Delaware Braces For Punkin Chunkin Championship

Some call it a sport. Some call it a hobby. But whatever you call it, this weekend's Punkin Chunkin Championship promises to be a big hit, drawing tens of thousands of people to Delaware.

"I was 10 years old when I built my first punkin chunkin air cannon," says Jake Burton of Milton, Del., now 24. For him, punkin chunkin is a family affair -- his dad was involved in the very first chunk in 1986. "We've always been punkin chunkers," he says.

Burton's contraption is called "Young Glory." He describes it as a 1,300 gallon broiler tank with a 60-foot barrel on it.You pump up the tank, hit the valve, and escaping air blasts the pumpkin down the barrel.

Paul McLane of Reston, Virginia says it's a riot to watch: "Oh my god, how much fun can it possibly be to have big big toys  and to take food and to try to throw it in distances that are measured in a fraction of a mile. It. Is. Fabulous."

Burton's team holds the world record of 4,483 feet.

More than 70,000 people are expected at this weekend's event in Bridgeville, Del.