An average amount of snowfall in Buffalo has put the city ahead of all others in the country in seasonal snow totals.
Barring a spring blizzard in Boulder or Anchorage, Buffalo’s 95.3 inches of snowfall this season – just an inch above its annual average – may be enough to claim the unofficial title of snowiest U.S. city for the second time in four years.
Buffalo leads Anchorage by 6 inches, Rochester by 8.3 inches and Boulder by nearly 14.9 inches in the Golden Snow Globe contest run by Pat DeCoursey, a former Syracuse resident who now tracks snowfall around the nation from his home in North Carolina. Syracuse currently was in fifth place among cities of at least 100,000 people, with 74.1 inches, far below its average of 126.4 inches.
DeCoursey said the national contest was still too early to call, especially considering what happened in 2021, when Lakewood, Colo., came from 40 inches behind in March to claim the top spot with 82.5 inches, nearly 25 inches more than its seasonal average. Buffalo finished fifth in 2020-21.
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But the Golden Snowball award, presented to the city in New York with the most snow for the season, is there for Buffalo’s taking – if the city wants it.
DeCoursey, who usually doesn’t declare a Golden Snowball winner until May 1, acknowledged Wednesday that Buffalo’s lead over Rochester and perennial winner Syracuse appears insurmountable. Buffalo also won the state contest last year and in 2018-19.
In both instances, the Golden Snowball trophy never made it to Buffalo City Hall, which continues to miff some members of the Western New York Chapter of the American Meteorological Association.
Mayor Byron W. Brown told News reporter Stephen T. Watson in 2020 that he had no interest in the contest or in attending a celebratory event at a Thruway stop to get the trophy.
"As busy as I am, in the second-largest city in New York State, that really wouldn't be how I want to spend my time – driving to pick up the Golden Snowball trophy," Brown told Watson at the time. The mayor also said then that city officials wouldn't reject the trophy if someone wanted to bring it around to City Hall.
Brown's level of enthusiasm for the snowfall contests hasn't changed.
"We continue to focus on recovery from the pandemic, making sure that our City is positioned to move forward as quickly and safely as possible," he said on Thursday in a prepared statement. "The Golden Snowball trophy is a clear recognition of the significant amount of snow that fell in Buffalo this winter."
Stephen Vermette said he doesn’t understand the mayor’s lack of interest and wishes the city would actively participate in what would be a fun event that draws attention to Buffalo.
“The fact that Buffalo gets snow should not be seen as a detriment,” said Vermette, a geology professor who teaches meteorology and climatology at SUNY Buffalo State and is a member of the American Meteorological Association. “Anything that draws attention to the city, I think, is good.”
The city’s snowfall records reflect well on its residents, who are proud of how they handle all that snow, Vermette added.
“We’re a snowy city. We’re a tough bunch,” he said. “We can take it.”
Besides, Buffalo would do well to market itself as a cold weather destination with lots of snow and lively winter events, he added.
DeCoursey said he was surprised by Brown's reaction to the trophy.
"All the other mayors have fun with it," he said.
The contest wasn't meant to be taken seriously, he added.
"I mean, winter's long," he said. "It's just kind of to make some fun of it to pass a long winter."
Still, Vermette was hopeful that enough squalls already had piled up in Buffalo this year to take the national Snow Globe, in addition to the Snowball. The city last captured both titles in 2018-19.
Buffalo isn't likely to get much more measurable snow going forward to add to its lead.
A mid-January snowstorm that dropped nearly 20 inches of snow at the Buffalo-Niagara International Airport and clogged up city streets for days was the biggest snow event in an otherwise regular year for flurries.
This season, Anchorage has had 14 inches more snowfall than its average, and there is no snow on the horizon in the short-term forecast, said National Weather Service meteorologist Michael Kutz. But, he added, the average last snowfall for the city isn’t until May 15.
A more serious challenge to Buffalo’s snow supremacy could come from Boulder or some Great Plains cities, which can be prone to spring storms with huge snowfall amounts, Vermette said.
Probably not this year, though. The forecast through April 27 in Boulder called for daily high temperatures in the 60s, with some days reaching into the mid-70s, according to the Weather Channel.
