The Minnesota Department of Transportation launched its popular Name A Snowplow contest Tuesday, and fittingly as a major storm is poised to smack most of the state.
More than 100 people submitted names within the first hour after the annual contest began. But anybody can put forth their best witty and snow-themed suggestions through Dec. 19 on the agency’s website.
“Here is a chance to put your creativity in motion,” said MnDOT spokeswoman Anne Meyer. “We know there is a lot of creativity out there.”
MnDOT rolled out the contest six years ago when it asked Minnesotans to come up with names for eight snowplows and bring a bit of levity to winter.
The agency also wanted to draw attention to the yeoman’s work of the state’s 1,700 full- and part-time plow operators who clear the roads.
And for motorists, “we hope that they are paying attention and hopefully they will drive safely around them,” Meyer said.
Meyer said she is surprised at the staying power of the contest, which has yielded names such as We’re Off To See The Blizzard, Taylor Drift and Don’tcha Snow.
“We didn’t think it would last this long,” she said. But over the five previous years, the agency has collected more than 55,000 submissions, and even other states, cities and counties have followed suit by holding naming contests for their plows.
