'You can’t break a record every day': Firefighter raises big bucks at beer festival ice bath
An Edmonton firefighter braved a prolonged ice bath Saturday to help raise awareness and money to support Muscular Dystrophy Canada.
Wesley Bauman took the polar plunge and stayed put in an ice bath for just shy of an hour and a half Saturday evening at the Edmonton Craft Beer Festival.
Initially, Bauman planned to shatter the Guinness World Records time of three hours.
“It didn’t go as well as expected,” Bauman told CTV News Edmonton. “Unfortunately, while I was in there, about 50 minutes in, the ice kind of shifted. Think of an ice cube in a warm glass of water, and it goes pop.”
The top of the ice went one way while the bottom shifted towards the other direction. Bauman described it as being forced into a “weird and awkward limbo” position.
“My back started spasming, so I kind of battled it for about 20 to 30 minutes,” he added. “It’s a fun event, and I’m not going to put my health in jeopardy.”
Bauman said how the two previous attempts he made at going for more than two hours were during wintertime when ice melt is slower.
“I challenged myself this time,” he said. “We raised a lot of money here, had a lot of great exposure for post-traumatic stress and mental health, and then raised a lot of money for Muscular Dystrophy Canada.
“It’s a win. You can’t break a record every day.”
While Bauman isn’t sure if he will take a stab at the world record again, he plans to continue taking ice baths for five to 10 minutes every day.
The ice stunt helped raise more than $9,000 for Muscular Dystrophy Canada.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.