Kia ora! My name is Bre, I’m from Te Whanganui-a-tara (Wellington, New Zealand).
I’m a 24 year old studying Sustainability and Outdoor Education at Ara in Ōtautahi (Christchurch). I grew up doing surf life saving and loved being in the ocean – but I didn’t like wearing wetsuits because I felt less free in them! My first experiences deliberately training in cold water was when I started training to swim across Raukawa Moana (Cook Strait). This involved swimming in Wellington harbour over winter. I loved the thrill and challenge of it and noticed that had a massive positive impact on my well-being. It made me feel calmer, sleep better, and gave me a community and a sense of empowerment over what my body could do.
For a while I had been excited by the idea of training to do an ice mile, and last year the New Zealand Ice Swimming Association gave me the chance to go on an ice swimming camp and complete an ice mile. This was one of the coolest experiences I’ve had. I loved how everyone rallied around to support each other and all the awesome safety measures that were put in place.
Since then I’ve developed a draft for a Safety Management Plan for Ice Swimming as a project through my degree. I’m also currently working on a year long research project on the impact that cold water swimming can have on peoples lives. There’s a lot of epic research out there about the benefits. I can’t wait to share them with people and help people engage with this awesome activity while staying staying safe.
