In a sign of cabin fever raging in Minnesota’s Twin Cities, politicians in St. Paul took what the mayor called a “tough guy stance” and challenged the Minneapolis mayor and city council to a snowball fight.
The famously rivalrous Twin Cities have shattered the record for snowiest February, with 31 inches already, topping the 1962 record of 25.6 inches for the entire month.
That prompted St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter to take a fresh poke at Minneapolis, stoking an intercity feeling of competition that dates back generations, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported. The mayor and city council members posted a video on social media with this comment: “We, the elected officials of the @cityofsaintpaul do hereby officially challenge you to a snowball fight this Sunday, February 24 at 1:00 PM at McMurray Field in Saint Paul. Assemble your crew! #BoldNorth.”
“We all have cabin fever. We’re all sick of all this snow,” Carter told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “We might as well have some fun with it.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey responded to the challenge with his own video, showing him sitting unperturbed on a snowy bench outside City Hall ― without coat, hat or gloves.
An off-camera voice says, “Mayor Frey, Mayor Carter just challenged you and the entire council to a snowball fight.”
Briefly looking up from the book he’s reading, a severely understated Frey says, “Yeah, we’ll see you there.”
The planned snowball fight will consist of three rounds: one for elected officials and city staff members, one for children under 12, and one for people over 12, according to the Star Tribune. The Parks and Recreation Department also will offer additional activities.
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