Thousands line up for icy morning dip in Dark Mofo’s Nude Solstice Swim
UPDATE: A record 1537 people have taken the plunge for this morning’s Dark Mofo Nude Solstice Swim. VIDEO | (cheeky) GALLERY
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UPDATE: A RECORD 1537 people have taken the plunge for this morning’s Dark Mofo Nude Solstice Swim.
Swimmers braved the chilly 12C water temps and a brisk wind to hit the water at 7.42am.
As dawn broke over Long Beach at Sandy Bay the sound of beating drums and whooping from the gathered swimmers cut through the cold morning followed by wave of dropped towels and a mad rush into the less-than-tepid waters by a throng of red-capped bathers.
GALLERY: DARK MOFO NUDE SWIM 2018 (Graphic content warning)
Some dipped a toe and ran immediately out, while others treated it as a refreshing morning dip, clocking up laps infront of the crowd.
Dark Mofo executive director, Kate Gould, said the swim was “brilliant”.
“It’s getting more exciting each year. It’s becoming an annual pilgrimage,” she said. “We’ve had to order more towels to cope with the additional crowd.”
Event organisers were initially shocked with the early registration of more than 2200 people signing up, which is double the intake from last year.
Mountain River resident Lee Gatenby dubbed the swim “exhilarating”. So good that she and friend Lynette Litster of Allens Rivulet decided to double dip.
“We went in, came out, put our towels around us and then went, ‘I think we need to go in again,’ so we dropped out towels and plunged back in again,” said Lynette.
Both wouldn’t hesitate to return for next year’s mid-winter swim.
Bronwen Puleston-Jones of South Hobart who went in “long enough to get numb” said, “It’s fantastic. You get such a buzz from the cold water.”
Also spotted towelling off was Graeme Mineall from Launceston, who secured the use of a special beach wheelchair to tick the annual swim off his bucket list.
Mr Mineall, who has “no regrets” about signing up, is pictured on page 4 of today’s paper.
“It was good in there. Now that we’re out and the wind is up, it’s a little cool,” he said.
“But I would definitely do it again next year.”
EARLIER: About 2000 people have taken the plunge for this morning’s Dark Mofo Nude Solstice Swim. Swimmers hit the water, at 7.42am.
A short time ago police warned that red flares will be set off at the beginning of the swim.
“Police would like to remind members of the public that if they see people on Sandy Bay Beach just standing there, in their American Apparel underwear, that the Dark Mofo Solstice Swim is occurring this morning.
“Some red flares will also be released from the beach at about 0740hrs.
“There is no cause for concern, well, unless they start flicking each other with wet towels...”
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EARLIER: MS and a wheelchair won’t stop Graeme Mineall from ticking off the item at the top of his bucket list — hitting the water for Friday morning’s Dark Mofo Nude Solstice Swim.
Mr Mineall, of Launceston, has wanted to participate in the icy event ever since seeing the inaugural Nude Swim on the news back in 2013.
Late last year he decided it was time to finally make it happen and, spurred on by carers Sarah Franks and Angie Cassidy, secured the use of a special beach wheelchair that will get him across the soft sand to the water’s edge.
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“I’m so excited, and so are the girls,” he said. “It’s a team effort. I can’t do it by myself, so they’ve got to push me into the water.
“I’ve heard several people who have done it say it’s warmer in the water than it is out. And I’ve noticed over the past couple of weeks that the morning temperature is 4-6C warmer in Hobart than Launceston. When I get up there’s white frost and it’s minus 1C, so I can handle 5C in Hobart.”
Just weeks before his 75th birthday, Mr Mineall is one of 2200 brave bathers who have registered to swim at Sandy Bay at the crack of dawn, after a record 1020 took the plunge last year. And he hopes his efforts might help inspire others to overcome their own personal obstacles.
“That was never my intention — I wanted to do it for myself,” he said.
“But maybe someone will say to themselves, ‘if that silly old fool can do it, so can I’.
“Sometimes if you’ve got an ambition, all you need to do is ask for help.”
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