Labor Day Beachgoers Greeted By Large Waves Along Jersey Shore

LONG BRANCH, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Monday was the last unofficial day of summer.

As CBS 2's Christine Sloan reported, it turned out to be a great day with unusually big waves on the Jersey shore. Surfers were riding the huge waves in Long Branch, and swimmers were getting wiped out by them.

When asked what the water was like, one young girl told Sloan: "It is very heavy, and it has been knocking me down."

"I think it's really kind of scary," another girl said. "It's not normal."

"It's fun," countered Carmine Tonero, of Morris Plains. "It's really fun. ... And they're really big, and it's really hard because they push you back and they sort of take you under."

Despite the surf's menacing appearance, lifeguards said it was the perfect day to be in the water.

"Last week was the main component to the riptides," said head lifeguard Danny George. "Right now, we don't have any. Could they kick up a little bit? They could, but we don't anticipate that."

While Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer, folks say there is still a lot to do in September down the Jersey shore.

"We can still go to the beach for another month or so," said Fran Capone, of Long Branch.

"Free beach," a woman told Sloan. "We did this last September. That's when we really spent the most time at the beach because we don't really like to buy beach badges."

"I shop all the time," said Arlene Haber. "That's my problem. I spend too much money."

Business owners say it's been a profitable season.

"Summer's been great," said restaurant manager Eric Goldberg. "It's rolled into busy days consistently."

State officials say this year was better than last season for business owners on the Jersey shore. Gov. Chris Christie said it was badly needed as they still are trying to recover from Superstorm Sandy.

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