There's a Bruce Springsteen song called "Iceman" that includes the following lines:
"...I don't want no piece of this mechanical world/Got my arms open wide and my blood is running hot"
Well, Dutchman Wim Hof's blood must run hot. The guy submerges himself in ice for long periods of time. For fun. This morning, he was neck-to-toe in more than 1,300 pounds of ice for about 40 minutes. WATCH VIDEO
And that was just the prelude. Tomorrow, at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York, he plans to break his own world record by remaining submerged in ice for more than 71 minutes.
He says he owns six recognized world records for a variety of extreme feats, including the fastest barefoot half-marathon in history (2 hours, 16 minutes) and the longest swim while holding one's breath under ice (188 feet, 6 inches).
Wim is a 48-year-old married father of five, who makes his living as a nature guide.
Before he became a human popsicle this morning, he talked to me about his near-death experiences while sitting comfortably in the warm confines of our green room (he was wearing a white robe and sandals).
Here's our conversation:
DF: Why ice? What's the attraction to ice? Why not extreme heat or some other kind of feat of physical stamina?
Wim Hof: Heat I did also. But ice is a noble force. It brings about good energy.
DF: Why decide to do something like this...why not strap on a pair of skates and be a speed skater...or hop on a bicycle...why do this kind of thing?
WH: I do about eight disciplines, including climbing...for example, climbing without gear...extreme climbing, things like that. Running. But it's almost always related to cold. I think cold is a noble force and brings about good energy. It's what I do, that's why I do it.
DF: Did something from earlier in your life prepare you to do this? How long have you been doing it?
WH: I've been doing it for about three years now. I had two almost-death experiences with ice in my youth.
DF: What happened with those experiences?
WH: One time, I fell asleep in the snow. People woke me up and brought me back home. Another time, I fell asleep again, and they brought me to the hospital, and I stayed there a week to recover.
DF: Do you have a problem with falling asleep in the snow?
WH: Yeah, when I was younger. But not anymore.
DF: What did your wife and kids say when you told her you were going to start doing these extreme things?
WH: They know me, and they think it's okay. They know when I'm not comfortable with things or if I'm doing dangerous things and get nervous. As long as I'm at ease, they know I can do it. They trust me.
DF: Do you get scared when you're doing something like this?
WH: Yeah, well one of the times, I almost died. The first time I went swimming under the ice for 50-60 meters [about 150-200 feet], I didn't have goggles, so I lost track of the way.
And I was swimming and looking for a hole. I couldn't find it. I had one meter of ice above me. I was just looking for the hole for a long time, but my powers diminished and started to fade away. I wasn't in agony. So that was also an almost-death experience.
DF: So how did you get out?
WH: A diver came and took me by the ankle. It was about 80 meters from the beginning point.
DF: Do you remember him coming down and grabbing you?
WH: Yeah, my consciousness was lowered--
DF: But you weren't totally out of it?
WH: No.
DF: Do you feel pain when you do these kinds of things?
WH: No, not really. I re-focus on the place of the negative impact. And it goes away.
DF: So what do you focus on or think about when you're submerged in ice, for example?
WH: When you are cold in your house, you put the heat on. That's energy. So I produce energy.
DF: Is it true that you sometimes play chess when you do things like this?
WH: Yeah, true in a sense of mind controlling. Doing puzzles in an industrial freezer I was training in. I did all kinds of experiments on myself, like puzzles and chess playing...all kinds of mind games to see if my mind is affected by the cold.
DF: So is this more of a challenge mentally or physically for you?
WH: It's both. It's body-mind.
DF: How will your body respond when you get out of the ice today? How will you be feeling?
WH: I think I'll be feeling all right. Afterwards, the temperature on the surface [of my body] and the core temperature will mix. This is when the reaction will start, maybe shivering. But not while I'm in.
DF: And how will you warm up?
WH: Have a nice hot shower!
DF: If you break the world record tomorrow, what's next on your agenda of things to do?
WH: North Pole.
DF: What are you going to do there?
WH: Full marathon in shorts.
DF: Would you like to see your kids follow in your footsteps and do this kind of thing when they get older?
WH: No, no. I don't want them to be that crazy.