Why do Big Shots matter?

By Elly Kobach

This will be the third year in a row SIMA and Snow Business magazine have run the Big Shots competition. In a nutshell, anyone who receives Snow Business magazine can take a fun, creative, or goofy shot of themselves or someone from their organization, with an issue of the magazine visible in the photo. From there, they simply submit their photo to the contest at http://www.GoPlow.com/bigshots-contest, and then the rest is up to the GoPlow.com community and the Snow Business task force to decide who this year’s Big Shot will be.

But why do we do this in the first place? There are several reasons actually.

First, we believe that the people who receive Snow Business are in general dedicated, hard-working, fun loving people. SIMA and the magazine do a lot to illustrate how professional and business-driven our industry can be, but we don’t want to forget that this is an industry that is down-to-earth and likes to have fun as well.

Second, the Big Shots contest provides us another opportunity to help someone from the industry attend the annual Snow & Ice Symposium. The winner receives free registration, $500 cash, transportation from the airport, and a free upgrade to a suite during the show. The 2^nd and 3^rd place winners also receive cash which can help them get to the show if they desire.

Third, we want the professionals in our industry to have an opportunity to compete and engage with each other throughout the year, and have something fun and interesting to do leading up to the show. This type of tradition is important, and highlights the diversity and creativity of the people who make up this industry.

So what are you waiting for? Get out your phones or cameras, grab an issue of Snow Business, and get creative! Submit your photo by April 1^st, 2013 for a chance to win.

Special thanks to Chrysler for sponsoring the 2013 Big Shots competition, and for offering a great discount to SIMA members, see more here.

Elly Kobach is the Certification & Communications Coordinator for the Snow & Ice Management Association and can be reached at Ellen@sima.org.