University of Delaware
Office of Public Relations
The Messenger
Vol. 5, No. 1/1995
Punkin chunkin' challengers
     
     They fly through the air with the greatest of ease. It's the
landings that remind you they are squash. They're the pumpkins
sacrificed each fall in Lewes, Del., at the annual Punkin'
Chunkin' World Championships. The event, now in its l0th year,
encourages entrants to chunk punkins as far as they can. Hopeful
entrants in this year's competition included three recent UD
grads, Wayne Morton, Jason Iceman (in hat) and his wife Lena
Mattila Iceman, all Delaware '95. Morton and Iceman, infatuated
with the annual contest, built the punkin' chunker shown here as
their senior design project in mechanical engineering. The Blue
Hen Hurler, as the machine was called, was designed to hurl 8-10
pound pumpkins 400 feet. It lived up to expectations, but
unfortunately, another entry sent its pumpkin flying 525 feet to
win the competition. Iceman says the design duo may compete again
next year. Mattila Iceman, by the way, earned her degree in
biology.