Washington DC Snowball Fight Association

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The first snowball fight organized by the group at the Dupont Circle Fountain on February 6, 2010 Snowball fight at Dupont Circle fountain, Washington DC (6 February 2010).jpg
The first snowball fight organized by the group at the Dupont Circle Fountain on February 6, 2010
A DCSFA snowball fight on the National Mall in January 2019 Snowdown Snowball Fight - Flickr - Kyle T..jpg
A DCSFA snowball fight on the National Mall in January 2019

The Washington DC Snowball Fight Association (DCSFA) is a loose group of residents of Washington, D.C., United States, who organize large-scale snowball fights via social media when the city gets significant amounts of snow. [1] Initially organized by Michael Lipin and Ami Greener, the first large snowball fight occurred in Dupont Circle on February 6, 2010, after the region received more than 30 inches (760 mm) of snow during the February 5–6, 2010 North American blizzard. [2] [3] [4] More than 5,000 people RSVPed to the snowball fight on Facebook, and around 2,000 attended. [3] [5]

The snowball fights have garnered local, national and international press attention and have become a local tradition. [3] [6] [7] [8] [1] According to co-organizer Denis Baranov, for the DCSFA to schedule a fight requires at least four inches (100 mm) of snowfall, with the snow neither too flaky nor too wet. [4]

Snowball fights and locations

Following the first series of snowball fights during the record-setting 2009–2010 winter snowfall, [9] DCSFA continued to organize events. It held large snowball fights in Dupont Circle during a January 2011 nor'easter, [6] during the January 20–22, 2014 North American blizzard, [10] during a March 2015 winter storm, [11] and amid the January 2016 United States blizzard. [12]

DCSFA organized snowball fights on the National Mall during a March 2014 winter storm, [7] [8] on January 13, 2019, [13] in January 2021 during a nor'easter, [14] and again during a January 2022 nor'easter. [15] Meridian Hill (Malcolm X) Park became the site of a snowball fight during the February 14–15, 2015 North American blizzard. [16]

The January 13–16, 2024 North American winter storm brought two DCSFA events, one on January 16, on the National Mall [17] [18] and a second four days later in Franklin Square, the first time since 2010 that the group had organized two in one week. [19] During the January 5–6, 2025 United States blizzard, with up to a foot of snow forecast for Washington, a DCFSA snowball fight returned to Meridian Hill Park. [20] [1]

The DCSFA scheduled a snowball fight at the National Mall for January 25, 2026, during the January 2026 North American winter storm, but cancelled the event due to poor weather. [21] [22]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "As snow returns to DC, so does a District tradition: The group snowball fight". NBC4 Washington. Archived from the original on February 21, 2025. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Snowmageddon 2010: DC region's unprecedented snowfall struck 14 years ago". FOX 5 DC. February 5, 2024. Archived from the original on February 5, 2024. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 "2,000 join in snowball fight at Dupont Circle in D.C." washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  4. 1 2 Perkins, Nick. "Meet the GW alum orchestrating DC's cutthroat snowball scrimmages". The GW Hatchet. Archived from the original on January 14, 2025. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  5. ↑ DC Snowball Fight Club. "Washington, DC Snowball Fight Association Events". Facebook . Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Not again! Another snowstorm hits East Coast". San Diego Union-Tribune. January 26, 2011. Archived from the original on January 16, 2026. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  7. 1 2 "Huge snowball fight in Washington – video". The Guardian. March 4, 2014. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  8. 1 2 "Fast-falling snow storm hits US East". BBC News. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Monday marks 13th anniversary of DC's blockbuster 'Snowmageddon' storm". WJLA. February 6, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Dupont Circle Snowball Fight Draws Hundreds". NBC4 Washington. January 22, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  11. ↑ "D.C. battles through a snow day with snowball fight at Dupont Circle". WTOP. March 6, 2015. Archived from the original on March 8, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Giant Snowball Fight Erupts in Washington, D.C." NBC News. January 24, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  13. ↑ Herrnstadt, Dana. "Snow day? S'no problem! Q&A with Michael Lipin, manager of D.C. Snowball Fight Association". The Black and White. Archived from the original on December 3, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  14. ↑ "D.C. area's biggest snowstorm in two years brings slick roads, but much-needed respite". The Washington Post. January 31, 2021. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Snomicron 2022: Snowball battle held in US amid record snowfall; See pics". Deccan Herald. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Captain America and his band of crazed millennial snowballers wage icy battle in Meridian Hill Park". Washington Post. February 17, 2015. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  17. ↑ "DC delights in first snow of 2024 with sledding, National Mall snowball fight". NBC4 Washington. Archived from the original on February 28, 2024. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  18. ↑ Rogers, Winston (January 16, 2024). "'Battle of Snowpenheimer': National Mall transforms into epicenter for snowball fight". WJLA. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  19. ↑ More, Maggie (January 19, 2024). "DC Snowball Fight Association plans second fight for Friday evening as more snow drifts over the District". NBC4 Washington. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  20. ↑ Salamy, Elissa (January 6, 2025). "DC snowball fight set for Monday morning". FOX 5 DC. Retrieved January 16, 2026.
  21. ↑ "DC Snowball fight on the National Mall cancelled as snow turns to sleet". WJLA. January 25, 2026. Archived from the original on January 25, 2026.
  22. ↑ "DC snowball fight cancelled due to sleet". FOX 5 DC. January 25, 2026. Archived from the original on January 25, 2026. The Washington DC Snowball Fight Association had planned a snowball fight to take place on the National Mall on Sunday, January 25 at 11 a.m., and then moved the time up to 9 a.m. to try to get the snowball fight in before sleet began falling. On Sunday morning, organizers canceled the snowball fight. "It's just not snowball weather," according to FOX 5's Tom Fitzgerald.
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