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Now that ‘icebox’ is out, Fraser can always fall back on ‘Leaving Planet Earth’

On Friday, it became official that Fraser, Colorado, is not the Icebox of the Nation.

At least, not according to trademark law.

When the media in Minnesota ran an article announcing the decision, they thought it was amusing to note that International Falls fell to 20 below this weekend, while Fraser rose to a balmy 39 degrees.



If only they knew.

We’re a bit disappointed that Fraser apparently lost, but relieved that it’s over (Or is it? Late word is that Fraser officials want to mull it over). Even though the town of Fraser set a cap on how much money it would spend in this legal battle ” it is still taxpayer money that would be better spent elsewhere.



International Falls wasn’t about to drop the lawsuit. For them, the title represented money to be made from the lucrative cold-weather testing industry.

In fact, in an interview with the Associated Press, the International Falls mayor claimed that Fraser was marketing itself to “the industry” as the coldest place in the nation.

As anyone who lives in Fraser knows, the title is more a reflection of the town’s funny, funky spirit than making money from “the industry.”

Now that the courts have ruled, what should Fraser do?

We have a few suggestions:

1. Be sore losers. If Fraser can’t have the title, then no one should. Fraser should help International Falls go after its next victim ” Big Piney, Wyoming ” which also claims to be “Icebox of the Nation” with the coldest average temperatures of any place in the nation. Sound familiar?

2. Regress. There was time when the entrance to Fraser read, “Leaving Planet Earth,” a slogan that brings to mind images of the Mos Eisley Cantina. Enter a town that announces you have just left Planet Earth and you get a sense that the residents live by a different standard.

3. Use some sandpaper and change a word or two. Fraser could be “Icebox of America,” “Icebox of the Northern Hemisphere,” “Icebox of East Grand County.”

4. Ditch Fraser. Over the next couple years, the towns of Winter Park and Fraser will be working toward a merger of the two towns. As they do so, many residents have worried that one town or another will lose its identity if it adopts the name of the other.

Drop the old names. Call them both “Icebox.”

5. What is an icebox anyway?

6. Have a party. Though Fraser is trying to figure out a way to somehow preserve the phrase without violating trademark laws, maybe this could be the birth of a new tradition ” or just a chance to throw a party, Fraser style. That old sign needs to be burned ” to make way for a new chapter, to make way for spring. Perhaps the bonfire could be surrounded by live music and Fraserines in costume.

Or maybe you have a better suggestion.


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