Category: Freezbrury

PLUMMETING temperatures and the threat of Storm Eunice are no match to the plucky determination of a Carlow man on a mission to complete the Freezbrury Challenge!

Paul Harland (23) is taking on the Freezbrury Challenge to raise funds for Holy Angels Daycare Centre, the much-loved local centre for children with special needs.

The Freezbrury Challenge consists of getting into a lake, the sea or a river for a minute on the first day of the month, adding an extra minute every day and finishing the month with an eye-watering 28 minutes in the chilly water!

“You feel great after it,” says an upbeat Paul.

“When you get out of the water you feel like a difference person after it … there are huge health benefits to cold-water therapy: it increases circulation, decreases blood pressure, reduces stress and anxiety. And for people who have the privilege of living near the sea or water that they get in every day, they absolutely swear by it,” says Paul.

Donning only his swimming togs, Paul has been taking the plunge every day this month, building up the duration by a minute each day.

With early February bringing with it high winds and forecasts of snow, the idea of getting into open water wouldn’t cross the minds of the majority of people. Sea temperatures are at their coldest in February, averaging at 8.8°C, and lake water is normally a few temperatures colder.

However, one Westmeath footballer and dozens of others across the country are taking on the physical and psychological challenge of submerging themselves in open water, adding a minute to the clock for every day they take part, amounting to a total of six hours and 46 minutes across the month of February.

Speaking not too long after the eleventh day of the challenge, Athlone man Ray Connellan explains how he got involved with what is being called ‘Freezbrury’.

“I first heard about it two years ago and I was going to do it but I moved back over to Australia, and there wasn’t much point in doing it in the Australian summer. I saw that it was happening again last year through Damien Browne. He used to play for Connacht and he’s actually preparing to climb Everest at the moment. He was posting about it on his story and looking for new ways to push himself. I just said I’d give it a try, so myself and my brother John did it last year. It was tough but we got through it,” said Ray.

With early February bringing with it high winds and forecasts of snow, the idea of getting into open water wouldn’t cross the minds of the majority of people. Sea temperatures are at their coldest in February, averaging at 8.8°C, and lake water is normally a few temperatures colder.

However, one Westmeath footballer and dozens of others across the country are taking on the physical and psychological challenge of submerging themselves in open water, adding a minute to the clock for every day they take part, amounting to a total of six hours and 46 minutes across the month of February.

Speaking not too long after the eleventh day of the challenge, Athlone man Ray Connellan explains how he got involved with what is being called ‘Freezbrury’.

“I first heard about it two years ago and I was going to do it but I moved back over to Australia, and there wasn’t much point in doing it in the Australian summer. I saw that it was happening again last year through Damien Browne. He used to play for Connacht and he’s actually preparing to climb Everest at the moment. He was posting about it on his story and looking for new ways to push himself. I just said I’d give it a try, so myself and my brother John did it last year. It was tough but we got through it,” said Ray.

A group of young men are putting their bodies to the test this February in a bid to raise money for the suicide prevention charity Pieta House.

A group of nine lads, including two from Laois, are more than halfway through the Freezbury Challenge.

Throughout the month of February, they have committed to getting into an open water source ever day – typically in freezing conditions.