What can one make with two days and 20 blocks of ice? Beautifully detailed sculptures and a cool $2,000.
That’s the honor that Greg Schmotzer of Hastings and Chris Swarbrick of Hudson, Wis., took home Saturday afternoon, Jan. 26, at the conclusion of the St. Paul Winter Carnival’s Multi-Block Ice Carving Competition, held in Rice Park.
Their ice sculpture, “Jack Frost,” won first place, beating five other teams.
In second place, Larry Fischer of Mendota Heights; Rob Graham of Minneapolis; Terry Reis of Mediapolis, Iowa; and Tom Schiller of Hastings won $1,000 for their sculpture, “The Royal Tale of Two: Winter & Summer.”
In third place, John Cooper, Timothy K. Moore II and John Njoes, all of Minneapolis, won $500 for their sculpture, “Snowball Fight.”
The competition began at 9 a.m. Thursday; teams had until 9 a.m. Saturday to finish their pieces. Each team was given 20 blocks of ice measuring 40 inches by 20 inches by 10 inches, and weighing 300 pounds a piece.
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