Competition

Supermarkets do it. Car dealers do it. Those who sell televisions do it. All of them watch the competition closely.And so should the sellers of homes, real estate specialists advise."

Eighty lifeguards participating in a regional competition Monday in Columbia had better be able to do more than flex their muscles.Individual and team skills in deep water rescue, spinal injury management and cardiopulmonary resuscitation will be tested in the daylong event.The competition begins at 9 a.m. Monday at the new Kendall Ridge pool in the Village of Long Reach, with the Columbia Association (CA) as host. It is sponsored by Ellis and Associates' National Pool and Waterpark Lifeguard Training Program.

The 10th annual Indian Music and Dance Competition, the only event of its kind on the East Coast, will run next weekend in the Fine Arts Recital Hall of the University of Maryland Baltimore County.Sponsored by UMBC's Ethnomusicology program and Catonsville's Academy of Indian Music and Fine Arts, the event promotes appreciation of the artistic traditions of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.More than 100 performers of all ages will compete in the categories of classical, folk and movie songs; classical and folk dance; violin; sitar; tabla (Indian drums)

It all came down to a 6-foot putt, the last shot in the last match on the last hole the last day. The Europeans had their lead guy, Bernhard Langer, zeroing in and it looked as if the Ryder Cup would once again belong to the underdogs.Remember the matches at Kiawah Island in Florida two years ago?Many have said the excitement and drama of that United States vs. Europe confrontation might never be matched, perhaps forgetting that two years before, in England, the competition was just as gripping.

Each December for the past two decades, a group of actors from Arena Players could be found busily learning lines from a play that won an annual contest for the region's black writers. The production was prepared for broadcast the following February on WMAR-TV. Those activities won't be happening this winter. Station officials have canceled the competition, saying that they haven't been able to find any advertisers in recent years to help defray the $20,000 to $25,000 cost of the awards and of producing the play.

PHYSICS STUDENTS from Glen Burnie High School learned recently that Legos are not just child's play. Under the leadership of teacher Sean Moore, a team of 11 students competed in "Botball 2000," a regional robotics and Web page design competition. Glen Burnie High was one of 42 teams, which included schools from as far as Michigan and Tennessee. In January, participating teams were given a container with 1,600 Lego parts, two microprocessors, motors, digital and analog sensors, and software.

Brussels' Queen Elisabeth Competition, one of the world's most prestigious musical contests and one of the most accurate predictors of future success, awarded second- and third-prize medals yesterday to Peabody Conservatory piano student Stephen Prutsman and to former Peabody student Bryan Ganz. They were the only two Americans in a field of 81 players to reach the finals in the monthlong contest that Belgians regard with the enthusiasm that Americans reserve for the World Series or the Super Bowl.

Five area skaters brought home medals from a U.S. Figure Skating Association's Basic Skills Competition on April 2 at The Pond Ice Arena in Newark, Del., according to Claudia Brown, a coach at Ice World in Abingdon, where all five train. In her first competition, Jessica Hart, 9, won the gold medal in the Basic C Program event with a performance to music from Anastasia. Jessica also won the silver medal in the Basic 6 Compulsory event, Brown said. In her third competition, Julia Lindemon, 8, won the gold medal in the Basic 7 Compulsory event and the bronze medal in the Basic D Program event, Brown said.

Six students at a Glen Burnie tae kwon do school who placed third or better at a state competition in April are preparing for the national finals next month in Los Angeles. But they need money to get there.Their parents have been selling chances on a $200 prize to family and friends, and they plan to sell more tickets from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday at the Filipino Festival at the Baltimore County Courthouse plaza. They plan to draw for the winner that night.They also have been trying to recruit corporate sponsors, but not having much luck.

Pressure from rival drink sellers cut into Atlantic Beverage Co. Inc.'s sales last year, and costs to launch a "fruitshake" product wiped out its profits.But Atlantic Beverage managers believe 1995 will bring improvement. Competition should diminish, and the Flying Fruit Fantasy shake should turn a profit in the July-September quarter, said President William E. O'Leary.Atlantic Beverage's 1994 revenue declined by 6.3 percent to $24.6 million, the company said yesterday. It lost $37,735 for the year, compared with a loss of $610,984 for 1993.