WATERVILLE – From a man wearing a white wedding dress to another in a Santa Claus suit, as many as 200
people of all ages made the annual New Year’s Day plunge into the Maumee River on Thursday. Most
revelers chose traditional clothes or summer swimwear.
The swimwear was in stark contrast to the ice which formed on the water at the shore.
This was the 85th consecutive "dip" which is now held in memory of the late Herb Mericle who
started the tradition in 1929.
Those taking the plunge as well as those who stayed on the shore joined in with "Let’s go
Herbie" right before the traditional 2:30 p.m. start time.
Not surprisingly, "cold" was the most common word of the day as air temperatures sank below 30
with the water temperature said to be 33 or 34 degrees. Despite the cold and shivering return to shore,
smiles crossed most of the faces.
"There were chunks of ice coming down the river this morning," said Mike Hill, the unofficial
event coordinator.
This was Hill’s 20th consecutive year going in on New Year’s Day, plus one additional memorial swim when
Mericle died. Hill estimated there were less people than last year, despite being a large turnout.
Prior to going in, Bowling Green residents Eric Duncan and Cheyane Donald said this would be the first
time going in. She called it a "transformation," saying, "I see it as a rebirth like a
baptism."
Safety is always a concern and the Waterville Fire Department was on hand with four staff in water rescue
suits ready to enter if the need arose, which it did not.
Randy King, one of the firefighters said it was his 17th year at the plunge and there has yet to be a
problem.
"These people are all real good about this," King said.
There were likely more shore-bound viewers than participants. One such man was heard to cry out
"They are all nuts," just before the plunge.
Duncan said he remembered watching others go in when he was a little boy, "I always wanted to do it,
and just finally got around to it."
Three young women were also there for the first time, Laura Strong of Tontogany, who said she challenged
both Anna Strong and Crystal Stone, both of Sylvania to the adventure.
For John Smith of Toledo, this was his fourth polar dip. He said last year was colder, adding, "It’s
always cold. I just do it because it’s something to start the new year off right."
After his answer as to why he does it, one of his shore supporters chimed in, "Because he has no
common sense."
This year he brought some cardboard to stand on when dressing into his dry clothes after the swim.
Smith said he again saw a bald eagle flying around the area just prior to the dip.
While many, especially younger females, barely got their ankles wet prior to screaming and returning to
shore, some people went all in. Three or four men lingered in the water for some time, greeting the
others as they came in.
A couple of the guys took the opportunity to do push-ups in the shallow water to totally immerse
themselves, still other just dove in.
Alex Schoen of Sylvania was one of those. Also a first-time "polar bear," he was surprised by
the number of people involved. He was expecting maybe 20 or 30 at most. When he hit the water shirtless
and in shorts, it was on a full run. He then dove into the frigid waters as a head-first slide similar
to a baseball player attempting to steal a base.
"It was exciting, but it was pretty cold," Schoen said.
He took the fast approach saying, "It’s just like ripping off a Band-Aid – you just go for it."