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Are there pictures of the pumpkin "boats" available anywhere on the web? I would love to see what they look like!!!! -----Original Message----- From: bob johnson <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sunday, October 24, 1999 6:37 PM Subject: NEWS: Pumpkins for Parkinson's Thought listserv members might enjoy reading about this clever fund raising effort by Dr. Steve DeFossez reported in today's Boston Globe. bob johnson Holbrook, MA ____________________________________________________ Pumpkin boat race for charity By Caroline Louise Cole, Boston Globe Correspondent, 10/24/99 OXFORD, MA- Ever wondered what happens to those massive, prize-winning pumpkins after the fall fair season winds down? While most end up as giant jack-o'-lanterns or dozens of pumpkin pies, at least some of them head for open water. Consider the 798-pound winner of last month's Eastern States Exposition in Springfield. Yesterday, it was hollowed out and fitted with a 3.3-horsepower outboard motor in an attempt to set the New England pumpkin speed record during the Giant Pumpkin Regatta on Stiles Pond. Puttering along at 3 miles per hour, with captain Alan Reynolds of Durham, Conn., at the helm, the giant gourd lost to a lesser squash, a 630-pounder from Weare, N.H. The charity event, which raised more than $2,000 for Parkinson's disease research, was the brainchild of Steve Defossez, a local competitive pumpkin grower who was looking for a fun way to help his father, Raymond, and others disabled by the degenerative disease. No one was more surprised than Defossez that the three vegetable boats in the regatta not only stayed afloat but remained seaworthy long enough to give rides to several adults and youngsters who crowded the beach to watch the event. ''Until I settled into the hull, I was prepared to take a cold bath,'' Defossez said about the pond's 50-degree water. ''I was sure my foot was going to go right through the bottom.'' Wayne Hackney of New Milford, Conn., another grower of giant pumpkins, is the first person credited with turning a giant pumpkin into a personal watercraft, according to Hugh Wiberg, founder of the All New England Giant Pumpkin Contest held annually at the Topsfield Fair. ''When I first heard what he was intending to do three years ago, I thought he was crazy, but, by God, the pumpkin not only didn't sink right off, it floated long enough for him to get quite a ride out of it,'' said Wiberg, of Wilmington. ''People do a lot of good with giant pumpkins after the contest, but it is generally along the lines of a giant jack-o'-lantern for a nursing home or for pumpkin pies for an entire hospital.'' After the gourds were hollowed out, the boaters bolted on a plywood deck to provide some stability and a place to secure their engines. The third boat in yesterday's event was a 400-pounder donated by Fran Dalton of Newburyport. Defossez's son, Christopher, 9, rode it in the initial races until other parents were confident enough to allow their children a try. ''We're Coast Guard rated,'' said Defossez, holding up his life jacket. ''Our only deficiency is the lack of a boat registration. I didn't apply because I didn't think the state would know how to classify a vegetable.'' Donations can be sent to Pumpkins for Parkinson's, Beverly Hospital, 85 Herrick Road, Beverly, MA 01915. This story ran on page B04 of the Boston Globe on 10/24/99. © Copyright 1999 Globe Newspaper Company