100th Winter Carnival well underway

I made it out early on Thursday morning to catch teams at the tail-end of constructing their month-long snow sculptures. At about 6:30 a.m., the month-long statue teams were just hours away from their 9 a.m. deadline and were rushing to add the finishing touches to their work before the judges arrived.

Delta Zeta and Sigma Phi Epsilon

Delta Zeta and Sigma Phi Epsilon worked together on this month-long sculpture entry, which won 2nd place in the Co-ed Division.

Their motto read “This place is just a few engineers short of a circus.”

The Aquarium Society

The Aquarium Society won 2nd place in the all-nighter statue Co-ed Division with this entry.

I couldn’t resist this dramatic shot of the husky statue.

Army ROTC

The Army ROTC, competing in the month-long Co-ed Division, built a pair of snow tanks.

Using these war machines, they earned 5th place in the month-long Co-ed Division.

Guardians of the North

Behind the tanks, carnival game booths made by the Guardians of the North quietly waited in the shadows for daylight to arrive.

Tau Kappa Epsilon

Tau Kappa Epsilon took 2nd place in the month-long Men’s Division competition with their group of carnival rides and games.

They also took 2nd in the month-long statue contest overall.

Phi Kappa Tau

Phi Kappa Tau has once again dominated the month-long Men’s Division with its impressive collection of constructions, as well as taking 1st place overall.

Their collection of landmarks includes an immediately-recognizable replica of the Quincy Mine’s No. 2 Shaft Rockhouse.

Phi Kappa Tau also built this copy of the Husky statue.

Their motto, still in the works in this photo, says “100 years, they come and go, but still we say ‘let it snow’”.

When I asked what this Phi Kappa Tau member was working on, I was told “You’ll see!” with a smile.

Keweenaw Socialists

New student organization the Keweenaw Socialists pose next to their snow sculpture outside the university library during the Winter Carnival Overnighter. Their statue celebrates the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Soviet Union which happens to coincide with this year's theme, the 100th anniversary of Winter Carnival. They placed 19th of 44 entries in the month-long co-ed division. Photo credit Davi Sprague.

I’m hoping to have the chance to go out again in the next night or two to get photos of finished sculptures, but if the snow buries everything, it may be a lost cause.

If you don’t want to wait, MTU’s communications staff has been doing a great job of taking photographs and getting them posted to their Flickr account. Their album of completed statues is as good as you could ask for. You can also check out more contest results, Winter Carnival Royalty, the weekend schedule of events, and more at the official 100th Carnival website.

MTU's Flickr

100th Carnival Website