By Cate Schiff
Staff Writer
South Bay locals Karl Rogers, Michael Aaker, and John Holliday had a small birthday party for Rodgers in 1990, which began a Halloween tradition of pumpkin racing that would continue for the next 24 years in Manhattan Beach.
The pumkin race quickly became a community tradition, and the annual Manhattan Beach Pumpkin Race Festival is a community-wide event in which families and friends assemble a team, carve a pumpkin and put it on wheels.
“It is a wonderful and fun activity for the entire community to enjoy,” Manhattan Beach Parks and Recreation manager Idris Al-Oboudi said. “If you are not racing, you are volunteering, watching or laughing. It definitely strengthens the communities’ unity and spirit while getting people excited for Halloween.”
This year, the downtown Manhattan Beach Pier area was transformed into “Pumpkinrace Land” on Oct. 26. There were arts and crafts booths and bleachers where viewers could watch the races which officially began at noon and ended at 5 p.m.
“I was extremely excited to spend time with my family while doing what we have done for multiple years,” freshman Paris Druilhet said.
Teams are encouraged to wear creative costumes to get people in the Halloween spirit. This is also another tradition that has been passed on over the years through the pumpkin races.
“The costumes are the main reason why I go to the pumpkin race,” sophomore Abby Blair said. “There are so many creative and funny costumes, which really gets me excited for Halloween.”
There are four primary rules for the pumpkin races that every contestant must abide by. First, only one pumpkin is allowed on one pumpkin racecar. Second, participants cannot attach their pumpkin to anything pre-fabricated, like a skateboard, that would help it roll faster. Third, explosives are not allowed. And lastly, participants cannot push their pumpkins at the start of the race.
“If a team gets caught cheating, the race officials smash their pumpkin,” Blair said. “No team takes offense; they actually laugh because they are all having fun.”
The Manhattan Beach Pumpkin Race Festival is a cherished hometown event. Because of the tradition and and the many years that Manhattan Beach has been putting on this successful event, a documentary about the races was broadcast in 2004 on Time Warner-Cable.
“The World Famous Pumpkin Race has rekindled a sense of good old-fashioned family holiday spirited fun for our community and for hundreds of other families friends who attend the pumpkin race each year.” Blair said.
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