Irv Kibbitz and his wife Ethel are out on a small dingy. He wants to commit suicide because he knows she doesn’t have enough money for a funeral. He sends her off and shoots three shots into the dinghy. It starts to sink as he sips his final glass of champagne…
Cody and April hear the gun shot go off and see Ethel running towards them. She begs them to save her husband. They do, but he is resentful that they didn’t just let him die. Following the rescue, there is a lot of attention paid to the lifeguards by the media. Newmie’s brother-in-law suggests they come up with a TV series based on the lifeguards and present it at NATPE, the annual television buyers’ conference. The show will be called BEACHSIDE. Everyone at Baywatch thinks this is a terrific idea.
Tanner receives an e-mail from his cousin Damon, a professional racer, and is excited to find out that he is coming into town for the LA Grand Prix. Alex has some good news, too: Wayland, the artist who painted dolphins in Hawaii that so touched her nephew Timmy, is coming to town to paint the Baywatch tower. She is checking with the city to see if it is okay. She is excited about this event, but on a personal level, she is starting to feel as if life has passed her by. She longs for a soulmate. Just then, Damon pulls up, and while at first Alex is not impressed, thinking racing a waste of time and natural resources, sparks start to fly.
Mitch is happy to meet Damon. He confesses that a long time ago, he went to racing school (a gift from his parents for graduating college) and that he knows number one racer Mark Martin. Mitch beat him once, although Martin has always asserted that Mitch cheated. Damon asks Mitch if he would like to try out the car. Of course he will – he still has racing in his blood – and Mitch takes off life he’s only been away from the track a week, not 20 years.
Meanwhile, back at the beach, Damon lets Tanner sit behind the wheel so he can pump him for information about Alex. As far as Tanner knows, Alex is unattached, although she and Mitch certainly have “item potential.” Realizing this is his chance, Damon brings a take-out order of Chinese food (Alex’s favorite) to the beach. Unfortunately, she is on duty and cannot join him. Mitch thinks she should admit her attraction to him. Damon goes into the water and is suddenly very sick and unable to swim. He starts flailing, and Mitch and Alex jump to the rescue. When they bring Damon to the shore, his breathing is shallow and he appears to be in a coma. He is rushed to the hospital where the doctors discover that the fried rice he was eating had shrimp, and he is deathly allergic to shellfish. Damon recovers, but he will be unable to race. He asks Mitch to take his place. Mitch hesitates for a moment, but everyone knows he will ultimately agree.
Meanwhile, Newmie, April and Cody go to NATPE to help pitch Beachside to television executives from around the world. At the convention, BEACHSIDE is a hit with the buyers and they want to put it on the air. But Newmie’s brother-in- law is fired and decides to change careers. Their brief stint in show business is over.
Mitch takes Damon’s place and the race is on. Mark Martin has not forgotten Mitch, and so he puts everything into winning. But Mitch comes in a close second. Both men contribute their winnings to Camp Baywatch. Damon, fully recovered from his allergic ordeal, comes to headquarters to bid everyone a fond farewell. He invites Alex to join him on the circuit, but she realizes that her place is at Baywatch for now. Wyland arrives and the tower painting begins.
