Third Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival Set to Launch at the Boyden Family Farm on Sunday, October 2nd, 2011

Cambridge, Vermont - Sept 1, 2011 - Get your trebuchet ready for the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival on Sunday, October 2nd, 2011 at the the Boyden Family Farm in Cambridge, Vermont. The Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival is a fun family event, sponsored by the The Cambridge Area Rotary Club. Since 2009, the festival has been held to benefit the Lamoille Family Center in Morrisville, VT and the Cambridge Rotary.

The festival is a one day event where Do-It-Yourself mechanical wizards of all ages attempt to launch pumpkins as far as possible with trebuchets, which are medieval siege engines.

The festival has been growing in size every year, with 18 teams and over 800 spectators enjoying last year's competition with its music and picnic atmosphere. Music for this years festival will be provided by three bands; Mike Dunn, John Smyth, and the Honeybeez, who will be performing periodically from noon to 4pm.

World Record Attempt!

This year will have more competitors and will also feature an attempt at establishing a world record for most pumpkins simultaneously hurled in a mass volley.

Admission to the festival will cost $5 for adults and $3 for ages 12 and under. The festival goes from from noon to 4pm, featuring 3 competitive firings at 1pm, 2pm and 3pm with awards shortly after. No dogs and no alcohol please. Parking is free. Food will be provided by the Rotary.

Dave Jordan, founder (and competitor) of the festival says, "This is a fun competition modeled after the Soap Box Derby. The height and weight are limited to make it fair for teams with limited resources. The team that throws a pumpkin the farthest for their height will win best design prize and receive first pick of the prizes".

Vermont's Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival is an annual event, held on the first Sunday in October. It is leads up to the world championship "Punkin Chunkin" contest, which is held the first weekend after Halloween in Sussex County, Delaware. The Science Channel is again broadcasting the Delaware championship on Thanksgiving.

The festival will have four categories of competition, which also compete against each other for the Best Overall Design, which is the farthest throw for the height of their trebuchet. The four categories are: Lightweight Division, Middleweight Junior Division, Middleweight Open Division, and Heavyweight Division. It costs $5 to enter the competition. For the exact category specifications, rules, and entry information please visit the festival's website (http://vtpumpkinchuckin.blogspot.com/) for details.

Exciting prizes for the competition winners have been donated by the festival sponsors. Prizes include:

• Glider ride for 2 by Stowe Soaring
• Dinner for 2 by Trattoria La Festa in Stowe
• Dinner for 2 at Bee's Knees in Morrisville
• Umiak Outfitters gift certificate

For more information about the Third Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival, people can visit the festival's website at http://vtpumpkinchuckin.blogspot.com/ or contact the festival organizer Dave Jordan, email: DJordan@GMAVT.net, telephone: (603) 630-4800.

Hurling Season Approaches

There are now only 49 days remaining until the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival, on Sunday, October 2nd, 2011.

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Warwick Castle, Warwickshire, England

We love our trebuchets and "Pumpkin chuckin" in Vermont, but we have a ways to go to match the English for their love of all things medieval. Probably because there is no medieval history for the United States. No knights and trebuchets fought for control of Vermont castle keeps. Yes, those were the days. We will ignore the part about the black plague, famine, and short wretched lives.

Anyway, Warwick Castle, "Britain's Ultimate Castle," runs a medieval theme park that looks like it can be pretty intense. They have their famous Warwick trebuchet that hurls fireballs and realistic jousting tournaments. They also added a new dungeon attraction a couple of years ago that was reviewed as follows:

In the first month since the dungeon opened, 15 people have fainted and another four have vomited, apparently due to fear.

Visitors to the medieval dungeon are greeted by fake blood and life-size models of victims on the rack. Guides demonstrate how prisoners used to have their tongues ripped out.

Sue Kemp, general manager of Warwick Castle, said: "Our first month has certainly proved that the castle dungeon isn't for the fainthearted or those of a delicate constitution."

An official commented: "If there are many more incidents like these then the dungeon will have to be toned down."

Warwick Castle was built by William the Conqueror in 1068 and used as a fortification. Some of the early prisoners were French soldiers...

Publicity for the dungeon attraction refers to "decaying bodies, chanting monks, torture implements and execution."

So, Vermont Pumpkin' Chuckin' is very tame stuff compared to going full medieval like they do at Warwick Castle. We will guarantee that no tongues will be removed at VTPC. But, please feel free to wag your tongues and tell your friends about VTPC.

Here is a nice tame video that shows off some of what goes on at Warwick Castle, including the trebuchet hurl of the fireball at the end.

