Watertown Current: SDDOT contest winner gets up-close look at snowplow he named

https://watertowncurrent.com/sddot-contest-winner-gets-up-close-look-at-snowplow-he-named/

Mike Marshall of Bryant is planning a second retirement. 

His first came several years ago when he wrapped up a long career as a high school English teacher. His latest retirement comes after a much shorter career as a namer of snowplows. 

Marshall was one of the 12 winners across the state this year in the annual Snowplow Naming Contest organized by the S.D. Department of Transportation. Over the past six years, 72 snowplows have been given monikers submitted by contest entrants. Twelve plows, one in each of the SDDOT’s 12 regions, are named each year. 

Marshall’s winning entry for the Watertown area this year was “Scraping By.” The plow will be stationed at the SDDOT facility in Hayti. 

“I entered a few names in the contest,” Marshall told The Watertown Current, “but to tell the truth, I didn’t remember any of them until I got the e-mail saying I won.” 

This was the second year that Marshall submitted names in the contest, but he said it will be his last. 

“I’ll give someone else a chance,” he said. “I noticed that a lot of the entries come from school kids, but I think I will try to get some people at the (Parkview) Assisted Living facility in Bryant involved next year. It’s a lot of fun to come up with names.” 

On average, the SDDOT contest draws 700 submissions annually from individuals, classrooms, and businesses. 

The main driver of Scraping By will be Alan Salo, also of Bryant, who has been driving snowplows for the SDDOT for seven years. Scraping By is a 2023 Freightliner that has only about 10,000 miles on it. The big rig cost around $390,000. 

Marshall grew up in Brookings. His father, Stan Marshall, served as athletic director at South Dakota State University from 1965 to 1980. He was inducted into the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame in 1981. Stan Marshall’s name currently graces the building that houses Jackrabbit athletic offices. 

Last year’s winning name for the Watertown area plow was “Hans Snowlo,” submitted by 11-year-old Cruz Russell of Watertown, then a sixth-grader at Watertown Intermediate School. The Watertown-area winning names from previous years were Frostimus Prime (2023-2024), Snowmagator (2022-2023), Control/Salt/Delete (2021-2022), and Thaw Enforcement (2020-2021). 

“Each winter, South Dakotans place their trust in the SDDOT to keep our state highways open. From families traveling statewide for recreational purposes to truck drivers transporting goods that fuel our economy, everyone depends on a reliable and safe public transportation system,” said South Dakota Transportation Secretary Joel Jundt. “Last winter, SDDOT introduced a new text notification service that provides subscribers with direct updates for any winter-related Interstate closure. This free service builds upon our SD511 system, making it even easier for drivers to access current information seamlessly.” 

As part of the contest, SDDOT also creates snowplow and winter driving awareness coloring sheets, crossword puzzles, and word finds for families and classrooms. New materials are available for download on the contest page at https://dot.sd.gov/snowplow. 

A few years ago, SDDOT added the Blizzard Bracket competition during the March Madness season. The Blizzard Bracket provides additional opportunities to engage with the public and promote winter safety messaging during the often snow-filled spring months. The Blizzard Bracket includes all named plows. 

In 2025, SDDOT partnered with the North Dakota Department of Transportation to co-host the Dakota Battle of the Blades, featuring top snowplow names from each state. When the final votes were tallied, “Thaw Patrol” (named by the first-grade class at Winner Elementary) was crowned champion over North Dakota’s “Plower Ranger.” SDDOT hosted a celebration at Winner Elementary for “Thaw Patrol” with Gov. Larry Rhoden to celebrate the victory for South Dakota. 

“While we cannot predict the winter weather, all of us can control how we prepare and respond,” Jundt added. “The snowplow naming contest helps us build awareness about SDDOT’s winter maintenance operations and the many resources available to the traveling public to make safe travel decisions.”