Annual Coney Island Polar Bears Dip Today

If it's January 1, it can only mean that it's time for the Coney Island Polar Bear Club to do their annual New Year's Swim. Of course, those fun and crazy swimmers do their thing every Sunday in the winter, but the Jan. 1 dip is the one that gets all the press. This year the swimmers are raising money for Camp Sunshine.

The festivities, which have been a tradition since 1903, start on the boardwalk at Stillwell Avenue and swim time is 1:00.

We're certain there will be some photos and blog items (like this one we posted about back in November) for tomorrow. While the water will be nice and chilly, the temps for today are supposed to be in the 50s, with rain, making for a much warmer New Year's Day than some. (The photo above is last year's New Year's swim, from the Polar Bears online photo album.) Now, that's what we call turning Coney Island into a year-round destination.