Antarctica maestro and founder Ram Barkai (68, South Africa, IISA bio here, @rambarkai_iceswimmer), International Ice Swimming Association founder and author of From Fire to Ice, asked an interesting question on LInkeIn: “Ice swimmers, we want your thoughts…which is your favourite slogan in ice swimming?” The choices he offered included:
- Ice Swimmer
- I am an Ice Swimmer
- See You in the ICE
- Officially Frozen
But my personal favorite slogans in the ice swimming world are, most definitely: Swimmers, take off your clothes and Get in the water.
Why?
Those two short sentences are not normal. Saying those words is not intuitive or natural – especially swimmers compete in water temperatures under 5°C.
In ice swimming races, the starter instructs swimmers into the water with the following commands. The instructions were created to minimize cold exposure and to get everyone in the water quickly:
- First: “Take off your clothes” as swimmers quickly undress
- Second: “Get in the water” as swimmers slide into from the edge or a wooden ladder
- Third: “Take your marks, go” as the swimmers release their hand from the edge of the pool and start swimming
Crazy.
For more information on ice swimming, visit internationaliceswimming.com.
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