Second annual River Prairie Ginormous Pumpkin Festival

Saturday, September 26, 2020
Jonathan Fortier | WEAU

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) - Fall is in the air and with that comes giant pumpkins.

Growers from around the Badger State gathered Saturday for the second annual River Prairie Ginormous Pumpkin Festival weigh-off. This year's winner, Jim Ford, who is fresh off a win at an event last week, had a pumpkin that weighed in at over 2,000 pounds. Ford says it is nice to still have competitions despite the covid-19 pandemic, saying it takes months of work to grow a giant pumpkin.

"It takes a lot of dedication to grow these things, you don't just put the seed in the ground and come back three or four months later and pick a 2,000 pound pumpkin," Ford says. "There is a lot of care that goes into the growing of these things."

Ford traveled to Altoona from Bristol, Wisconsin where he is a seasonal farmer that grows mostly fruits and vegetables. While the pumpkin came in as Saturday's winner, Ford says the national record for a pumpkin is over 2,500, with the world record being over 2,600 pounds.

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