Thousands expected for Weymouth Harbour Christmas swim
The 70m swim is back this year after it was called off in 2020.
Thousands of supporters are expected to return to Weymouth Harbour tomorrow morning.
The Weymouth Harbour Christmas Day swim dates back to 1948 but was called off last year due to coronavirus.
For those brave enough to suffer a Christmas morning dip, the 70-metre-plus distance starts from the Cove on Trinity Road at 11am. Swimmers finish across the water opposite the Harbour Master’s office on Custom House Quay.
In 2019 there were 450 determined swimmers, many of whom took on the challenge to raise money for charity.
Among this year's swimmers is Nick Powell, who is raising money for Weymouth's Cycling Without Age - a service that offers bike rides to care home residents.
Nick says tomorrow will be his first time taking part in the event. He said:
"I've been an all year round sea swimmer for several years. You do get used to it. It's a really good thing to do if you can stand the cold.
"CWA is a really good charity, it's good for everybody; people who participate, the passengers all love it."
Nick says the cold water is usually fine once you're in, and sometimes it's warmer than the air out of the water. He plans on getting in the water to acclimatise before the swim actually starts.
He added:
"Because I've always wanted to do the harbour swim, I put two and two together and thought 'well, I'll try and raise some money here."
You can find out more about Nick's fundraiser here.
How did the Weymouth Harbour Christmas Day Swim begin?
Nowadays, the Christmas Day Swim attracts thousands to the harbour, but its beginnings are far more humble.
Kevin Brookes is the president of Weymouth and Portland Lions, who run the event. He said:
"It all started back in 1948 and it was a bet between two friends, Dil Laker who was the landlord of the Duke of Cornwall public house at the time, and his friend Reggie Bugler who was a local taxi driver.
"They decided to swim the harbour on Christmas day after a heavy drinking session I believe. After that initial swim word got around that this was happening every Christmas morning. After that swimmers would just turn up and swim the harbour for fun.
"As the event became more popular and grew in size from that original Christmas day in 1948, someone had to take over that event and run it in a more professional manner."
The Weymouth Lions Club stepped in the 1970's. They've run the event ever since and it's only been cancelled twice - once last year, and one other year due to water quality.
How will it work this year?
This year swimmer numbers are limited because of the pandemic,
Swimmers are split into up to 15 groups of 30, with some swimmers racing across the distance in just a few minutes.
Swimmers are required to purchase a ticket and are counted into the water at the start and counted out at the opposite end. Sea canoeists from the RNLI are on the water and are able to assist swimmers who get into difficulty.