In many Massachusetts towns, New Year's Day is chance for an invigorating start to the year, as hundreds of hearty souls strip down and jump in frigid water in so-called "polar plunges." But the current arctic temperatures are having a chilling effect on some events this year.
A video from last year shows about a hundred people in nothing but bathing suits and the occasional Santa hat running across a Provincetown beach into the icy cold Atlantic. But given the weather, the scene will be a bit different this year.
"We are actually advising our participants not to go in the water," said organizer Peter Katsurinis. "We'll still be at the parking lot where we do the plunge every year. We'll have t-shirts, we'll have coffee and some music. We'll also have EMTs available in case people do, despite our advisory, decide to go into the water."
Katsurinis said the biggest problem won't be the water temperature.
“The real issue is the windchill and the damage that it can do," he said. "I mean, people can suffer shock, hypothermia. It's even possible to get frostbite if you're out there for extended period of time.”
This year’s polar plunge in Fall River to benefit a local animal shelter has been postponed until the weather warms up a bit. “The high is going to be around 12 with windchill factors could be in the negative," said Michael Dion, the city's director of community development. "And it's just too detrimental to people's health to be jumping into the water.”
But they're taking the plunge in Mashpee. “We've been through several cold years, and I don't see a problem, us getting it done this year," said event organizer Frank Inzirillo. "You know our motto: ‘we’re freezin’ for a reason.’”
That reason — to raise money for the family of a community member who’s fighting cancer.
They're getting cold and wet in South Boston, too. TheL-Street Brownies, who claim to be the oldest polar bear club in the country, aren't letting the frigid conditions stop them.
"They're not out there swimming around," said Dan Monahan of the Boston Center for Youth and Families. "They're going for a dip and running out. So it's not like they're swimming laps out there."
Monahan said potential plungers will have to make up their own minds about what to do. “You have to be honest with yourself," he said. "If you think it’s too cold, it’s too cold.”
