Sports : The Water Is His World : Venice Lifeguard Just May Be the Best in the U.S.--and Beyond

Craig Hummer of Santa Monica is Venice Beach’s best medal collector.

The 30-year-old beach legend, however, is not one of those scavengers who fishes coins and watches out of the sand. Instead, Hummer, a lifeguard off Buccaneer Street near Venice Pier, collects medals by showing off his skills at annual lifeguard competitions.

Hummer won all six events he entered last year in the U.S. Lifesaving Assn. National Championships in Cape May, N.J. He increased his medal total to 31, an event record. In the last three years, he has won 21 events and is a three-time defending U.S. Surf Lifesaving champion.

Hummer will shoot for his sixth consecutive U.S. Lifesaving National Championship Aug. 10-12 at Santa Cruz. Set to interrupt his streak are Mark Young of Santa Monica, Tim Gair of Pacific Palisades and former beach king Mitch Kahn of San Clemente.

“I haven’t lost a race in three years and I hope to continue that trend at Santa Cruz,” Hummer said.

Born in landlocked Akron, Ohio, Hummer began swimming in pools at 7 when he won his first age-group medal. As a senior at Worthington High, Hummer swam All-American times in three events. He earned an academic scholarship to Kenyon College, where he won 17 All-American titles for the school’s Division III program.

During the 1987 Division III championships in Canton, Ohio, Hummer met members of the UC San Diego swim team, who suggested he consider becoming a lifeguard in California.

“I knew I would eventually live somewhere near the ocean,” Hummer said. “I wanted to get a job in advertising, and at the time, the Pacific Rim was taking off financially. I thought the advertising industry in California would be just as good as the traditional strongholds in Chicago and New York.”

Hummer, however, had a better opportunity selling himself with his blond hair and Greek-god physique than pitching ad campaigns for Proctor & Gamble.

After swimming the fastest one-mile qualifying race in L.A. County Lifeguarding rookie school, Hummer became a seasonal worker at local beaches. He also is a model and actor who makes occasional guest appearances on “Baywatch.”

Lifeguarding, however, involves more than looking good and talking to pretty, bikini-clad women. Lifeguards patrol county and state beaches, are trained to save lives and promote water safety. The annual competitions inspire lifeguards to stay in shape.

National competition includes swimming, rowing, paddleboard racing, surf and rescue, and surf-skiing events. Surf skis are long, kayak-style crafts used to patrol the beaches.

One of the two most grueling events is the run-swim-run, where contestants run 400 meters, swim 400 meters and run 400 meters again. It was the first event Hummer won in 1987.

The mild weather in Southern California allows Hummer to train year-round and gives him a huge advantage over guards from northern and eastern states. He squeezes in 15 workouts a week, the earliest beginning at 5 a.m. with a one-hour swim.

“I would probably say my training regimen and my determination to win four events makes the difference,” Hummer said.

The four events--swimming, running, surfing-skiing and paddle boarding--comprise the Iron Man event, the marquee matchup of the national competition. Hummer has won the past five Iron Man titles.

While few outside the sport recognize him as a star athlete in the United States, Hummer receives royal treatment in Australia, where lifeguarding is second in popularity behind cricket, according to Hummer.

There’s even a major publication dedicated to the sport called Australian Surf Lifesaver magazine, which also covers U.S. events.

“I’ll walk down a shopping center and people would stop and say ‘There’s Hummer,’ ” he said. “It’s a different way of life down there. They live and breathe this sport.”

The Australians invite the world’s top lifeguards to compete in the Uncle Toby’s Super Series, an Iron Man competition offering about $1 million in prize money.

After the United States tour is completed, Hummer leaves for Australia, where summer begins for continents south of the Equator..

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Hummer also travels across the United States, hosting clinics for junior guards. He hopes the sport eventually receives as much national coverage as beach volleyball or surfing.

“The initial step is to get more people involved,” he said. “We need to spread the word to young kids from 7 to 17. It’s like watching swimming with the added excitement of racing through the surf.

“If it was packaged right, it would make a good television sport.”