Plunging into the New Year!
EverythingWestport.com
Friday, January 1, 2010
View the photo album of both events now 65 photos
| Dial-up speed | Broadband/DSL speed |
75 brave souls were in hot pursuit of cold waters as they leaped feet first into the Westport Harbor,
abandoning all reason along with last year’s resolutions for a meal at the back Eddy.
And who can blame them. This popular southcoast eatery has been serving town residents and summer
vacationers some of the best fare the coastal villages of Massachusetts can muster.
The Back Eddy’s Sal Liotta (left) leaned back and smiled at the pandemonium surrounding his dock
outside his restaurant.
“This is our 11th year and they keep coming back,” he said as Ken Sullivan of Westport executed a
perfect swan dive into the 41 degree Westport Harbor.
It must be something in the water, Sal.
“It wasn’t as bad as in previous years,” said L-Street Brownie and perennial jumper John Bergman at this
year’s Back Eddy’s Polar Bear Plunge. “The water is 3 degrees warmer than the last time I jumped here
(2008).” Bergman, a Polar Bear for decades, took the plunge in Westport Harbor because, “it is just too
long of a drive to Boston.”
Plunger of the Year.
Ken Sullivan of Westport shows great poise and form, and gets EverythingWestport’s award for Best Plunge by a Polar
Bear award.
It gets better and better each year.
People come from all over the area to participate in this popular annual event. The Coney Island Polar
Bears of New York are reputed to be the oldest cold-weather swimming club in America, dating to before
the turn of the 20th century. The L Street Brownies (Boston) were officially organized in 1902 and took
their first recorded swim in 1904. The Westport Yacht Club organized their Penguin Plunge and had their
first swim in 1975, according to Jonathon Paull, event organizer (see story below).
The 11th annual Polar Bear Plunge didn’t break 2008’s record of 134, but “it was a pretty good turnout”
according to Liotta. “That year the air temperature was in the low 40s; it’s 30 today.” 2009’s jump was
cancelled due to dangerous icy floe conditions around the docks.
From the left: (1) Grandparents Phil and June Hebert provide sideline support for grandkids Kelly and Coulton Carmichael
of Westport; (2) Kelly and Coulton take the plunge; (3) longtime jumper John Bergman shows how it’s done; and (4) these
two unidentified ladies know how to start their new year!
Overcast skies cast a gray pallor over the day, but it didn’t dampen the polar bears’ determination to
plunge into the new year.
In order to qualify for a free meal coupon, the participants had to wear regular swim wear; no wet suits.
“Each polar bear signed a release. After all, it’s not your normal exercise. You must go in over your head,”
Liotta said. “Otherwise no coupon!”
Some didn’t realize the full weight of their decision to take the plunge. Others just took it in stride. Form
was a factor as each jumper had their own technique and style, and inventive leaps were cheered by the
bundled-up spectators. One jumper actually looked like he was skipping over the icy water to avoid
getting wet (see picture below.)
Anatomy of a plunge.
From top, left: (1) steeling the nerves; (2) second thoughts), (3) going for it; (4) no turning back; (5) realization settles in; (6)
shock settles in; and (7) going for the towel!
Walking on the waters at the Back Eddy Polar Bear Plunge.
Westport Penguin Plunge draws a rookery of swimmers.
EverythingWestport.com
Friday, January 1, 2010
View the photo album of both events now 65 photos
| Dial-up speed | Broadband/DSL speed |
It was a great day for a ‘chilly-dip’ as about 45 soon-to-be penguins raced to the water for a swim, albeit a
brief one, when Jonathon Paull launched a wave of swimmers at 12 noon into Westport harbor to start the
2010 Westport Penguin Plunge.
“We always do well in attracting a crowd,” Paull said.
Since 1975 the Westport Penguin Plunge has sponsored a New Year’s Day swimming event in Westport
Harbor. The noon-time ‘run and splash’ was at the town beach, next door to the Westport Yacht Club, on
the river side of Cherry and Webb Lane.
Starter Jonathon Paull (below right) heralded the start of a wave of brave swimmers with a mighty blast of
his hunter’s horn. The young and not so young hit the water running and took a dip in Westport Harbor.
Originally organized by Jonathon Paull, Fred Johnson, and Jack Dolan in 1975, the New Year’s Day
activity event has been an annual event ever since. This year’s plunge is raising money for the Hole in the
Wall Gang and the Amanda Tripp Memorial Scholarship Fund.
From the left: (1) Charlie Ponte of Westport dumps a bucket of water over his head in defiance of King Neptune’s icy grip;
(2) Renee Jones of Tiverton, always one of the first to reach the water, performs calisthenics to get warm after her dip; (3)
Jenn Hilton (right) and Stephanie Jones of Tiverton pose in fine Sports Illustrated style for the cameras; and (4) Jonathon
Paull blows his hunter’s horn to launch a wave of swimmers into the Westport harbor.
- - - - - End - - - - © 2010 Community Events of Westport
EverythingWestport.com
All rights reserved.