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The Boxing Day Dip is a charity event where many of the swimmers are in fancy dress swim in the sea on Boxing Day. There are several such dips held around Europe, but the largest is organised by the Lions Club of Sunderland, England. Participants are expected to wear fancy dress and jump into the North Sea. (See also Winter swimming).
The swim in Pembrokeshire, Wales, started in 1970 and has become Tenby's main Christmas attraction, with around 600 swimmers and thousands of onlookers each year. With everyone swimming for charity, and the majority in fancy dress, each of the swimmers receives a medal for their efforts. Started by the Tenby Sea Swimming Association (TSSA), the Osborne family has been associated with the spectacle from the beginning and Chris Osborne, chairman of TSSA has seen the event take place in every weather condition from brilliant sunshine to freezing wind. [1]
It is held at Seaburn beach in Sunderland and it attracts one thousand dippers every year. Up to five thousand spectators turn out to witness the dip, including the City’s Mayor and Mayoress. Originating in 1974 the dip is one of the oldest events in the country. The dip of 2004 raised nearly £60,000 for charity, with several teams taking part.
A swim or dip in the sea over the festive period (be it Christmas, Boxing Day, or New Year) is a traditional event for many lifeguard clubs across the UK, despite sea temperatures ranging anywhere from 4 °C to 10 °C.North Sea Volunteer Lifeguards (NSVL) has held a Boxing Day swim every year since the club's formation in 1998, jumping in the North Sea from their base at Whitley Bay on the north-east coast of England. The event continues to be one of the year's biggest social gatherings of the club, with members travelling from far distances to participate.
Several charity swims take place in East Anglian resorts on Christmas and Boxing Day. [2]
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature food and beverages, and often conversation, music, dancing, or other forms of entertainment.
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that results in directional motion. Humans can hold their breath underwater and undertake rudimentary locomotive swimming within weeks of birth, as a survival response.
Surf lifesaving is a multifaceted social movement that comprises key aspects of voluntary lifeguard services and competitive surf sport. Originating in early 20th century Australia, the movement has expanded globally to other countries, including New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Surf lifesavers in Australia are colloquially known as "Clubbies".
A swimsuit is an item of clothing designed to be worn by people engaging in a water-based activity or water sports, such as swimming, diving and surfing, or sun-orientated activities, such as sun bathing. Different types may be worn by men, women, and children. A swimsuit can be described by various names, some of which are used only in particular locations, including swimwear, bathing suit, swimming costume, bathing costume, swimming suit, swimmers, swimming togs, bathers, cossie, or swimming trunks for men, besides others.
A lifeguard is a rescuer who supervises the safety and rescue of swimmers, surfers, and other water sports participants such as in a swimming pool, water park, beach, spa, river and lake. Lifeguards are trained in swimming and CPR/AED first aid, certified in water rescue using a variety of aids and equipment depending on requirements of their particular venue. In some areas, lifeguards are part of the emergency services system to incidents and in some communities, lifeguards may function as the primary EMS provider.
Human swimming typically consists of repeating a specific body motion or swimming stroke to propel the body forward. There are many kinds of strokes, each defining a different swimming style or crawl.
Tenby is a seaside town and community in the county of Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies within Carmarthen Bay.
The Coast to Coast or Sea to Sea Cycle Route (C2C) is a 140 miles (230 km) cycle route opened in 1994. Combining sections of National Cycle Route 7, 14, 71 and 72; it runs from Whitehaven or Workington on the west coast of Cumbria, and then crosses the Lake District and the Pennines in the north of England by using a variety of both on and off-road trails, ending on the north-east coast in Tyne and Wear at Sunderland or Tynemouth. Sustrans state that it is the UK's most popular challenge cycle route, it is designed for the whole range of cyclists, from families to cycling club riders. Although a challenge with some hard climbs—the highest point being over 609 m (1,998 ft)—the C2C is completed by an average of between 12,800 and 15,000 cyclists every year.
Piha is a coastal settlement in West Auckland, on the western coast of the Auckland Region in New Zealand. It is one of the most popular beaches in the area and a major day-trip destination for Aucklanders throughout the year, and especially in summer.
Nude swimming is the practice of swimming without clothing, whether in natural bodies of water or in swimming pools. A colloquial term for nude swimming is "skinny dipping".
A costume party or fancy dress party is a type of party, common in contemporary Western culture, in which many of the guests are dressed in costume, usually depicting a fictional or stock character, or historical figure. Such parties are popular in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Ireland and New Zealand, especially during Halloween.
Sea bathing is swimming in the sea or in sea water and a sea bath is a protective enclosure for sea bathing. Unlike bathing in a swimming pool, which is generally done for pleasure or exercise purposes, sea bathing was once thought to have curative or therapeutic value. It arose from the medieval practice of visiting spas for the beneficial effects of the waters. The practice of sea bathing dates back to the 17th century but became popular in the late 18th century. The development of the first swimsuits dates from the period as does the development of the bathing machine.
Huntington State Beach is a protected beach in Southern California, located in the City of Huntington Beach in Orange County. It extends 2 miles (3.2 km) from Newport Beach north to Beach Boulevard, where the Huntington City Beach begins. The 121-acre (49 ha) park was established in 1942.
Winter swimming is the activity of swimming during the winter season, typically in outdoor locations or in unheated pools or lidos. In colder countries, it may be synonymous with ice swimming, when the water is frozen over. This requires either breaking the ice or entering where a spring prevents the formation of ice. It may also be simulated by a pool of water at 0 °C (32 °F), the temperature at which water freezes.
Swimming lessons are the process of learning to swim. In most countries there is a definition of a number of swimming levels that are reached in the process of the curriculum. The respective certificates of swimming tests are required for further training in aquatic abilities. Many countries have defined a minimum swimming level that children should reach by the end of primary education, in most cases with the help of school swimming classes being part of the normal curriculum.
A polar bear plunge is an event held during the winter where participants enter a body of water despite the low temperature. In the United States, polar bear plunges are usually held to raise money for a charitable organization. In Canada, polar bear swims are usually held on New Year's Day to celebrate the new year.
Moonlight State Beach is a state beach in Encinitas, California. It is located one fifth of a mile beyond the point where Encinitas Boulevard turns into B Street after it crosses Highway 101.
Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water. Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic sports, with varied distance events in butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, freestyle, and individual medley. In addition to these individual events, four swimmers can take part in either a freestyle or medley relay. A medley relay consists of four swimmers who will each swim a different stroke, ordered as backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and freestyle.
Boxing Day is a Commonwealth holiday.
