PICTURES: Clare pupils celebrate as names are revealed for county’s fleet of gritters

Before beginning their summer holidays children across County Clare were busy helping Clare County Council’s roads team name the county’s gritters, ahead of next winter, when the seven-strong fleet are expected back on duty.

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Carriga-cold; Brrrr Loughnane; Kilfreeze; Chilly Clancy; Gritsmilebridge; and Kilfenora Gritter Blast will be visible by their new names next winter thanks to the creativity and hard work of pupils from Coolmeen National School, Clouna NS and Knockerra NS.

Clare County Council held a ‘Name Our Gritter’ competition earlier this year, inviting primary schools from across Clare to take part. Some 122 entries were received from 18 different schools.

The creativity and enthusiasm in each submission were truly spectacular, making the selection process a delightful challenge for Clare County Council’s Roads Team.

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After much deliberation, Clare County Council has revealed that the winning entries came from: Coolmeen NS, Clouna NS, and Knockerra NS.  

A Certificate of Achievement was presented to the schools by Michael McNamara, Senior Executive Engineer, Transportation Department, Clare County Council - just before the summer holidays began.

“We had a blast with the creativity and enthusiasm shown by the school children of Clare in naming our gritters. These very cool names bring a touch of fun and personality to our fleet and will put a smile on our faces as we plough on with our winter programme for 2025/2026," commented Mr McNamara.

With names like these, Carriga-cold; Kilfreeze; and Kilfenora Gritter Blast our gritters are sure to become the coolest celebrities on the roads.

Who needs Hollywood when you have ‘Brrrr Loughnane’ and 'Chilly Clancy’? And for now, remember, stay warm, stay safe, and keep an eye out for 'Gritsmilebridge' on the roads.