Thousands take an icy 'Super Bowl Splash' at Long Beach Polar Bears Club event

Thousands of swimmers ditched their winter clothes Sunday afternoon, leaving them in piles on the Long Beach sand as they sprinted toward the ocean, screaming about the cold.

Afterward, they toweled off, complaining of numb toes and shouting: "It's over" or "We did it."

They descended on the beach at Riverside Boulevard for the Long Beach Polar Bears Club's annual "Super Bowl Splash," which has raised more than $4.4 million for the Make-A-Wish Foundation since 2000. Organizers said the event honors Paulie Bradley, who died in 1997 at age 4 before the foundation could grant his wish. He was the son of a friend of Kevin McCarthy, the plunge's co-founder.

The event "just grew," McCarthy said. "People kept going."

It raised $670,000 in 2014, according to the foundation. Organizers estimated that 15,000 to 20,000 people attended and the event this year raised about the same as last year, McCarthy said.

Pam Mastrota, chief operating officer for the Make-A-Wish Metro New York and Western New York Chapter, said the event "brings an awareness to our mission and helps us grant more wishes."

Many mused on the act of diving into frigid waters on the first day of February. "Some people don't go swimming in the summertime, but they're here in the winter," McCarthy said.

Dan Igneri, 25, of Long Beach likened the act to an assault: It's "a sledgehammer to your chest."

"We all have our levels of insanity. Mine rests with jumping into cold water in February," Igneri said. A first-timer to the plunge, Igneri said he'd be back next year.

American flags lined the boardwalk, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Music blared in the background.

Aaron Squires, 37, was there with his wife and three children, who had moved to Valley Stream from Sarasota, Florida, in August. He and his wife Evelyn, 39, were challenged by others who doubted whether the ex-Floridians could handle the chilly New York ocean.

Now, Squires says, "We're from New York now. We're part of the community."

McCarthy recalled swimmers asking whether the event would continue after superstorm Sandy. The October 2012 superstorm devastated Long Beach's iconic boardwalk. Canceling was never a consideration, he said. "After Sandy, everyone came out."

The new, more resilient boardwalk, reopened in 2013, "is special," he added. "Long Beach has come a long way in two years."

Bryan Murphy, 46, came dressed as a clown. He blended with the many others clad in costumes such as penguins and Vikings. The plunge "is one of the best events we have here in Long Beach," Murphy said, while readying himself for the Atlantic Ocean. The experience "is almost an awakening or rebirth."

By Scott Eidler

scott.eidler@newsday.com@ScottEidler

Scott Eidler is a deputy editor for the towns department at Newsday. Scott has worked at Newsday since 2012 and previously covered municipal government and education.