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Living life
WEB Polar Plunge 2012 2
Matthew Clare leads the charge as he exits the frigid waters. Left to right: Margaret Ruf, Sydney Ruf-Wong, Matthew Clare, Justin Clare, and Tristan Hirsch.

The idea of a polar plunge has been around for a few years, but for one group, they are making it a family tradition. Jon Hirsch and his fiance, Margaret Ruf, started the tradition last year as another fun experience of living life. Last year, the group of nine people, did their New Year's morning plunge into the Rountree Branch by the bridge on Southwest Road south UW-Platteville. This year, the families were together on a ski trip near Hurley, so seven participants decided to plunge into Saxon Bay in Lake Superior.