Polar Bear Swim 2009 (89th Annual)

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
January 1, 2009

• History
• Safety Tips
• Statistics

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The Vancouver Polar Bear Swim Club is one of the largest and oldest Polar Bear Clubs in the world. Its initial swim was in 1920 when a small number of hardy swimmers took the plunge into English Bay on New Year's Day. Led by their founder, Peter Pantages, the swim has grown from around 10 swimmers in that year to the record number of 2,128 official entries in 2000.

Today, the swim takes place at 2:30pm on the first day of each new year. Costumes and the Peter Pantages Memorial 100 yard swim race are the highlights of this event. To be a club member you must register before the swim. Registration takes place in front of the English Bay Bathhouse from 12:30pm - 2:30pm each New Year's Day. You may also register by clipping out the coupon in the Province Newspaper and presenting it at the registration desk the day of the swim.

Your free membership includes a commemorative button after you take the plunge. Prizes will be drawn from the entry forms filled out or turned in from the Province newspaper at the Swim registration table.

For further information about the Vancouver Polar Bear Swim Club, contact: Glenn Schultz of the Vancouver Aquatic Centre.

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2009 Event Photo Gallery

Photos courtesy Cliff Lemire, except as noted  -  Click on thumbnail to view full-size image

Registering? Yes, you can be a prize winner	New Westminster "Katimavik" team jump to the swim	You boys be good now!	It's a family event
(L-R) Parks General Mgr. Susan Mundick, MLA Spencer Herbert, Commissioners Stuart MacKinnon, Raj Hundal (Chair), and Aaron Jasper	Ahoy, we have a boat	Peguins fish for their meal	Sombrero team "Photo op" tradition continues
Polar Bear Police support team	Clowning around!	The flag drops, the swim starts	Peter Pantages Memorial swim dash to the buoy
Trouble! An overturned kayak	Even "Superman" is already out of the water	Winter frolics!	Should we drop the puck? Where's our goalie?
Happy New Year! The water is fine!	Parasols - for sun protection	Police dive team get their "Polar Bear" buttons	Final button presentations by The Province's Daryl Palmer
Check out his buttons	Trophy Winners Agatha Soful and Trevor Olson	The Presentation Team (L-R) MLA Spencer Herbert, Polar Bear Club Pres. Lisa Pantages, Agatha Soful, Park Board Chair Raj Hundal, Trevor Olson, Commissioners Constance Barnes, Aaron Jasper, Sarah Blyth and son.	Our team

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2009 Event Statistics

	2008	2009
Air Temperature	5°C / 41°F	4°C / 40°F
Water Temperature	6.5°C / 44°F	6°C / 43°F
Weather	Cloudy	Drizzle/Sun
No. of Registered Swimmers (record 2,128 in 2000, previous record 2,095 in 1983)	1,787	1588
Winner of the Peter Pantages Memorial Trophy	1st: Trevor Olson 2nd: Tom Springer 3rd: Erik Reid 1st female: Khristie Zychowka	1st: Trevor Olson 2nd: Michael Wendt 3rd: Herman Wagner 1st female: Agatha Soful
President Polar Bear Swim Club	Lisa Pantages	Lisa Pantages
Past President	Basil Pantages	Basil Pantages
Announcer	Jeff Low	Peter Henderson
Promotion and Commemorative Buttons	Province Newspaper, Vancouver Park Board, Pantages family, 99.3 the FOX	Province Newspaper, Vancouver Park Board, Pantages family, 99.3 the FOX
P.A. and Music	99.3 the FOX	99.3 the FOX
Safety and First Aid	Vancouver Park Board	Vancouver Park Board
Event Information	Glenn Schultz Vancouver Aquatic Centre 1050 Beach Avenue Vancouver, BC  V6E 1T7 Phone: 604-665-3418 Email: glenn.schultz@vancouver.ca

2009 Polar Bear Swim Prize Winners

Many thanks to the following companies who donated prizes to the 2009 swim :

99.3 THE FOX
AQUABUS
CELESTIAL SEASONINGS TEA
COCA-COLA
DULCINEA CHOCOLATE CAFÉ ON DENMAN
NANDO’S CHICKEN
PROVINCE NEWSPAPER
STEPHO’S SOUVLAKI GREEK TAVERNA          
SYLVIA HOTEL
VANCOUVER PARK BOARD
VAN DUSEN GARDENS
WATERMARK RESTAURANT AT KITS BEACH

The following names were drawn for prizes from the signed entry forms received at English Bay Beach:

Lurlei Arnett Vancouver Troy Beckingham Maple Ridge Laura Braaten Vancouver Caylem Chambers Vancouver Philip Di Tomaso Vancouver Mazyar Emami North Vancouver Melanie Flynn Vancouver Cindy Graves Vancouver Claire Hamilton Vancouver

Cierra Harris Surrey Jason Hendrikson Vancouver Allyson Hood Vancouver Robert Ingram Vancouver Mill Jawed Burnaby Angela Johnston New Westminster Cathie McMillan Delta Tom Merth Anmore Darko Mihaslovic North Vancouver

Naidan Lhamsuren Coquitlam Thu Pham Vancouver Syd Russell Burnaby Caratia Sherwin Vancouver Shawn Stewart Vancouver Fred Swindells Burnaby Guo Wei Si Tu Vancouver Darren Wong Surrey

Winners will be notified by mail

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