Hamilton snowplow named after Arkells lead singer Max Kerman in landslide vote win

TORONTO – Max Kerman can fill a stadium with his rock band Arkells, but his latest claim to fame will be how his namesake clears the streets.

The frontman of the Hamilton act secured a landslide victory in the city’s name-that-plow contest, resulting in one of 10 newly named plows being dubbed the “Max Kermanator.”

Kerman told The Canadian Press he was “delighted” by the “incredibly stupid” honour.

“I don’t even own a car, so having my own snowplow is pretty cool,” he said Monday.

But the rocker said it’s possible nobody was more excited by the results than his father, who put his heart into campaigning.

“He was telling all of his friends about it, really spreading the word. All his friends were voting for ‘the Kermanator’ to win,” he said.

The Arkells singer was anonymously nominated last year, and emerged the clear favourite Friday when it was revealed “Max Kermanator” secured more than 18,700 votes.

That was well ahead of “Plowy McPlowface,” which nabbed about 2,200 votes for second place, and “CTRL-SALT-DELETE,” which drew about 1,100 votes for the third spot.

The honour follows eight Juno wins and last summer’s massive outdoor concert at Hamilton’s Tim Hortons Field when Arkells hosted an estimated 27,000 fans for a show dubbed The Rally, along with Haviah Mighty, K.Flay, and the band Mt. Joy.

Kerman said he’d like to have his name emblazoned across a Zamboni in the future.

“That’s the next one,” he joked. “I can dream.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2023.

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