Half Moon Bay Hosts Pumpkin Weigh-offs

For many U.S. residents, pumpkins are important. Some use people use pumpkins to make soups, bread, and they carve jack-o-lanterns. Then there are people who just spend time growing the pumpkins to make them giant to compete at the pumpkin weigh-offs. There are many competing tons like this but this particular one is in Half Moon Bay, California, which prides itself on being the 'Pumpkin Capital of the World'.

This is the 44th year of the competition. The winner has an opportunity to take home as much as $30,000 USD. That is the highest offer for a pumpkin-weighing competition. In order to claim the prize, contestants have to submit a 'World Record Pumpkin'. That means that everyone is trying to break the record. It has to be 2,323 pounds to break the record. The winner recieves $6 dollars every pound it weighed.

On October 12, thousands of people lined up along the city's High Street and watched as proud owners stood by their pumpkins. Each pumpkin was poked with pitchforks and placed to be weighed. Steven Daletasc, a 55 year-old, that took the prize home. His pumpkin was vanilla colored pumpkin was 1,969 pounds. It wasn't enough to beat the record. But he did receive $12,000 USD. Steven has won the 'Pumpkin Weigh-offs' three times in a row.