offenders.

Greg Rippe, 19, of Norwalk said he recently was warned for surfing through the pier. “They just told me not to do it again, so I just paddled away from it. They were pretty good about it,” he said.

As the summer months approach, Davis and Richardson are working on a similar plan to prevent the droves of swimmers from drifting into the banned area. Keeping swimmers away will be more difficult, Richardson said, because they typically are less able to battle the currents than are surfers.

“So we’ll be dealing with swimmers on an individual basis,” he said. But, he added, a swimmer who purposefully disregards the prohibition will similarly be cited.