The Golden Snowball Award is an annual award presented to the Upstate New York

Upstate New York

Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...

 city that receives the most snowfall in a season. The original award was the result of a friendly competition of National Weather Service

National Weather Service

The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...

 offices in Upstate. After the Rochester

Rochester, New York

Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...

 and Syracuse

Syracuse, New York

Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...

 offices closed in the mid-1990s, the competition died out.

The award was revived during the 2002-2003 snowfall season, in which Syracuse won. It has won every year since then as well. The prize is accompanied by a ceremonial $100 check to one of that city's school's hat and mitten drive.

Compared to Syracuse's average snowfall of 116.9 inches, or nearly 10 feet per year, New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

's annual snow average is a relatively small 2-3 feet per year in the city and about 3-4 feet per year in nearby suburbs due to the oceanic influence keeping much of the precipitation as rain in the winter. For the first time ever, during the 2005-06 winter season New York City did have more snowfall than Albany

Albany, New York

Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...

, mainly due to the Blizzard of 2006

North American blizzard of 2006

The Blizzard of 2006 was a nor'easter that began on the evening of February 11, 2006. It dumped heavy snow across the Northeast United States from Virginia to Maine through the early evening of February 12 and ended in Atlantic Canada on February 13...

, which was the city's biggest snowfall ever, while Albany was on the extreme northern fringe.

The cities that compete for the award are

• Albany
  Albany, New York
  Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
  
  
• Binghamton
  Binghamton, New York
  Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
  
  
• Buffalo
  Buffalo, New York
  Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
  
  
• Rochester
  Rochester, New York
  Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
  
  
• Syracuse
  Syracuse, New York
  Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
  
  

Until the 2006-2007 season, several smaller cities also competed for a smaller award, that includes a $50 check. These are:

• Fulton
  Fulton, Oswego County, New York
  Fulton is a small city in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 11,855 at the 2000 census. The city is named after Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat.The city of Fulton is located in the western part of the county....
  
  
• Oswego
  Oswego, New York
  Oswego is a city in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 18,142 at the 2010 census. Oswego is located on Lake Ontario in north-central New York and promotes itself as "The Port City of Central New York"...
  
  
• Utica
  Utica, New York
  Utica is a city in and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 62,235 at the 2010 census, an increase of 2.6% from the 2000 census....
  
  
• Watertown

Winners of the Golden Snowball

• 2002-2003: Syracuse
• 2003-2004: Syracuse
• 2004-2005: Syracuse
• 2005-2006: Syracuse
• 2006-2007: Syracuse
• 2007-2008: Syracuse
• 2008-2009: Syracuse
• 2009-2010: Syracuse