2010 Half Moon Bay
World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off

10/11/2010 by Hauntmistress

Ron Root has brought the pumpkin glory back to California with his winning 1,535-pound pumpkin at today’s Half Moon Bay World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off. The last time a pumpkin from California won this competition was in 1999.

Root, 50 years old, is from Citrus Heights, 20 minutes northeast of Sacramento. His prize is $6 per pound, so he’s taking home $9,210 for growing his giant pumpkin.

Coming in second place was Brant Bordsen, of Marysville, with a 1,476-pound giant. Leonardo Urena of Napa came in third place with a 1,401-pound heavy.

Root’s pumpkin didn’t break any records, but what was groundbreaking about today’s weigh-off was that more than 13 pumpkins weighed more than 1,000 pounds. This is the most pumpkins of a half-ton or more to have been entered in a single competition.

At a different weigh-off this month, a new world champion pumpkin weighed in at 1,810.5 pounds from Wisconsin.