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A Joint Initiative Between Heart of Wisconsin Business & Economic Alliance and Community Foundation of South Wood County |
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Breaking News February 5, 2006 - Snow sculpture big draw By: Beth Burger, Daily Tribune Staff WISCONSIN RAPIDS -- A fresh layer of snow sat atop 20 piles, as teams packed and shoveled to create sculptures. Recent flurries proved helpful for teams in the first-ever Snow Sculpture Spectacular in downtown Wisconsin Rapids. The idea for the event came from five members of a Heart of Wisconsin Business & Economic Alliance Leadership Class. Their goal was to increase tourism and attract residents to the downtown area. They succeeded, as hundreds of people passed through Veterans Memorial Park taking breaks to warm up or continuing on their way after viewing the sculptures. Children lined up, taking turns on a slide carved from snow by Team USA members, who also created a wave and cranberry logo. Nearby, Joanne Keyzer, 44, of Wisconsin Rapids and six other teammates built a polar bear sitting on an Eskimo. The bear had racquet balls for eyes, electrical cord for whiskers and an emu egg for the nose. Food coloring gave the Eskimo's clothing and accessories the proper hue. "We thought it would be something fun to do in the winter time," said Keyzer, who had a team with friends and co-workers from Domtar. "We wanted to do something where people would stop and wonder, 'What's going on there?'" Aside from creating an unusual image, the team's strategy was to avoid angular figures in the sculpture. "We're getting a plop of snow. What's going to be the easiest thing to do in six hours?" said one of the team members, Jeff Steinweber, 35, of Plover. The team already plans to participate in next year's contest. "We're going to do something a little more difficult next year and gradually build on that," he said. Angie Paulsen, an event organizer, said she was pleased with the turnout. "We're very surprised to see the sculptures we saw from the piles of snow we had sitting there this morning," she said. Company teams made logos or objects relating to their businesses. Pioneer Bank made a covered wagon, while Rainbow Casino made a giant slot machine with three sevens lined up. "We'll keep doing (this event) as long as we can do it," Paulsen said. Phil Hartley, another organizer, said it might be expanded next year to include ice sculptures and last into the night to incorporate more downtown businesses. Miranda Lin went to the event with several friends -- taking a nearly five-hour drive from her home in Chicago just for the activity. She posed in front of the polar bear as friends took pictures. "We found out about (the event) from the news and looked for more information online," said Lin, 29. Several sculptures away, Sarena Conley, 16, of Wisconsin Rapids was putting the finishing touches on her project. Her team created a penguin snow sculpture. "Penguins usually have shorts on, but we wanted one with a bikini," she said. Conley worked with a team of four other people to build the penguin, which had a Coke in its hand. "It was fun," she said. "Next year, we'll bring a bucket to haul snow and water to get it to pack easier." |
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