During the winter, a few hardy souls take a dip in Vermont's Lake Champlain

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During the winter, a few hardy¹ souls take a dip in Vermont's Lake Champlain

Transcript²

Even on cold days, you'll find some brave people taking a quick dip in Lake Champlain. They call themselves the Red Hot Chilly³ Dippers, and they say water temperatures in the 40s are invigorating.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

On a winter day, if you're wandering along the Burlington shores of Vermont's Lake Champlain, you might come across some people in hats, booties and bathing suits, wading⁴ between chunks⁵ of ice - a polar bear swim club by another name. Vermont Public Radio's Elodie Reed recently joined them for a swim.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER LAPPING)

ELODIE REED, BYLINE⁶: I am standing⁷ in my water shoes in the snow behind the St. Johns Club in Burlington. I'm here with the Red Hot Chilly Dippers.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: It's 42 degrees, I think.

REED: The water temperature's 42 degrees?

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Yeah, I think so.

(CROSSTALK)

REED: Dozens of people, mostly women, perform this ritual regularly, sometimes every day in Vermont's cooler months. People tend to do their own thing in the summertime, but once the temperatures drop, the Chilly Dippers gather and get cold. Tonight, the group is throwing a birthday bash for one of its members - Kika Bronger. And what better way to celebrate than to shed our layers and walk into the 42-degree waters of Lake Champlain? Kika explains the process to one first-time dipper.

KIKA BRONGER: You want some hot water in your bootie?

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: Oh, yeah.

(LAUGHTER)

BRONGER: You didn't see it. It's not as bad as you think. It's hard going in - not going to lie.

(LAUGHTER)

BRONGER: It's hard going in. And then you go in, and you're like, what am I doing? And then you get used to it.

(LAUGHTER)

BRONGER: But once you're out, you're like a new person.

(CROSSTALK)

BRONGER: Like, it really is. Like...

REED: Some describe that post-dip feeling as energy, others as a reset⁸. And people say putting your face in cold water does provide stress relief.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Let's do it.

REED: First, of course, we do actually have to go in.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #4: Where's Kika?

BRONGER: I'm right here. Let's go.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #5: Are we - are we - oh, my god. It's happening.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #5: Oh, my God. All right.

REED: About a dozen of us walk into the murky⁹, purplish water. I follow behind Gigi Veve, who like me has never done this before.

GIGI VEVE: Breathe.

(CHEERING, CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #6: Gigi, this is nice. I swear.

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #6: Gigi.

REED: It is not warm. I've only gone up to my waist in order to protect my recording¹⁰ equipment, but after a minute, I can't feel a thing in the lower part of my body.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #7: It's a little chilly, but it wakes up the soul (laughter).

(CROSSTALK)

REED: Then comes the finale, when Kika, who just turned 51, dunks her head in the ice-cold lake five times.

UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: Five, four, three, two, one.

(CHEERING, SPLASHING)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #8: Kika, you animal.

(LAUGHTER, CHEERING, CROSSTALK)

BRONGER: Five dips, one for each decade.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #9: That's impressive, very impressive.

BRONGER: OK, I'm out.

(CHEERING)

REED: For NPR News, I'm Elodie Reed in Burlington, Vt.

BRONGER: Thank you, ladies, for that wonderful dip.

(SOUNDBITE OF WILLIAM TYLER'S "KINGDOM OF JONES")

1 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

4 wading   

（从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The man tucked up his trousers for wading. 那人卷起裤子，准备涉水。
• The children were wading in the sea. 孩子们在海水中走着。

5 chunks   

厚厚的一块( chunk的名词复数 )； （某物）相当大的数量或部分

参考例句：

• a tin of pineapple chunks 一罐菠萝块
• Those chunks of meat are rather large—could you chop them up a bIt'smaller? 这些肉块相当大，还能再切小一点吗？

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

8 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

9 murky   

adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗

参考例句：

• She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
• She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。

10 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。