SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 69: Learn How to Throw a Rescue Line from the Shore

Being able to throw a rescue line accurately could make a real difference in an emergency occurring near water. This challenge gives you the chance to practise your aim, learn how to handle a throw line and understand why helping from the shore is generally safer than entering the water yourself.

Your Challenge

Your challenge is to practise throwing a suitable rescue line towards a chosen target from the shore, improving your accuracy and learning the basic principles of a safe throw-line rescue.

Never practise by throwing a line at a real person in the water. Use a dry, clear area beside a safe, still-water location, or practise in an open space away from the water. This is a skills exercise, not a substitute for professional rescue training.

What You’ll Need

• A purpose-made throw line or rescue line designed for water rescue
• A safe, open practice area with firm footing
• A clearly visible target, such as a marker or weighted object placed on dry land
• A helper to observe your throws, if available
• Suitable outdoor clothing and footwear

Never use a line that could entangle someone, and do not tie the line around your body or your hand.

Take the Challenge

Step 1: Choose a safe practice area

Find a level, unobstructed area where you have plenty of room to throw and retrieve the line. If you are practising near water, stay well back from the edge, away from slippery banks, strong currents and steep drops. You should not need to approach the water to complete this challenge.

Step 2: Inspect your throw line

Check that the line is in good condition and packed according to its instructions. Make sure it can run freely without knots or tangles. Identify the end you will throw and the end you will retain, following the manufacturer’s guidance.

Step 3: Set up your target

Place your target a short distance away on dry ground. Start close enough to make a controlled throw, then increase the distance gradually as your accuracy improves. Make sure nobody is standing in the throwing area.

Step 4: Practise your throwing technique

Follow the instructions supplied with your rescue line. Keep a stable stance, look directly at your target and use a smooth, controlled throw. Aim beyond the target where appropriate so the line can reach someone rather than landing short, but do not throw so hard that you lose control.

Step 5: Complete five throws

Make five controlled attempts towards your target. Retrieve and repack the line safely between attempts, checking for tangles each time. Count how many throws land close enough for the target to be reached by the line.

Step 6: Practise the rescue principles

Talk through what you would do if you saw someone struggling in the water:

• Raise the alarm and call 999, asking for the Coastguard at the coast or the appropriate emergency service inland.
• Keep your footing secure and do not enter the water.
• If it is safe to do so, throw a suitable rescue line or flotation aid towards the person, following your training and the equipment instructions.
• Give clear instructions and follow the emergency operator’s guidance.

A throw line is not suitable for every situation. Never put yourself at risk to reach someone, and do not assume that a successful throw alone makes a rescue safe.

Check Your Results

Review your five attempts and answer these questions:

• How many of your throws reached the target?
• Did you keep the line clear of tangles?
• Could you control the direction and distance of your throws?
• Can you explain why you should not enter the water to attempt an untrained rescue?
• Do you know which emergency service to contact for an incident at the coast or inland?

If your throws were inaccurate, move closer to the target and practise the technique again before increasing the distance.

Complete the Challenge

To complete this challenge, you must:

• Make five practice throws using a suitable rescue line.
• Record how many reached your target.
• Demonstrate that you can handle and retrieve the line without tangling it.
• Explain the basic principles of raising the alarm and helping from a safe position without entering the water.

You do not need to attempt a real rescue or go close to the water to earn completion.

How to Submit Your Challenge

Submit your evidence

1. Go to your SGUK member profile.
2. Open Social Activity.
3. Upload a photograph of your practice setup or your rescue line and target to the activity wall. Take the photograph from a safe position.
4. Add the hashtag #SGUKChallenge69.
5. Share it for verification.

Include your result in the post, such as how many of your five throws reached the target. Never stage a rescue or photograph someone in danger to provide evidence.

Challenge 69 Checklist

Want to Push Yourself?

Once you can throw accurately at a short distance, move your target slightly farther away and repeat the five throws. Compare your results and see whether you can improve your accuracy without sacrificing control.

If you want to develop this skill further, consider a recognised water-safety or rescue course. Practising with a throw line does not replace supervised training.

What’s Next?

If you haven’t completed SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 68: Leave Your Camp with No Trace and Photograph It as Proof, you can try that challenge next. You can complete SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenges in any order, so choose whichever skill you want to develop.

Once you’ve shared your evidence and it has been verified, the SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge 69 is complete and the completed challenges figure will be updated on your profile.

Learn. Practise. Master.

That’s what the SGUK Outdoor Skills Challenge is all about.