mchen@heraldsun.com; 419-6636
Don't know what to do with your Halloween pumpkin? How about breaking a world record?
Two brothers in Durham have set a new world record by shooting an eight-pound pumpkin 1,984 feet with a human-powered catapult, beating the previous record of 1,842 feet by a good amount of air.
With the "Pumpkin Slayer," a 12-foot-long contraption with a fierce-looking red and black design, Marc and Tony Banka made history and took the top prize at the Punkin Chunkin contest in Delaware last weekend in the Human Powered category.
The annual contest (Slogan: "Born to Fly") is held in Sussex County, Del., and draws enthusiasts from near and far who labor for the simple joy of seeing a pumpkin fly.
The grand prize winner this year was "The Big 10 Inch," an air cannon that shot a pumpkin 4,162 feet. Local reports said 70,000 people attended the three-day event and 2,000 pumpkins were launched.
This was the Banka brothers' ninth year in the pumpkin-throwing contest. They had often taken second place before, and this was the first time they took the top prize in the Human Powered category, which eschews any gas engines or weight and only uses two minutes of stored energy from a human.
"We were always a bridesmaid, never a bride," said Marc Banka. "But we made it this year."
The Banka brothers' Pumpkin Slayer is a wood and metal catapult with an A-frame. It's powered by a bicycle, which is hooked to two winches pulling on cables that stretch springs. The springs launch the pumpkin via a sling.
When the springs are stretched all the way, Tony Banka said, the catapult is loaded with about 8,000 pounds of force.
The Banka brothers both have backgrounds in mechanics and engineering. Marc Banka, 51, is a former auto mechanic turned freelance photographer. Tony Banka, 48, is a testing equipment specialist for Environmental Supply Company in Durham. A third brother in Michigan, Andy Banka, holds a degree in aerospace engineering.
Tony and Marc Banka took videos of their catapult in action and sent them to Andy, who then sent back suggestions on streamlining the machine.
"It's fun. Working on the machine and improving it is as much fun as going to the Punkin Chunkin," said Tony Banka.
The first incarnation of the Pumpkin Slayer came into being in 1999, during a low point in Marc Banka's life. Reeling from a divorce and the pressure of raising two children on his own, the prospect of building something with the sole aim of throwing a pumpkin seemed appealing in its simplicity.
"I was at a point where I felt that nothing was mine and I didn't have control over anything," Banka said. "Then I heard about this contest and thought, 'This is great!' One, there is no practical use for this. ...And two, nobody could tell me I was doing it wrong. We could do it any way we want to."
"So I called Tony and I said, 'Hey, I'm building a catapult. I could use your help. Are you in or are you out?"
Tony Banka said that his brother called him after hearing of a pumpkin-throwing contest in Youngsville on a local radio station during his morning drive to work. They had about three weeks to build a catapult. Marc Banka said they decided to not consult existing designs before building their own, choosing to design and build their catapult from scratch instead.
They've also always been in the Human Powered category, Marc Banka said. No cannons or trebuchets for them.
"We feel that's the true art and science of Punkin Chunkin. The primary modifications we've done over the years has only been about increasing our efficiency," he said.
That first incarnation of the Pumpkin Slayer launched a pumpkin 322 feet, taking second place at the local contest.
"The team that had beaten us had been to the Punkin Chunkin. They had a much better machine already," Tony Banka said.
So the two set to work to improve the catapult, and have participated in nearly every Punkin Chunkin ever since.
This year, the main challenge has been to find the time and energy to work on the catapult. The two were busy with their own lives. Marc Banka had remarried and was trying to recover from back and neck injuries incurred as an auto mechanic.
"Our lives have become more complicated. So focusing and putting the energy into it was the thing -- getting over that mental and emotional hurdle and saying, 'OK, let's do it,'" Marc Banka said.
And now that they've finally won and set a new record, Marc Banka said they're not planning to quit. They'll return to the Punkin Chunkin next year.
"There aren't any bigger competitions. Now that we're the reigning champs and world record holders, we have to go back," he said. "Now we're the guys that other guys are chasing."
