Minnesota grower wins again at World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off

The title of world champion pumpkin will remain in Minnesota for another year.

Travis Gienger from Anoka County successfully defended his title on Monday at the World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in Half Moon Bay, Calif.

Gienger’s pumpkin weighed in at 2,471 pounds. That wasn’t enough to beat the world record he set last year — that pumpkin was 2,749 pounds — but it was enough to win this year’s title by just six pounds over the runner-up.

Gienger told the crowd it was a tough start to the growing season, so he named his pumpkin “Rudy” — a nod to the underdog in the famous football movie.

“If you would have talked to me in June, I didn’t think I’d even be here,” he said, during a livestream of the weigh-in. “So being on this stage, with family and friends gathered in this crowd — I mean, you can’t ask for anything more.”

It’s the fourth time Gienger has won the world championship. The secret to growing a champion pumpkin?

“Focus on soil biology and soil health, and the rest should take its course,” he said.

Gienger earns $9 a pound for the win — and he said the winning pumpkin will be carved by professionals in Los Angeles. The theme of that carving is yet to be announced.