L.A. SPEAK
- Share via
Year-round beach banter from Southern California lifeguards:
blitz: n . a large-scale emergency rescue, such as two or more people caught in a riptide. A call to arms will go out from one guard to another: “Blitz! Tower 13!”
can: n . the red plastic air-filled buoy a guard takes into the water during a rescue to help float the victim, derived from the days when the buoys were made of welded aluminum. “Relax and hang onto the can .”
cannonball day: n . when the weather is so dismal and beachgoers so few, you could shoot a cannonball down the beach and not hit anyone. “It’s practically hailing out there! It’s a cannonball day for sure.”
meatball flag: n . yellow flag with a black circle that indicates when surfing is prohibited. Also: blackball flag.
palm-tree day: n . a perfect, quintessentially California day. “We’ve had four palm-tree day s in a row!”
sponge rider: n . a boogie-board rider. From the board’s spongy material.
sun spot: n . a blind spot in the water caused by glare from the sun. “Watch those swimmers; they’re in my sun spot .”
wallbenders: n . elderly beach folk who spend their days sitting against the beach wall. “The wallbenders are out in force today.”
More to Read
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.