Flying pumpkins
Published 12:01 am Tuesday, September 13, 2011
SNOHOMISH — Pumpkins can fly.
At least for several seconds before they fall and smash into the ground.
That principle will be on display this Saturday at the Festival of Pumpkins in Snohomish. Organizers will kick things off with a pumpkin hurl. The event is scheduled to start at 10
a.m., with the pumpkin throw scheduled for noon.
Five teams are scheduled to use trebuchets to launch 10-pound pumpkins into an open field. One of the teams will be crowned champion of the Northwest Regional Pumpkin Hurl.
“The pumpkins will turn into a pulp,” festival manager Debbie Carlson-Gould said.
A medieval fair is to be held at the festival, complete with jousting, archery and mock battles between armored opponents. The event is scheduled for Saturday at Alexander Farm, located in the corner of 43rd Avenue and Ebey Island Road. Tickets costs $5 and parking is $3. Children 4 and under are free.
Six farms in Snohomish and Lake Stevens are behind the Festival of Pumpkins. Other events include pumpkin patches, corn mazes and hay rides planned all through October.
“Last year we had 1,700 people, which is amazing, because in 2009 we had 700 people,” Carlson-Gould said. “That’s a huge increase.”
She believes last year’s turnout was because of the publicity and the expanded medieval fair, which was in its second year.
For the pumpkin hurl, Snohomish County is being represented by a team based in Everett. The other teams come from Ferndale, Sedro-Woolley, Burlington and Langley, B.C.
The teams with funky names like TreBarbaric and Squash-O-Fire have prepared all year for this event.
Winning is fun, but not the main motivation for the competitors, said Fred Smethers who belongs to Squash-O-Fire from Sedro-Woolley.
“We plan to have fun and squash a few pumpkins,” Smethers said.
Alejandro Dominguez: 425-339-3422; adominguez@heraldnet.com.
Pumpkin Hurl
Pumpkins are scheduled to fly at the fourth annual Snohomish Pumpkin Hurl starting at 10 a.m. Saturday at Alexander Farm, at the corner of 43rd Avenue and Ebey Island Road, Everett.
The event includes a medieval fair and children activities.
Tickets cost $5 per person and parking is $3.
Children age 4 and under are free.
For more information, go to www.festivalofpumpkins.org