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Warwick Castle grounds

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Wikipedia says this about the Warwick trebuchet:

In June 2005, Warwick Castle became home to one of the world's largest working siege engines. The trebuchet is 18 metres (59 ft) tall, made from over 300 pieces of oak and weighs 22 tonnes (24 short tons). The machine, which was made in Wiltshire, takes eight men half an hour to load and release. It is designed to be capable of hurling projectiles distances of up to 300 metres (980 ft) and as high as 25 metres (82 ft) and can throw up to 150 kilograms (330 lb) of ammunition at a time. On 21 August 2006, the trebuchet claimed the record as the most powerful catapult of its type when it sent a projectile weighing 13 kilograms (29 lb) a distance of 249 metres (817 ft) at a speed of 260 kilometres per hour (160 mph), beating the previous record held by a machine in Denmark. The war machine is situated on the banks of the River Avon which runs below the castle.

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See you soon!

Be the Pumpkin: Human Hurling Trebuchet (Don't try this at home)

Reminder: there are only 87 days until the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival on Sunday, October 2nd, 2011.

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There was a club in Oxfordshire,
Who wanted humans to fire,
They built a large trebuchet,
Then flung people for play,
Sadly, one poor soul did expire.

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This Dangerous Human Trebuchet from Oxfordshire, England was profiled on a MythBusters episode. The episode, number 35, entitled Border Slingshot, was shown during season 3, and premiered on July 27, 2005. MythBusters tested the following myth:

Is it feasible to fly over the frontier? In this episode, Adam and Jamie take on the myth that illegal immigrants are firing themselves 200 yards across the border and into the United States with a slingshot so accurate, it can land the human projectiles safely on a carefully placed mattress. Border patrols are reportedly baffled — can the MythBusters' handbuilt human-sized slingshot solve the puzzle?

Annotated MythBusters:
In 2000 the Dangerous Sports Club launched Stella Young by trebuchet. She hit the net, then bounced onto the ground, breaking her pelvis. In 2002 a 19 year-old died in his attempt to repeat the stunt, missing the net entirely.

The 'Border Slingshot' myth by the way was busted.

The Dangerous Sport Club website adds more details and photos regarding Stella Young's brush with death and other human hurls. However, they do not mention the poor chap who was killed? You would think that information might be provided as part of a full disclosure on the risks involved.

"Scaredevil Stella: Plucky Dangerous Sports Club member Stella Young"

Stella Feeling Anxious

Travelling at 50mph, Stella begins to exit the arc

Eek!

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There was a woman named Stella,
Who wanted to prove she was not yella,
She got hurled long range,
By some folks deranged,
Now poor Stella's pelvis is jella.

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This crazy club is still asking visitors, "Are you extreme enough to have a go?"

So, do you feel lucky pumpkin chuckers? Do any of you want to be the pumpkin? No thank you here. Pumpkins serve just fine as trebuchet projectiles.

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The MURLIN Trebuchet

Don't forget there are only 121 days until the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival on October, 2nd, 2011.

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There were some folks from Tucson,
Who wanted to get their geek on,
They built a MURLIN trebuchet,
That on YouTube they did display,
Three cheers for brain over brawn.

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YouTube:
Development of a Dynamically Tuned MURLIN Trebuchet [video channel] -- Development of a MURLIN (rhymes with hurlin') trebuchet which is tuned to work with a bending structure.

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The Golf Ball MURLIN:

Full power tests for the 5-armed MURLIN (Multi-Radius Linear Nodes) Trebuchet.

Dropping the full 37.5 counterweight in a still wind results in consistent distances (5 shots) over 600 feet. Longest shot found was 620 ft. The frame is reinforced for these tests because previous movies had shown substantial flexure under the 1000lb load just before release.

I believe my radar gun is unreliable (reading low due to slow sampling rates), but one reading of 127 mph was taken.

If you look carefully, you can see the golf balls actually curve upwards in flight due to the (Magnus effect) spin given by the pouch upon release...

Update: 22 May 2011 - Distances recorded up to 708 ft. this morning in a calm wind. 5mm Spectra cord and larger pulleys responsible for improved performance.

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More videos:

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The Scrappy Old Man of Vermont

Sure it's wet and muddy, and maybe you have books to study, but don't be a fuddy and forget our pumpkin chuck.

There are 170 days until the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival on Sunday, October 2nd, 2011.

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There was an Old Man of Vermont,
Who picked up scraps people don't want,
He build an awesome trebuchet,
And hurled pumpkins far away,
That scrappy Old Man of Vermont.

The Scrappy Old Man of Vermont

An Awesome Trebuchet

 photos via Flickr

The Sheriff of Pumpkinville

Sure it's cold and snowy, and maybe you're icing the puck, but don't forget the chuck.

There are 239 days until the 3rd Annual Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin' Festival.

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There was an Old Sheriff of Pumpkinville.
Who said, 'There is a bit of a chill!
But, watchin' pumpkins get hurled,
And hangin' with my girl,
Is always the ultimate thrill!'

The Sheriff of Pumpkinville and his bride

photo via Flickr