Hampton Beach Penguin Plunges to Raise Roughly $700K

More than 12,000 festive and costumed plungers are expected to not only brave the cold this weekend, but fully embrace it while they throw themselves into the frigid waves of Hampton Beach as part of the annual Penguin Plunge.

Hampton Deputy Police Chief Rich Sawyer said approximately 525 participants are expected to raise about $190,000 during the fifth annual High School Plunge, which starts at 9 a.m. Saturday. He said over 700 plungers are expected to raise over $500,000 during the fourth annual Hampton Beach Penguin Plunge on Sunday, which also starts at 9 a.m.

Click here to check out video and coverage of last year's event.

Each event has been a successful fundraiser for Special Olympics New Hampshire for years, and the 2012 installments of the high school and regular events raised $179,688 and $508,692, respectively.

The theme of this year's High School Plunge is "Greek Olympics," while "Going to the Chapel" is theme for Sunday's event. Participants are encouraged to wear costumes, as numerous prizes will be awarded to spirited and creative entries.

Numerous sections of Hampton Beach will be either closed to traffic or temporarily converted to a different traffic pattern on Saturday and Sunday due to the influx of participants.

Sawyer said Ocean Boulevard from D Street to H Street will be closed be 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday due to the events. Ashworth Avenue will be converted to a two-way road during that time, and 11 police officers — paid for by the Special Olympics — will be on hand for security and traffic control, said Sawyer.

More information about the high school plunge is available here, while the more information about the regular plunge is available here.

Are you participating this year? Be sure to bring a camera and post any images or video you take to a gallery that will be posted on Hampton-North Hampton Patch this weekend!