Oh my gourd: Nebraska man paddles 38 miles in hollowed out pumpkin

Photos on social media show Hansen crouched inside the giant squash, which weighed in at 846lb, according to the Facebook post. Officials said Hansen set off down the Missouri river around 7:30am and completed his journey just after 6:30pm.

Reuters

This Nebraska resident set a record for paddling in a giant hollowed-out pumpkin, going down the Missouri river for 38 miles
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It might look like fun – but you’d butternut try this at home. The 11-hour voyage appeared to take a physical toll on Hansen, who named the orange vessel Berta. “I went 38 miles down the river without standing up in that pumpkin and my knees still hurt,” Hansen said in a video posted by Reuters. “I probably won’t try this again,” he added with a smile. “If somebody breaks this record, I will bow down to them because they are tough.”

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He told the Omaha World-Herald he had endured collisions with a sandbar and a rock as well as heavy rain and cold.

“I thought, ‘I’ll just paddle harder and warm up.’ I wasn’t thinking about quitting,” he said. “I went another four to five miles and it rained again. Berta is only about eight inches above the water line. I’ve never paid so much attention for so long in my entire life. It was tough.”

Hansen is described in the Facebook post as a “longtime Nebraska resident who enjoys growing large pumpkins, gourds and other vegetables as a hobby” and was inspired to vanquish the previous record after seeing another paddler attempt it. “Seems like a unique if not slightly crazy way to celebrate his 60th birthday, which was yesterday,” the post read.