By Michelle Vendegna, Reporter-Herald
Members of the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office gathered Tuesday in Fickel Park in Berthoud to stomp snow in preparation for the first Colorado State Snow Sculpting Competition, which starts Wednesday.
The snow carving competition coincides with Berthoud’s first Snowfest, which organizers hope will offer plenty of winter fun for the next few days.
“We are not just law enforcement, we are part of the community,”said Sgt. James Anderson of the Berthoud Squad for the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office.
Anderson was in charge of assembling the team to help pack snow to create 10-foot-tall cylinders that are 7.5 feet in diameter. Each block took about two hours to pack. They’ll be carved by nine teams that have until 11 a.m. Saturday to finish their piece — no power tools allowed. Results will be announced shortly after the competition ends. The winner gets the opportunity to advance to the U.S. National Snow Sculpting Competition in Lake Geneva, Wis., and they get a spot in the Berthoud Parade of Lights on Saturday night.
Teams of various community members volunteered throughout Monday and Tuesday to create the snow cylinders. To pack that much snow was quite a workout for those who participated.
“My vision was Lucille Ball stomping grapes,” said first-time snow stomper Claire Taylor, a member of the Berthoud Chamber of Commerce. It turned out to be a lot more work. They used tools to break up the large pieces and pack it down. “After about five minutes we were out of breath.”
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