In January, snowplows are oft on the streets and in the hearts of residents across Chicago.
Well, most Januarys they are on the streets. But so far this winter, Chicago has seen a measly 3.4 inches of snow, compared to the usual 11 inches it sees by now, NBC 5 Storm Team says. And Monday, the forecast calls for rain with a balmy high of 50 degrees.
And yet, the city's brave snow plows remain ready to roll out of the gates when the time comes, with "a fleet of over 300 salt spreaders and more than 400,000 tons of salt stationed at salt piles throughout the city," Chicago's Department of Streets and Sanitation says.
Celebrating those unsung heroes of winter is what led the City of Chicago in December to announce its first annual "You Name a Snowplow Contest," encouraging residents to "use their ingenuity and imagination to create snowplow names."
“Chicago knows snow," said Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a press release announcing the contest. "And we count on our snowplows and their drivers to be here for us every winter making sure the roads are safe and passable for motorists, emergency vehicles, and public transportation. I’m thrilled to begin this fun and exciting naming process for our vitally important fleet of snow vehicles."
According to the city, names submissions were limited to 50 characters in length. While the city hasn't released how many name submissions it received, the contest rules say the window to submit a name would close on Jan. 6, or "when the City receives 20,000 submissions, whichever comes first."
More than four dozen finalists have now been chosen by the DSS, the city says, and residents can vote for up to six names of their choice by Jan. 31.
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"The top six vote-getting names will be featured on one snowplow in each of the city’s six snow districts," the contest rules say.
Some names in contention are allusions to cult films -- like "Austin Plowers," "Best in Snow," "C3-Psnow" and "Ferris Blizzard's Day Off"-- while others celebrate the more musical side of the arts, with names like "B.B PlowKing," "Plows on Parade," "Chance the Scraper" and "Hey Now, You're a Plow Star."
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Of course, there are names that pay homage to the city itself -- like "Sleet Home Chicago," "Sears Plower" and "Mrs. O'Leary's Plow" -- names that were likely submitted by Cubs' fans, like "Ernie Snowbanks," "Sammy Snowsa" and "Holy Plow!", and at least two names that reference the movie "The Terminator."
In all, there are 50 snowplow names to vote on. Here's the full list.
Once the winning names are chosen, the city says, "residents will be able to view the named snowplows, along with the city’s full snow fleet, in real-time during winter storms," using the city's plow tracker.
That is, of course, if it ever snows again.
