The 300 Club: Plunging From 200 Degrees To -100 Degrees, Naked
It gets a bit chilly in Antarctica. At the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station close to the South Pole, they've recorded temperatures as low as -117 degrees Fahrenheit (-83 Celsius). It stays warm within the station, though. They even have a sauna, which gets very hot. And these two extreme temperatures give mad scientists an opportunity.
When the temperature hits a hundred below, as it does routinely in winter, researchers at the station have the chance to join the 300 Club. First, you spend ten minutes in the sauna, cranking the temperature up to 200 degrees (93 Celsius). This temperature is close to the boiling point of water and not at all easy to bear.
Then you run out of the station, to the South Pole. You circle the exact pole—the idea is that you run through all 24 time zones in a matter of seconds. Then you dash back into the sauna again, and get drunk.
Don't Miss
During your run, you are completely naked, except for your boots. Underwear is officially allowed but inadvisable, because underwear retains more water than your skin's surface, and this water will freeze instantly. You'll now be wearing sharp shards around your groin, which is far from ideal.
The Russians, who stay at a different station, have their own tradition, the 200 Club. Sounds like a milder version perhaps, since their temperature only changes 200 degrees? Ah, but Russians measure temperature in Celsius. So they wait till it's -80 Celsius (-112 Fahrenheit), and they heat their saunas up to 120 Celsius (248 Fahrenheit). This is very dangerous, and people outside Antarctica have died testing extremes like that. So, it's possible that 1) The 200 Club is a lie to make Russians look badass, 2) The 200 Club kills people, and Russia covers this up, or 3) The 200 Club is a lie and kills people—it's actually an execution method for the Kremlin's enemies.
This fact came from the One Cracked Fact newsletter. Want more like this, straight from your email inbox, without any ads or popups? Join here:
Sign up for the Cracked Newsletter
Get the best of Cracked sent directly to your inbox!
For more X-Treme fun, check out:
Surfing, Snowboarding/Skiing ... While Hang Gliding
An Antarctic Crew Were Stranded On Ice For Over A Year
A Toddler Froze to Death ... And Then Just Came Back To Life
Follow Ryan Menezes on Twitter for more stuff no one should see.
