Voting now open in annual Minnesota snowplow naming contest

In protecting with an amusing and considerably odd custom, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is about to announce one other slate of names for its snowplows. 

The Minnesota Department of Transportation obtained over 8,000 submissions for snowplow names this yr – and narrowed it right down to 50, the company mentioned on its web site. 

People can vote for as much as eight names that will probably be bestowed upon eight snowplows, mentioned the web site.

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Voting ends on Jan. 28 — and the winners will probably be introduced subsequent week, a spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Transportation informed Fox News Digital.  

In addition to pun-inspired names (“I Came, I Thaw, I Conquered” and “Oh, For Sleet’s Sake”), most of the identify finalists have been influenced by present occasions or developments.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation operates 800 snowplows all through the state of Minnesota, together with the one above. Eight of these plows are set to obtain new names subsequent week. Winning names will probably be emblazoned on the aspect of the plow. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

These embrace the Taylor Swift-inspired “Taylor Drift,” and “Flake It Off”; a winter twist on Barbie with “Barbie’s Dream Plow”; and “Beyonsleigh” – a nod to the Houston-based pop icon. 

Some distinctly Minnesotan names have been finalists, corresponding to “L’Plow du Nord” (a play on the state’s motto of “L’Étoile du Nord”), “Star of the North,” “Flake Superior” and “Minnesnowta N’ice.”

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has held a naming contest for its snowplows for the reason that winter of 2020-2021, says its web site. The contest was impressed by a comparable one in Scotland, Minnesota Department of Transportation officers informed the Associated Press.

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“We definitely know snow in Minnesota, and anyone who lives up here knows the challenges of those conditions and the challenges of trying to keep roads safe for folks to travel during the winter,” Anne Meyer, a spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, informed the Associated Press.

Parts of Minnesota obtain greater than 70 inches of snow every year.  (David Joles/Star Tribune through Getty Images)

The Minnesota Department of Transportation operates 800 snowplows to maintain the Gopher State’s roads as clear as doable through the winter months. 

Parts of Minnesota obtain a mean of greater than 70 inches of snow every winter, mentioned the web site of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. 

The named snowplows have their identify written on the aspect of the automobile, Meyer informed the Associated Press. 

The naming contests are anticipated to proceed for years to return — and there appear to be loads of anonymous snowplows in Minnesota. 

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“We’ve got 800 snowplows statewide for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, so we have a lot of snowplows to name,” Meyer mentioned to the Associated Press. 

Speaking to Fox News Digital, Meyer mentioned whereas the contest was “a lot of fun” every year, there are extra advantages past the amusing names. 

“We can engage with more people who may not know about our agency, and we see this as an opportunity to improve safety for our snowplow drivers,” Meyer informed Fox News Digital in an e mail. 

Other states and cities have launched comparable naming contests for his or her snowplows after Minnesota began the follow in 2020.  (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

“We hope the creative names help to personalize our snowplows, and as a result, encourage drivers to think more about the men and women who operate snowplows and to do their part to keep our crews safe: slow down, stay back and give snowplow plenty of room to work,” she mentioned. 

Last yr, profitable names in Minnesota included “Yer a Blizzard, Harry,” “Scoop! There it is,” “Blader Tot Hotdish,” and “Han Snowlo.”

The success and recognition of the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s naming contest has prompted different states and localities to ask the general public to assist identify their snow plows, mentioned the Associated Press.

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New Mexico had its first naming contest this winter. 

More than 23,000 individuals voted for 12 names for its state’s snowplows. 

Winning names included “Sleetwood Mac,” “Mr. Snow it All,” and “Billy the Skid” – impressed by the outlaw Billy the Kid, who was killed in New Mexico. 

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“There’s a natural infatuation with (snowplows),” Kristine Bustos-Mihelcic, a spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Transportation, informed the Associated Press.

 “They’re big, huge trucks. They look great on the road, and they are such a visual statement to the core of DOT, which is helping people get to their destination safely,” she mentioned. 

The Associated Press contributed reporting.

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