58th Annual Barnesville Pumpkin Festival Weigh-Off – Official Rules & Regulations – Year 2021

IMPORTANT – All entries will remain in Barnesville, Ohio for display until 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 26th, 2021.

1. The competition is open to all persons with no entry fee required.

2. Exhibits must be entered between 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 22nd, 2021. Each entry must arrive at the weigh-off site (102 West Main Street, Barnesville, Ohio 43713) on a pallet where the entry and pallet will remain for display at the festival until Sunday, September 26th at 4:00 p.m.

3. A pumpkin or squash of the “giant” variety may be entered and will qualify for all local prize money. Each entry will be designated as either a pumpkin or squash. A squash will be classified as any entry with 100% color combination of all green, blue and gray. A pumpkin will be any fruit not classified as a squash.

4. IMPORTANT – Each entrant may only have one official entry that qualifies for prize money and additional prizes. An entrant may enter and weigh more than one entry. However, the entrant must declare which entry is their official entry prior to judging and subsequent weighing. All other entries by a single entrant will be classified as “Exhibition Only” and will not qualify for any prize money or additional prizes.

5. Prize money is awarded to the top ten places by weight (King Class). See “2021 Official Prize List” for details concerning prize money, trophies, and ribbons.

6. The exhibit winning in the King class will become the property of the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival Committee. No exceptions to this rule will be made. 50% of the seeds extracted from the “King Pumpkin” will be provided back to the winning grower. The BPF Committee will retain and use the other 50% of the seeds for fund raising for next year’s event.

7. All exhibits other than the “King Pumpkin” may be claimed by the owner on Sunday, September 26th at 4:00 p.m. Any unclaimed exhibits will be auctioned off at 5:00 p.m. or will be harvested for seeds with the proceeds going to the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival Committee to be used as prize money for next year’s weigh-off.

8. All specimens that will be submitted to the GPC for prize money and recognition will be weighed on our certified scale with only the fruit on the scale. Weights will be recorded in 1 or ½ pound increments (rounded down to the nearest ½ pound). All participants are expected to watch and oversee the weighing of their entries. Once the pumpkin or squash has been weighed and removed from the certified scale, the entry is official and will not be reweighed unless specifically requested by the judges.

9. No foreign material (i.e.: fungicides, caulking, skin additives, etc.) will be permitted in the weighing of any fruit. Vines must be trimmed to within one inch of the stem of the fruit. The stem itself will not be applicable to judging as stated below. The judges reserve the right to x-ray the entry.

10. The pumpkin or squash must be sound, healthy and undamaged. Entries must be free of rot. Entries must be free of holes or cracks into the interior cavity of the fruit. Entries must be free of damaged areas that are greater than 3 inches in diameter and greater than 3 inches deep. Any single damaged area greater than 3 inches deep will classify the fruit as damaged (DMG). If there are more than two damaged areas, the fruit will be disqualified even if each is smaller than described above. Small damaged areas are acceptable if naturally healed over with new rind, also known as natural scabs or new cantalouping. The judges reserve the right to probe cracks, holes and to dig out soft spots to judge a fruit official or not.

11. In the event of a tie of two or more places, all entries that are tied will have the prize money for the places that are tied added together then split equally amongst the places that are involved.

12. All decisions of the judges are final.

***The Barnesville Ohio Pumpkin Festival Weigh-Off will be held on Wednesday, September 22, 2021 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. (EST) at 102 West Main Street, Barnesville, Ohio 43713

https://barnesvillepumpkinfestival.com