SMOKY LAKE - There has to be something in people’s minds that they enjoy so much watching a vehicle being demolished.
Like the popular demolition derby’s at fairs and other events, the pumpkin drop held at the end of the day at the annual Great White North Pumpkin Fair held at Smoky Lake on Oct. 7 always draws a huge crowd of people lined around a car in the center of a large roped off area for safety.
The car was already headed for the wrecking yard, but decorated up fancy by local high school boys.
A large crane lifts up pumpkins to a height of some 90 feet in the air, and on a countdown signal from the crowd, a trip rope releases the pumpkin to come crashing down on the car.
This year, three pumpkins were involved. The first, a smaller pumpkin, missed the car entirely. The second pumpkin, considerably larger, hit the back end of the car, doing a fair bit of damage. The third, and much larger pumpkin hit the target and the car bounced down on it’s springs, and then bounced back up.
It was all over in a matter of less than two seconds, but the crowd loved it.
