An Oregon man has set a new world record by paddling a massive pumpkin boat 73km down a river.
Gary Kristensen, from Happy Valley, carved out his 1,214-pound pumpkin, named “Punky Loafster,” and paddled it down the Columbia River in Washington. His goal was to beat the previous Guinness World Record of about 62 km, and after 26 grueling hours, he succeeded.
Kristensen, who has been growing giant pumpkins since 2011, started transforming them into boats in 2013 for the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta. He’s won that race for four years in a row, but this time, he wanted to tackle something even bigger. His record-breaking journey wasn’t easy—he faced 50 kph winds and choppy waters near the Bonneville Dam. At one point, waves even started spilling over the pumpkin’s edges.
To document his unusual adventure, Kristensen used a camera attached to a broomstick and printed “It’s real” on the side of the pumpkin. This was his way of proving to curious onlookers that, yes, he really was paddling a giant pumpkin down the river!
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