OCEAN CITY – Like the prelude to the climactic battle scene in “Braveheart,” hundreds of brave souls lined up, waiting for the signal to charge.
There were no broadswords or battleaxes, far less tartan, and a lot more Santa hats and bikinis than in the movie, and most people crowded dozens deep on the Ocean City beach Jan. 1, 2020, wearing looks of nervous anticipation rather than grim determination. When the countdown ended, they ran full tilt up the beach and into the frigid water.
That scene took place a year ago, when no one on that beach – or anywhere else – knew what 2020 would bring. This year, Ocean City canceled the popular First Night celebrations and First Day events, including the first dip in the icy ocean.
Gov. Phil Murphy’s executive order limits outdoor gatherings to 25 people, city spokesman Doug Bergen pointed out. That rules out most of the cold-water plunge events, which often draw hundreds or even thousands of participants.
“Even if the event were not expressly prohibited, it creates too dense of a crowd to be responsible,” he said.
A few dedicated plungers plan to jump in the chilly water Jan. 1, 2021 anyway, but throughout the county, big, organized events were delayed or canceled to avoid the kind of close-packed crowds that could help spread Covid.
A Year to Wash Off
With or without an organized event, Carl Wanek, of Ocean City, plans to get in the water Jan. 1, 2021, as he has every year for more than a decade. He and his friend, Joe Schneider, even went in when the event was canceled for extreme cold, doing their own countdown and running in.
“We’re definitely doing it this year,” he said. “I almost feel like we have to do it. It’s tradition.”
Wanek described the event as an annual rite of passage – a way of washing off the previous year.
“There’s not a year that needs to be washed away more than this one,” he said.
Most years, friends and family gather to watch the plunge from the beach, or as he put it, “see me do this crazy thing for 30 seconds.” The excitement of the crowd and the building adrenaline helps with the motivation.
At first, when your feet and legs hit the water, it feels cold, but it’s still manageable. He and Schneider have a rule: Full submersion or it doesn’t count.
“It takes your breath away. It’s like little needles all over your body,” he said. “When you’re running in, it’s not that big of a deal. It’s that dive under. That moment where it’s like, ‘OK. This is real.’”
They often wear outlandish costumes. Wanek said he dressed as a wrestler, the Elf on the Shelf, and President Donald Trump for the plunge. He plans to continue making the plunge every year for as long as possible.
Big Crowds Each Year
In Wildwood, the long-standing Polar Bear Plunge typically draws more than 1,000 into the water in early January, raising hundreds of thousands for the athletes of Special Olympics New Jersey.
This year’s event was delayed until March 27. Every year, there is the possibility the plunge could be canceled for safety reasons, from storms to rough seas to ocean temperatures dropping below uncomfortable into dangerous.
The organization’s website states organizers will carefully monitor the situation with Covid through the winter and early spring, raising the possibility that the plunge could be a completely virtual event, in 2021.
In North Wildwood, the Fallen Hero Polar Plunge was delayed until April 10, 2021. It was originally planned for the last Saturday in February 2021.
“I hope that things will get a little better in the coming months,” said Dennis Dool, who organized the event to raise money for the families of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. He said immersing yourself in the cold ocean demonstrates dedication to the officers’ families.
“We had 1,250 that went in the water last year and a couple of thousand watching from the beach,” Dool said. If conditions improve through 2021, the event will go forward, although he acknowledged that entering the early spring water may not be as challenging.
Other Health Risks
Some people get in the water all year, although many of those wear wetsuits. Many local surfers prefer winter waves, and some clammers break through bay ice in shallow sections to rake the bottom for their quarry.
Most organized events have lifeguards on scene in case anyone gets into trouble. In some Nordic countries, as well as Russia, some people break through ice to swim in the winter.
Hypothermia is not usually a risk for a quick dip, even for those who completely submerge, but some experts warned about potential stress on the heart and potential danger from the involuntary gasp that comes with hitting the cold water. It is possible that someone could take in water.
Then again, thousands safely participate each year. The late Irene Jamison, who organized Sea Isle City’s first Polar Bear Plunge, in the 1990s, continued to hit the February water yearly into her 80s. She checked with her doctor before taking the first plunge. That event saw about 2,500 people each year.
Sea Isle City Police Chief Thomas McQuillen notified businesses that the plunge and a walk and run for Autism would not take place this year, citing Murphy’s emergency orders.
The 10th Stone Harbor Shiver, which benefits Family Promise, was set for March 21, but was delayed “until further notice.”
The website for a St. Patrick’s Day race and plunge in Cape May cites continued uncertainty about restrictions on large events in 2020. There was no information about 2021.
Cape May Mayor Clarence Lear said he had not heard anything about plans for this year, and attempts to contact the organizers were unsuccessful.
Some Will Proceed, With a Warning
A Jan. 1, 2021 event in Ocean City, Maryland, seems set to happen as planned. It’s the 27th year for the Penguin Swim, but there, too, worry and uncertainty are part of the planning.
The website states everyone must have face coverings and maintain distance and asks anyone with symptoms to stay home. The event may be canceled at any time, the site warns.
“An inherent risk of exposure to Covid exists in any public place where people are present,” it reads. “By attending the Penguin Swim, you voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to Covid.”
Past plunge events in the county took place with snow on the beach and were also canceled because of extreme cold. Dool, and others, hope the approved vaccines will allow these and other largescale events to safely take place soon, both for the sense of camaraderie and the many causes they support.
Local health experts cautioned against rushing things. Health care workers received vaccines, but plans are in the works for how and when options will reach the general population.
Dr. Andrea McCoy, chief medical officer, Cape Regional Medical Center, said it could be several months before enough people are vaccinated for things to start to return to normal, if not a year.
One commenter on social media said all of 2020 has been like a polar plunge.
“Why make a big deal of one day?” she asked.
To contact Bill Barlow, email bbarlow@cmcherald.com.
