VILLAGE NEWS LA JOLLA
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THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 2011
San Diego Community Newspaper Group
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www.SDNEWS.com Volume 16, Number 16
‘Nothing is forever’
Sea birds perch atop Bird Rock before its collapse in December. DON BALCH | Village News
Bird Rock not the first of iconic rocks to crumble
Above: On the stormy day of Dec. 29, Bird Rock displays its unfortunate new look.
BY KENDRA HARTMANN | VILLAGE NEWS
latest in a long history of collapsing and eroding rock formations, guaranWith the collapse of its famous teeing that the view of the coastline is namesake on Dec. 21, the Bird Rock a fleeting one. community is left without a physical SEE BIRD ROCK, Page 5 icon. This incident, however, is only the
DON BALCH | Village News
Right: Cathedral Rock was popular among locals until it collapsed in 1906. Photo courtesy of La Jolla Historical Society
La Jolla swimmers plunge into 2011 BY KENDRA HARTMANN | VILLAGE NEWS Veteran swimmers and amateur beachgoers rang in the new year with a splash on Jan. 1, with about 250 people braving the cold waters at La Jolla Shores for the annual Polar Bear Swim. Hosted by the La Jolla Cove Swim Club, the event went off without a hitch, said swim club member Bob West. “It was a great success,” he said. “We had a great turnout, a record turnout.”
Polar Bear Plunges have been popular around the world for decades. One of the earliest documented accounts tells of Milwaukee resident Gustav Marx and his friends jumping into Lake Michigan on Dec. 31, 1916. The young men started a Polar Bear Club for their yearly off-season swims that is still active today. Other clubs exist in Toronto, New York and even Antarctica, where a team of scientists takes the plunge into the icy waters a few times a year, though they someSEE SWIM, Page 6 Right: Polar Bear swim event participants take to 56-degree water on a 45-degree New Year’s Day morning at La Jolla Shores. Left: Emblazoned with 2011 on their chests, Polar Bear Swim celebrants brave the elements on Jan. 1. DON BALCH | Village News