'Polar Bear' Swimmers Ring In New Year With Dip In Ice-Cold Pool
LAKE VIEW TERRACE (CBSLA.com) — Nearly two dozen thrill-seekers kicked off the new year on Tuesday with a traditional morning swim in near-freezing water in Lake View Terrace.
KNX 1070's Pete Demetriou reports the Hansen Dam Aquatic Center hosted its annual New Year's Day "Polar Bear Swim".
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The swim - which is open to participants aged 8 and older - involves either swimming or walking into the 3-feet-deep water which averages between 37 and 42 degrees and cross the 150-yard length of the pool.
Refreshments and a crackling bonfire greeted participants immediately following the swim.
But for Anson Fam, the ordeal was anything but a leisurely dip in the pool.
"Pretty much like getting stabbed with little pin needles all over the place," Fam said. "It burned...it was rough."
The aquatic center located in the northeast San Fernando Valley features a 1.5-acre manmade swim lake in addition to its pool.
