A chilly Christmas dip at La Vallette
HUNDREDS of swimmers braved the elements on Christmas morning as they descended on La Vallette bathing pools to take part in the Guernsey Swimming Club’s Polar Bear Swim.
With the water temperature a chilly 11C, many also decided to don Christmas attire as they took the plunge.
Club president Chris Butt said he was really impressed at the turnout despite wet and windy weather.
‘We’ve been down here since 8am but there were probably about 100 people here even before that.
‘Usually we get in excess of 300 people but we are way over that this year, I haven’t seen as many people as this in a long time.’
He thought that the event was more popular this year due to more people wanting to get their Christmas celebrations under way earlier in the day.
‘We’ve got a mixture of younger and older swimmers and lots of families too. I think our youngest swimmer today is four.’
Friends Charlotte McLellan and Sophie Penney said that they both enjoyed the sense of community the swim provided.
‘It’s nice to see people out and it’s a really good atmosphere, we will have both earned our Christmas dinner later,’ Miss McLellan added.
Carol Lanyon was taking part in the swim with her husband Shaun and children George, 6, and Hannah, 9.
She said the swim was a long-standing personal tradition.
‘It’s something I’ve done since I was a kid. It’s absolutely Baltic each year but it’s all right once you’re out of the water.’
George added that it was very cold, even in a wetsuit.
Friends and Guernsey Swimming Club members Tara Kennedy, 15, Hannah Kennedy, 16, and Immy Bleasdale, 14, were taking the opportunity to jump off the diving board.
‘We’ve been doing the swim for about five years now, it’s freezing but it’s a great thing to do as part of the club,’ Hannah said.
Jackie Mauger, who was swimming with Anne and Phil Bodman, said she had already been in for 15 minutes and planned to stay for a little while longer.
‘It’s warmer when you swim near other people,’ she added.
