HALF MOON BAY, Calif. — A Minnesota horticulture teacher has remained the reigning champion of an annual pumpkin-weighing contest in Northern California where his massive gourds have won the top prize four years in a row.
Travis Gienger, of Anoka, Minnesota, beat his closest competitor by 6 pounds to clinch the victory at the 51st World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off on Monday in Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco.
His winning gourd came in at 2,471 pounds, falling short of the world record he set last year with a pumpkin weighing 2,749 pounds.
Gienger, 44, said that as he has done in the past, he focused on having healthy soil and well-fed plants but that a cold fall with record-breaking rain likely impacted his pumpkin's growth.
"We had really, really tough weather and somehow, some way, I kept on working," Gienger said. "I had to work for this one, and we got it done at the end, but it wasn't by much."
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Gienger and his family drove his gargantuan gourd for 35 hours to California.
He said the giant pumpkin's next stop will be in Southern California, where a team of professional carvers will do a 3D carve on it at a Halloween event.
Photos: The 51st World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off
A 977-pound pumpkin owned by Eric Carlson, of Portola Valley, Calif., is raised during a beauty contest, which tied for first, at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Travis Gienger, of Anoka, Minn., reacts as his pumpkin weighs in at 2,471 pounds to win at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Travis Gienger, of Anoka, Minn., middle, celebrates after his pumpkin weighed in at 2,471 pounds to win at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
The pumpkin owned by Travis Gienger, of Anoka, Minn., is inspected before weighing in at 2,471 pounds to win at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Brandon Dawson, of Sonoma County, foreground left, celebrates with his daughter Ayla, 3, after his pumpkin weighed in at 2,465 pounds at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
A pumpkin is inspected before being weighed at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Pumpkins are hoisted up for display before being weighed at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Travis Gienger of Anoka, Minn., second from right, celebrates with his daughter Lily, 3, after his pumpkin weighed in at 2,471 pounds to win at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off on Monday in Half Moon Bay, Calif.
Leonardo Urena, of Napa, celebrates after his pumpkin weighed in at 2,390 pounds at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
A man looks at pumpkins sitting in trucks before they are weighed at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif., Monday, Oct. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Travis Gienger of Anoka, Minn., second from right, celebrates with his daughter Lily, 3, after his pumpkin weighed in at 2,471 pounds to win at the Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off on Monday in Half Moon Bay, Calif.
