First I donned my traditional Polar Bear attire, which generally consists of fun socks, long johns, boxer shorts, long sleeved shirt, and a Polar Bear shirt over top.
Some Polar Bears have much more creative costumes, but I generally stick with my traditional attire.
Next, I had a mini bottle of Baileys to make myself the traditional Polar Bear Coffee and Baileys.
The traditional liquor of choice for the Polar Bear Swim, as represented on the t-shirts, is Southern Comfort. Elder Polar Bears still shudder at the mention of its name and have largely stopped drinking it. In more recent years, the new generation of Polar Bears has christened Fireball Whiskey as the drink of choice for the swim. Several bottles are generally purchased and then are passed around the bus and shared by all. I purchased a mini bottle of Fireball for my own mini polar bear experience.
You can also see the "SC" on the Polar Bear's glass on my shirt - for Southern Comfort |
So with my supplies ready, I hopped into the car and headed to McDonalds, as we have done every year on the way to the swim since 1996.
Me in Sackville McDonald's |
The boys in the Vancouver McDonald's. |
So I took my picture of me with my "bus."
Then it was off to the swim! I made sure to get in a shot of Fireball before getting out of the car.
We arrived at the lake and found that since it was such a beautiful day they had the biggest turnout ever for this swim. Most of the people are spectators, but there were about 30 swimmers, up from their previous record of 10.
It was still a very small crowd compared to the thousands that flock to English Bay.
In keeping with the theme of "mini," instead of running into the giant ocean, this Polar Bear Swim required participants to jump through a small hole in the ice.
There was no chanting , no singing, no ceremony at all really. Just a woman with a bullhorn calling our names as we jumped three by three into the hole in the ice.
At the Polar Bear swim at English Bay, we often go back in for second or third dips, and then hang around and chat for a bit before heading to the change rooms to get into some warm, dry clothes. Since there was no change rooms here, I just took off my wet clothes and hung around for a while in my bathing suit and a towel.
All in all, my mini Polar Bear Swim was a fun experience, and I am glad I got to do a "real" polar bear swim in ice.
Hopefully next year I will be back to celebrate my favorite day of the year with Ham Fam Polar Bears in Vancouver!
YAAAAAY! this was a lot of fun to read LD, and I like the after pictures. Looks like the polar bear swim, McDonald's and whiskey does wonders for the complexion.
ReplyDeleteHa. Thanks Diana. And it's true. I think everyone should try the Polar Bear Diet.
ReplyDeleteyou crazy
ReplyDelete<3 said with love
Are your children destroying the home while your preparing dinner? Are you concerned that your Nanny may be engaging in inappropriate behavior while your not home? Not with "Teddy" on duty - an obvious choice for all parents who are concerned about their kids. adorable teddy bear names
ReplyDelete