Monday Memories: Ice sculptors were rooting for a deep freeze during Frozentosen in 2002

While most Toledo Zoo creatures were snuggled inside, Toledoans braved bitter winter chills, sipping warm hot chocolate while watching sculptors rev up chain saws to carve 300-pound chunks of ice. In this 2002 Blade archive photo, Michigan resident Roy Calo uses a drill to finish an ice dragon’s teeth during a carve-off competition on stage in the zoo amphitheater. But the next day the weather worked against 20 professional artists who were vying for a place to compete in the Winter Olympics in Utah.  Mr. Calo’s Olympic dreams for his piece, ‘Defender of Faith’, melted when the temperature rose, causing its arm to fall off. He told the Blade it was the first time he had tried a method of sculpting that required fusing so many pieces together. ‘It's a very demanding piece, especially [depicting] humans. You have to be very precise in your cutting. But now I know I'm going to do [this piece] again,’ he said. Tajana Raukar of Plymouth, Mich., took first place that year for her sculpture, ‘Passion of Life.’ Go to thebladevault.com/memories to purchase more historical photos taken by our award-winning staff of photographers, past and present, or to purchase combinations of stories and photos.