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CARTI Tour de Rock
Many families and first-timers gathered Saturday morning for the 18-mile fun run, part of CARTI's Tour de Rock.
Ace Frehley from Kiss, Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, and Holly Golightly from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" were among the many brave souls who took a chilly dunking for a good cause at the third annual Chattanooga Polar Plunge on Saturday at Finley Stadium.
A costume contest before the main event, which benefits Special Olympics Tennessee, lured some participants to come in character.
Wanda Espy, a truck driver for UPS, decided to make her first Polar Plunge because of the "wonderful cause." Espy was decked out in a black dress and gloves that, though strikingly similar to those worn by Audrey Hepburn's iconic character, wasn't a direct nod. She felt it was appropriate for the occasion.
"I'm a single white female on Valentine's Day," Espy said.
Dylan Phelps' Ace Frehley get-up was authentic enough to win him the individual prize in the contest, and he's not even that big a Kiss fan. He just liked the look, and it cost him next to nothing. His black and gold guitar complete with the Special Olympics logo? Wood and cardboard. His silver platform boots? Duct tape. His standard-issue Kiss Army shoulder pads? Chip and dip plates with the centers cut out.
Phelps' BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee co-worker, Christine Ryder, was dressed as Jeff Bridges' character from the cult film "The Big Lebowski."
"I'm a very serious compliance officer, if you can believe that," Ryder said as her spirit-gummed goatee dangled precariously over the White Russian in her hand (her version of The Dude's beverage of choice was hazelnut coffee with cream and sugar).
A nervous anticipation hung in the breezy, 50-degree air as participants waited for the plunge to start. People plotted paths of least resistance between the temporary pool (erected for the occasion on Davenport Field) and strategically placed towels. The announcer called for participants to line up in the first row of the bleachers, in front of more than one hundred onlookers.
Beth Strickland, a local Special Olympian, went first.
"Thank you, Special Olympics!" she said, before she jumped in.
Then the rest of the participants took the plunge as their names were called by the announcer.
In went the onesie-clad duo of Madeline Hester, 13, and her 9-year-old brother, Toby, who raised $1,000 for the event.
In went Patrice Schermerhorn and her "minions." Schermerhorn, a teacher, convinced her students in the Chattanooga State EMS program to join her (the group won best team costume for their "Despicable Me"-inspired outfits). They raised $1,900.
"Get me outta here!" minion Jeff Bonner begged as he emerged from the 46-degree water.
Soon-to-be 67-year-old Jim Landrum and his grandson Caleb backflopped in with a tremendous splash in honor of Caleb's brother Isaac, who has Down syndrome. Isaac watched his grandfather and brother from a safe and dry distance in the stands.
"It's freeeeezing!" Caleb hollered, hugging himself.
Mark "Hoppy" Hopkins, who started the event three years ago with fellow members of the Chattanooga Rugby Club, was pleased with how much the event has grown.
"We were just a bunch of old fat guys sitting around, wondering, 'What can we do? Jump in cold water? Yeah, we can do that,'" Hopkins said. "We never imagined it would grow this big."
Hopkins said the plunge raised about $10,000 in its first year and $7,000 in its second year. Jennifer McAfee, organizer of the event for the Special Olympics, said this year's plunge raised more than $20,000.
"It's great," McAfee said. "We're very excited about the amount we raised this year."
Contact Will Healey at whealey@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6731.