SLIDESHOW: Click on photo to see more, or click on image below in photo gallery. Video by David Rosen. Still photos by Steve Shay.

The New Years Day Annual Alki Polar Bear Swim organizer (and White Center Chamber of Commerce President) Mark Ufkes said the first polar swim began with a for group of friends and grew to over 300 last year.

This morning at 10:00 a.m. sharp, with Ufkes emceeing on the mic with his traditional countdown, it seemed like 400 to 500 brrrrrrave polar bear swimmers huddled in the 36 degree temperature and then raced into the water screaming, did a 180, and darted back to shore for the annual ritual. It took place again across the street from Duke's Chowder House.

This was the 13th Annual swim. The event was established by Kip Kolodziejski and Jeanne DeBaets.

“It was the Y2K year and we wanted to do something big for the year 2000," said DeBaets in the 2010 West Seattle Herald coverage of this event. “It started with just us. The next year more people came. Then more the next. It just feels good. It wakes you up.”