The 2026 Golden Snowball Race Is Underway

As winter is setting in across the Empire State, people in communities from Salamanca to Rye are getting the preparations ready for a long and cold winter.

While the colder temps arrived a bit later than normal this year, folks all over New York State were getting comfortable lazy with getting ready for winter. It seems just like yesterday we were dealing with record cold and rock salt shortages, and now that the snow has started to arrive all over the state, people are scrambling to get ready.

According to the National Weather Service, we saw our first snowfall in the state in late October, and snow started to fall in the rest of the state in mid-November. Now that we're marching towards the official start of winter, there is one statewide award that's given out at the end of the season that no one really wants to win.

The 2026 Golden Snowball Race Is Underway

New York State is known around the world for the snow we get. From the snowcapped peaks of the Adirondack Mountains to the snowy streets of Buffalo, dealing with winter weather is something that we do in the Empire State, and we do it pretty well. So well that for the last few decades, 5 cities in New York have engaged in a friendly annual competition.

The Golden Snowball Award is given to the city that has the most snowfall in any given winter season. This contest is as famous as it is infamous, as the winner has to deal with the thing none of us are truly ready for: lots of snow. And, according to data from the National Weather Service, the race is on.

The 2024/25 award went to Syracuse, New York, who snatched the title away from Buffalo, which had one it for the previous three straight years. So far this year, Syracuse is in the lead, with the other cities trailing behind.

We have a long winter ahead, so we'll check back in next month to see where the snow falls.