News, Good gourd! RI pumpkin tips scales at 1,661 lbs. (grown, violet, south)

[JD59]

WARREN, R.I. (AP) — A boulder-sized pumpkin weighing 1,661 pounds has taken top honors at a New England regional contest, though it fell short of the world record.
Joe Jutras of Scituate (siht-CHOO'-iht), R.I., sat on his prize-winning gourd Saturday and posed for photos after the annual Southern New England Giant Pumpkin Growers' Annual Weigh-off.

Good gourd! RI pumpkin tips scales at 1,661 lbs. - Yahoo! News

[B4U]

Link doesn't work, John. This is what pops up.

"Sorry, the page you requested either doesn't exist or isn't available right now!"

I love these stories.
I was watching a show over the weekend how these people take great care & pamper these huge babbies. It seems an obsessive hobby for some folks. But all in good fun.

[uggabugga]

the link works for me, but here's a different one: http://newsblog.projo.com/2011/10/jutras-1661-pound-pumpkin-tops.html (broken link)

i'd be happy to have one just a fraction that big - say, 150 lbs or so.

when they get that huge they're not too pretty, all mashed-looking from so much weight:
http://newsblog.projo.com/pumpkin-weigh-off.jpg (broken link)

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by uggabugga

the link works for me, but here's a different one: 1,661-pound pumpkin tops at annual pumpkin weigh-off - Projo 7 to 7 News Blog | Rhode Island news | The Providence Journal (http://newsblog.projo.com/2011/10/jutras-1661-pound-pumpkin-tops.html - broken link)

i'd be happy to have one just a fraction that big - say, 150 lbs or so.

when they get that huge they're not too pretty, all mashed-looking from so much weight:

I’m curious how they move something that large? Maybe they grow them on top of heavy tarps? I would think that it would be hard to get anything under it or to roll it without damaging.

[snofarmer]

Nice pumpkin

The world record
Chris Stevens of New Richmond, Wi. 1810.5 pound pumpkin,

They do put custom tarps or plywood under the big ones Then they use bobcats or construct a tripod and lift them that way using a cone-a-long.

I grew a 304lb one this summer, I've got a long way to go for a record.

[displacedmom]

Hey, I was there at the event in RI and my son took lots of photos. I will have him post more pics when he comes home. These pumpkins were enormous, but some of the biggest was grown in a greenhouse....seems like an unfair advantage to me.