Step aside Brushy McBrushface. Public asked to name this Kansas community’s snowplows
Move over Brushy McBrushface. A Kansas City area entity is once again testing the creativity of social media and internet users by asking them to come up with names for snow removal equipment.
This time it’s Olathe and it is seeking names for snowplows.
“The plows have been painted. Now it’s time to give them names!” the City of Olathe said in a Facebook post. “For the first time in #snolathe history, 15 of the City’s residential snowplows will be named by you!”
Olathe has a very active residential base, said Cody Kennedy, a spokesman for the city. During winter storms, the city uses “#snolathe” on social media and also provides a “starting lineup” of the plow drivers to humanize the people who are clearing streets during 12 hour shifts in harsh conditions.
“This is just another way to bring attention to those individuals and kind of have fun with the winter season,” Kennedy said.
But internet and social media users haven’t always played nice when it comes naming such things, often gleefully offering ridiculous names. The most notable is “Boaty McBoatface,” which the public chose in 2016 for the United Kingdom’s newest polar exploration vessel.
UK ministers ultimately overruled the public’s vote and the ship was officially named the RRS Sir David Attenborough in September 2019. The mischievous name, however, was applied to one of the ship’s onboard research submersibles.
Locally, the Kansas City Streetcar asked for the public’s help naming its track sweeper used to clear accumulating snow from the tracks.
“This may disappoint some, maybe even anger others, but seems as Brushy McBrushface won the #kcstreetcar contest by 50%,” streetcar officials announced on Twitter in January 2018.
Despite the history, Olathe doesn’t feel like it is tempting fate, Kennedy said.
“So far, the early returns are that everybody is really kind of having fun with it,” he said, adding that the city has received more than 60 comments on Facebook and Twitter. “The names are rolling in and we’re really pleased with the creativity and the appropriateness of the contest and it just kind of shows how involved that our residents are.”
Some of the names already suggested include Hal, Buster, Nevalyn, Frosty the Snowplow, Barton, Sno No Mo and — of course — Plowy McPlowface.
The blades of the snowplows recently have been painted. The city for the past several years has had a contest where residents and Olathe school students submit a design for the plows.
This year, one of the plows was brought to Clearwater Creek Elementary where students painted it, Kennedy said.
“It’s a fun community event,” he said. “It’s great to see those particular plows in action.”
People are urged to submit their suggested names by Friday by responding to the city posts on Facebook or Twitter accounts and staff will pick their favorites. The winning names will be displayed on the trucks and announced in early December.
