Vandals destroy giant, award-winning pumpkin

The largest pumpkin at the 2007 Kansas State Fair, which weighed more than 976 pounds, is shown Sept. 7 in Hutchinson. Vandals smashed the gourd. They also destroyed an even larger pumpkin belonging to the same family.

? This year’s Kansas State Fair blue ribbon-winning giant pumpkin is no more.

Vandals smashed the 976-pound gourd to pieces. They also destroyed an even larger pumpkin belonging to the same Newton family.

Pumpkin owner and grower Brian Stanley said the larger pumpkin, which was well over 1,000 pounds, was one that his 11-year-old daughter expected to enter in a state weigh-off in Assaria.

Stanley called the vandalism “disgusting.”

“They really smashed them up for us,” he said. “We lost the two big ones we were taking to weigh off. They were so smashed up we weren’t able to do anything with them.”

The vandalism comes three weeks after the close of the state fair, where the Stanley family displayed three of the top four largest pumpkins.

Stanley said his family started growing pumpkins four years ago after watching a TV show. They each picked two pumpkin seeds and together created a pumpkin patch on some land across the street from their home.

In the first year, the family’s largest pumpkin weighed in at 83 pounds. The next year’s pumpkins grew by several hundred pounds, after Stanley did some research and got a co-worker’s giant pumpkin seeds.

“It’s fun,” Stanley said, “because you’re elbowing each other, talking about who’s going to grow the largest.”

Stanley said it takes time and patience to grow a giant pumpkin.

“To have someone destroy all the work we did, it kind of leaves a little bitter taste in my mouth,” he said.

The family was able to salvage the seeds from the larger pumpkins. Two other gourds – one weighing 781 pounds and another 841 pounds – were not touched.

Stanley said they will continue to grow pumpkins regardless.

“We’re just doing what we’re doing because we have fun doing it,” he said. “If there’s a person who’s interested in doing this, there’s nothing better you can do with your family.”