International Swimming Hall of Fame and International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame dual inductee Lynne Cox, a decorated author of several books owned by many thousands of swimmers, gave high praise to an unlikely ice swimming author, Chris Ballard (52, USA, IISA bio here).

Ballard’s latest book, The Plunge: Maverick Swimmers, an Unlikely Quest, and the Transformative Power of Cold Water, follows his well-received books on basketball and baseball and a 23-year career as a Senior Writer at Sports Illustrated where he also wrote feature articles for USA Today and The New York Times.

Cox gave the book high praise, “A brrrillant book! Ballard artfully explores the culture, physiology, and utter beauty of cold water swimming, a journey of exploration, joy, and enduring friendships. So warm in the utter cold. I couldn’t put the book down!“

Ballard did his in-depth research on the ice swimming community. over the course of three years. He literally dove into the sport as he competed in both the International Ice Swimming 6th World Championship in Molveno, Italy and the IISA USA National Championships near Washington, D.C. as well as visited cold-water aficionados in Finland, Ireland ,Norway, England, and Boston.

Publisher Simon and Schuster describes the 320-page book, “The Plunge traces humanity’s long relationship with cold water—from the ancient Greeks and Victorian sea bathers to polar plungers and modern laboratories studying stress, resilience, and mental health, a lifeline for those “drowning on dry land.” Reporting from the front lines of emerging science, Ballard explores how brief, voluntary cold exposure can sharpen focus, elevate mood, reduce inflammation, stunt cortisol, and retrain the body’s stress response, creating a rare state of being both calm and alert.

Along the way, Ballard introduces pioneers like legendary distance swimmer Lynne Cox, follows Ram Barkai’s improbable quest to bring ice swimming to the Olympics, and charts a global movement that’s surged from fringe ritual to mainstream phenomenon. As his reporting deepens, so does his participation: Ballard graduates from cold plunges to competing alongside Olympians at the Ice Swimming World Championships. Along the way, his body and outlook change in surprising and measurable ways.”

Ballard suggests a few things the open water swimming community can do to help promote the sport:

• Pre-order a copy at a local bookstore or online. 
• Share it with your swimming network, at the pool, in newsletters, on the shoreline, or online’s group chats.
• Organize a talk, a virtual book club, Q&A sessions, and events (Ballard is starting in the Bay Area on June 9th).
• Discounts are available for group orders for a club, team, or event.

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