By RYAN ERNST
The Herald

Records are made to be broken - whether it be home runs, Oscar wins or giant pumpkins.

Yesterday three pumpkin growers broke Dr. Bob Liggett's five-year-old record of 628 pounds, with Buddy Conley coming out on top with a weight of 897 at the Circleville Pumpkin Show Weigh In.

Liggett, whose entries took sixth and seventh place, said he was happy to see the progress made, primarily through the help of the Circleville Giant Pumpkin Growers society, a group he founded.

"I've always maintained that we should be getting bigger pumpkins," he said. "Circleville just hasn't kept up with the rest of the world in recent years, so we knew if we worked together we could get back where we belong.

"This is the biggest pumpkin show in North America. More people come out to see these pumpkins than anywhere else, so why shouldn't they see the biggest?"

The record was first toppled when Diane, Tim and Chuck Geiger's pumpkin tipped the scales at 802 pounds, evoking a large gasp and round of applause from the crowd.

Bill Blair also beat the old record, but his pumpkin took third place at 728 pounds.

Not to be outdone, Conley's entry was last to be weighed, beating the Geigers' by 95 pounds.

Conley, who had measured his pumpkin for a weight of 886 pounds last week, said he still wasn't sure if it would be enough for first place.

"I knew I was going to break the old record," he said. "You can measure these things for weight but once you get them on the scale it's a whole different story. When Chuck (Geiger) weighed in at 802 I was just hoping for an 803."

The Geigers, who recorded a weight of 262 pounds last year in their first competition, said they were not disappointed with second place. Chuck added the jump in weights this year can be attributed to a communal effort through the Giant Pumpkin Growers society.

"Buddy Conley's my friend from work. He got me into this and he's helped us so much," he said. "You can't do this by yourself. Anyone who tells you that is lying."

Conley, who competed in his fourth weigh in yesterday, echoed Geiger's sentiments.

"We all have meetings; we swap seeds; we swap secrets," he said. "And the whole objective is to get bigger pumpkins. One person working by their self would take many years longer than if you have several people doing it. So we help each other and you can see in the results that it's paying off."

This year's weigh in featured two new innovations. Competitor John Pontious designed a harness to load the entries onto the scale and platform, whereas in years past a parachute was used. Spectators also had the advantage of a leader board this year. As the weigh in evolves from a production standpoint, science is also playing an increased role.

The first and second-place growers both agreed seed selection, pollination, irrigation, fertilization and disease and pest control are the keys to a large pumpkin. Conley said as Pickaway County's growers learn more about these processes, the entries should continue to get bigger.

"My goal is to beat 897," he said. "This year I gave them 2,500 gallons of water every two days. Water's very important. I'm sure some things will come up in our meetings as far as new things to try, but next year I might go to 3,000 gallons of water every two days."

Liggett also said expectations are already high for next year.

"Someone should be over 1,000 pounds next year," he said. "I don't see any reason why we can't build on this. The seeds from these pumpkins will be used next year and we've already seen that they thrive in this climate."

Conley, who spends five to six hours a day on his pumpkin from May until the weigh in, said the results are well worth the effort.

"People always ask me why I do this and for the amount of work you do you could never be paid enough," he said. "But you look around at all the people who show up for the weigh off and everybody who sees a giant pumpkin has a smile on their face. It makes people happy and that's what it's all about."