HALF MOON BAY, Calif. (KCBS RADIO) – A man from Minnesota smashed the record books at the 49th Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay on Monday.
Travis Gienger's mostly beige colored pumpkin named "Maverick" tipped the scales at 2,560 pounds, making it the largest pumpkin ever grown in North America, four pounds heavier than the previous record set in New York last week.
The Guinness World Record for heaviest pumpkin ever grown was set in Italy last year at 2,702 pounds.
"At first, I honestly expected more, but I'm super thankful that it's the North American record," he told KCBS Radio. "Super rewarding."
Gienger teaches horticulture and landscaping and makes rockfire tables in his hometown of Anoka, Minnesota. He counts himself fortunate given Minnesota’s weather to be able to grow such a large gourd.
"It shouldn't even happen in Minnesota because our weather goes from 94 to 42 degrees in 24 hours," he said. "We got lucky with this one."
How was Gienger able to haul the massive pumpkin to the Bay Area?
"35 hours of white knuckle driving," he said. "You think driving in a snowstorm is bad, try driving one of these things."
Gienger added that it cost him approximately $1,100 in gas money alone to make the nearly 2,000 mile trip.
He compared winning this pumpkin weigh out to winning the Tour De France on a big wheel.
As a reward, Gienger and his family will spend two nights at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco and at $9 per pound for his pumpkin, he takes home $23,040 which he said he will use for his young daughter Lily’s college fund.
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