The First Few Paragraphs: An In-depth Dive into the Polar Bear Club

The ocean inhales and drags its liquid contents backwards as the water retaliates, standing up tall, but crashes to the shore with the ocean’s exhale. There is something about the ocean that is spiritual, but perhaps it is just the spirit of Coney Island.

Coney Island, the historical New York neighborhood, with its fantastical and nostalgic feel, is home to many annual festivals and events. One ritual, the weekly Polar Bear swim, that has been around for over one-hundred years is no expectation.

While most New Yorkers stay bundled up, beating the cold, the members of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club bare all, taking a weekly Sunday swim from November to April ever year. However, there seems to have been some drastic changes within the cub, since President Dennis Thomas has stepped up to the plate.

The members risen, as a wide range in age, race, ethnicity, and various economic classes have become to come together to form a tight knit community. The amount of members has increased in the recent years, thanks to the “second family” feeling that Thomas has provided. “A number of years ago we saw members dwindling. The current president really didn't want any new members and discouraged newcomers."

 "We were paying dues and couldn't get answers where they were going. We knew there should be elections every 2 years, and this guy refused to comply. Finally, he told us he considered himself president for life, and that was the last straw. I looked around at our dwindling membership and thought the club was going to die out after over 100 years, and that would be a sad thing to witness.”

 Dennis Thomas revealed the changes Coney Island and the Bears have faced over the years. “Coney Island was a very different place in those days. A mix of an environment dedicated to fun and at the same time incredibly dysfunctional, decaying and threatening. It was a very rich experience because of this contrast,” Thomas stated.

He concludes to say that the club is not just elderly men who seem crazy t...

However, there appears to be a trend occurring within the club, as members are making the Polar plunge for the cold swim's medical benefits.

Benarr Macfadden, also known as the “Father of Physical Culture”, founded the club in 1903, a firm believer in healthy lifestyle and natural healing. “Weakness is a crime; don’t be a criminal”, it a slogan he is reported to have stated.

The members of the Polar Bear Club are far from weak, although many members are of an older generation, and many suffer health complications.

Dozens of members of the club disclosed that after suffering from joint pains, arthritis and sore muscles, therefore, winter swimming in New York has its unexpected health perks.  The cold swim releases the body from all pains, as the water’s cool temperature, the swimmers bodies become numb, causing unstressed feelings in the body.

However, if not monitored properly, the swim can become dangerous; as members could be ask risk to drown. For safety precautions, the club hires lifeguards to survey in case of an emergency.