Surviving Rip Currents The Willis Way

The Willis Way is a rip current survival method used to avoid and or escape rip currents, originating in the distant past way before life guarding ever existed. Passed on from generations of experienced surfers and watermen big wave surfing found this "self-rescue" survival technique the most efficient way if not the only way for self-rescue. In 1998 giant wave surfers the Willis brothers (twins) Milton and Michael began teaching this proven rip current survival technique to the general public. In circa 2000 the rip current survival technique began being referred to as the Willis Way. Today this technique is officially taught to lifeguards and Jr. guards in New Jersey and still relied on for "self-rescue" by experienced surfers around the world.
Technique
To escape a rip current the Willis Way stay calm and swim toward the nearest waves. Ocean waves are nature’s escalator of energy moving towards the shore. When it comes to powerful rip currents there is only one way a swimmer can make it back to shore with out the aid of a lifeguard, jet Ski or helicopter and that is to come in with the incoming waves. There is no other way. This technique specifically targets "self-rescue" when and or where lifeguard assistance is not available.
To avoid rip currents the Willis Way Simply wade or swim in front of the waves. Rip currents are nature’s escalator of energy going away from the shore and returning to the sea. Rip currents can be difficult to spot even for the most trained water safety experts. Many times inexperienced beach goers look for the calm areas were waves aren’t breaking to go bathing or swimming. This is where danger can begin. While the calm water may appear to be a safe to swim it’s actually where rip currents happen. Science shows out going rip currents occur along side or in-between waves. Thus, to avoid rip currents bathers need to stay in front of incoming waves.
History
Early surfers in Hawaii pre Duke Pahoa Kahanamoku grew up fishing, swimming and surfing before lifeguarding existed. The survival for these watermen depended on their ocean knowledge. More important than skill or ability was their deep understanding of waves and currents. Naturally this traditional and life perpetuating information was passed on from one generation to the next. These early watermen not only survived in the ocean they played in the ocean. Surfing was born along with the sacred knowledge of how to avoid and or escape rip currents.
Post Duke Pahoa Kahanamoku surfers began to discover the large and untamed waves of Oahu’s north shore. Along this time surfers from California such as Peter Cole, Greg Noll, Buzzy Trent, Butch Van Artsdale, Pat Curren and Dick Brewer were showing up on the scene. Behemoth surfing breaks such as Waimea bay, Pipeline and outside Sunset beach where being surfed for the first time with hazardous conditions i.e. extreme big waves. At this time surfboard leashes were decades away from being invented by . When a surfer lost his surfboard he had to swim back to shore. The surfers who chose to go to the “calm water” to get in (where the rip current is) as opposed to the waves would end up swept far out to sea. Big wave surfers quickly learned how to deal with some of the world’s most powerful and dangerous rip currents by staying in the waves to safely get to shore when they wiped out and or lost their surfboard.
Originally from Solana beach California the Willis brothers (twins) Milton and Michael began surfing the north shore of Oahu in 1974 at the age of 17. Thanks to the precautions offered by experienced big wave surfers such as Jose Angel, Kit Horn, Eddie Aikau and others Milton and Michael learned how to use rip currents to effortlessly get out to the line up and waves to safely get back to the shore. In 1998 the Willis brothers Milton and Michael surfed what many still consider the largest waves in Hawaii of all time and began to teach surfing and water safety professionally. Circa 2000 students and proponents of the surfing "self-rescue" technique taught by the brothers began to refer to it as the Willis Way to survive rip currents as a way to remind swimmers to swim to the waves to escape rip currents.
Today The Willis brothers Milton and Michael continue to educate and teach the Willis Way of surviving rip currents to thousands. A grass roots movement to educate the public through videos in multi languages, P.S.A.’s, ads, school seminars, signs and posters has resulted in the Willis Way to survive rip currents being taught officially by Ocean Safety Lifeguards in Monmouth, New Jersey for the summer of 2016. Striving to have the finest Jr. lifeguard program in the nation Chief Officer and Captain Michael Hudson is credited with being the first to officially teach the Willis Way "self-rescue" technique on the East coast. Goals for the future include taking esoteric ocean safety information that used to be shared only amongst an elite group of experienced surfers and watermen and making it common knowledge for all.

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