Growers from across the country descended on the California coast carrying with them some of the world’s most gargantuan pumpkins.
The giant pumpkin weigh-off, held annually ahead of Half Moon Bay’s pumpkin festival just south of San Francisco, is considered by competitors to be a Super Bowl of sorts in the unique sport, and the behemoths entered this year – some weighing as much as an average rhinoceros – did not disappoint.
Travis Gienger, a horticulture teacher – who lugged his 2,560lb pumpkin all the way from Minnesota – took top prize and set a new record. The trip took him 35 hours.
“You think driving in a snowstorm is bad? Try driving one of these things,” Gienger said. But it paid off. He and his enormous pumpkin were awarded $23,040 in prize money.
Gienger named his pumpkin “Maverick” after it survived an early-season mishap. A 5lb bucket of dirt was accidentally dropped on it a few days after it sprouted but the steadfast squash survived. “No one really thought it would make it,” Gienger said. “But it just healed up and came back.”
Pumpkins like Gienger’s giant don’t happen by chance. They are carefully cultivated by elite growers who share and swap special seeds, each year pushing the boundaries of what was once thought possible. Maverick’s seed was borne from the same behemoth that produced a Guinness World Record held by an Italian grower, who raised a 2,702lb pumpkin last year. Gienger got the highly sought-after seed through a trade.
“My seed from 2020 went on to grow some of the biggest orange beautiful pumpkins,” he said, adding that another grower preferred splendor over size. “And of course I grew an ugly pumpkin,” he said with a laugh.
Ugly or not, Maverick now holds the title as the heaviest in North America. Still, the craft is about more than just competition. It’s one centered in camaraderie and collaboration. “Every time we go to any of the weigh-offs it is like a family reunion that we the growers have,” Leonardo Urena, a grower from Napa, California, told the Guardian last year. “It’s a good sport because there is no jealousy or rivalry.” Even if his own pumpkin doesn’t place, the winner could have come from seeds he gifted other growers. This year, Urena wasn’t able to enter any pumpkins so he helped judge and facilitate the competition.
Even with the perfect start, it’s not easy to grow giants. They need the right amount of space, a refuge from pests and nurturing soil that helps fuel the sugars inside. When the recipe is right, the pumpkins can gain roughly 50 pounds a day. Things can go awry at any stage and even a tiny rupture in their delicate and squishy skin can mean disqualification from the contest.
Gienger’s gourd was a remarkable feat not just for its girth but also because of where it was grown. His home state doesn’t exactly offer the most ideal conditions. Consistency is key, according to Gienger, who added that where he lives and grows temperatures can shift from 96F to 40F (36C to 4C) in an instant.
“Minnesota has a great midyear, but our spring in our parts is really, really tough. So to do it in Minnesota, it just shouldn’t happen,” Gienger said. But he’s not questioning it. So far, it seems, he’s got enough magic ingredients to make those special seeds sprout. “It’s like winning the Tour de France on a big wheel,” he said. “You know, you can only hope, but it worked.”
Maverick will be on display at the 50th Half Moon Bay art and pumpkin festival, held on 15 and 16 October, before it will attempt to break another record – the largest carved jack-o’-lantern. Then its special seeds will be shared around the world in preparation for next year’s season, which usually starts around mid-April. But for now, Gienger and his giant are still celebrating. This isn’t his first win – he took the title in 2020 as well – but this is his biggest.
“If any lesson was to be learned with this, it is perseverance,” he said. “It took me a minute to process. I had to look at it and look at the crowd, and look at it again – and go, ‘Hey, that’s not so bad, I won.’”
The Associated Press contributed reporting
