Pumpkin sailor breaks own record by paddling his latest edible boat down US river
Not satisfied with his first record-breaking pumpkin boat journey, Gary Kristensen (USA) returned this year in a brand-new pumpkin vessel to do it all again.
Setting sail in a gigantic carved-out fruit he named Marchflower, Gary completed the longest journey by pumpkin boat (paddling) by travelling 94.26 km (58.57 miles) down the Columbia River in Oregon, on 24 May.
Gary, who has been growing giant pumpkins since 2011, spent over 20 hours in his boat to break his own record of 73.50 km (45.67 miles), set last year in his boat Punky Loafster.
He told us: “I attempted the record again because I felt like I didn’t do as well as I could have. I did the first attempt in October when the river flow is very low.
“I wanted to try in the spring when the flow in the river is better, but the big challenge is growing a giant pumpkin over the winter to have it ready by early spring. That proved to be the biggest challenge and the one that I’m most proud of.”
Gary says he learned a lot from his first attempt, and knew exactly what he needed to do to take his boat even further.
Gary in Marchflower
“I learned how to pay attention to the tides better to make paddling more efficient,” he said. “However, this attempt taught me many more techniques that I would like to use on a future attempt.”
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The biggest challenge this time around was actually finding a comfortable way to sit, as Marchflower – named in tribute to the Mayflower Pilgrim ship because the pumpkin was pollinated in March and harvested in May – was 300 lbs (136 kg) smaller than Punky Loafster.
Although Gary broke his own record by quite some distance, he admits he’s a little disappointed as he originally planned to travel much further.
Gary in Punky Loafster
He said: “I had planned to go more than twice the distance, but the flow on the river was better, but not as good as I had hoped and I damaged the pumpkin trying to tie it off for a rest and decided to not go any further.
“I hope to do it again soon. Maybe next year if I have the right pumpkin and support crew. I have big plans for how to do a better job.”
Gary said both of his record-breaking journeys wouldn’t have been possible without the support of his friend.
He said: “A journey like this is only safe with a good chase boat. My buddy David Nachand followed me on both trips in a pontoon boat and supported me by giving me food, navigating to keep us out of the shipping channel, driving between me and ships to break/lessen the rollers that threatened to sink my pumpkin, and communicating with others on the shore who were following our progress. I’m grateful for Dave’s help.”