Punkin' Chunkin' Contest

Scott Ryan Reporting

Orion Township (WWJ) -- To build one of these--you've got to be a little out of your gourd.

Lake Orion is looking for competitors for its Punkin' Chunkin' contest in October. Mike Toth is a Lake Orion councilman--and a contestant. He tells WWJ he built his first punkin'-hurling trebuchet two years ago.

"We had a lot of fun doing it, then I taught a class on it to my middle schoolers and they had a lot of fun with it. So I just decided what better way to get people involved than to have a public competition," he said.

He describes the trebuchet as a medieval teeter-totter with a pouch on one end and heavy weight on the other. It comes ahead of the world championships--where air cannons can send punkins nearly a mile before they hit the ground and become "squash."

This contest is just for trebuchets and some catapults. Toth said some knowledge of science and engineering is likely necessary on your team if you're expecting to win.

For details, click on the township's website and check out the Parks and Rec page.

Check out Toth's page here, which also has contest details.

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