{"id":146909,"date":"2016-06-01T01:10:17","date_gmt":"2016-05-31T15:10:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=146909"},"modified":"2020-10-13T13:39:56","modified_gmt":"2020-10-13T03:39:56","slug":"goomeri-crowds-love-to-squash-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2016\/06\/01\/goomeri-crowds-love-to-squash-in\/","title":{"rendered":"Goomeri Crowds Love To Squash In"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cody, 14, and Gloria Bell, from Murgon … Cody came second in the junior pumpkin roll<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The street parade is always one of the highlights of the Goomeri Pumpkin Festival<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

June 1, 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

The crowds that rolled up for Goomeri’s annual Pumpkin Festival at the weekend were bigger than ever; in fact, at the top of Policeman’s Hill, you could say they were a little bit squashed!<\/p>\n

The fact that an event which is based around the simple concept of rolling pumpkins down a very steep hill can still draw thousands of spectators after 20 years is a testament to the dedication and skill of the organisers.<\/p>\n

Some attendees – like the now-famous Pumpkings from Brisbane – come back year after year to toss pumpkins, bowl pumpkins and, most importantly, roll pumpkins.<\/p>\n

Senior Constable Deb Wruck, from Goomeri police, said the crowd was estimated to be between 12,000 and 15,000 people.<\/p>\n

Various officials that southburnett.com.au<\/strong> spoke to on Sunday all agreed that the 2016 crowd was the largest they had seen in years.<\/p>\n

The trademarked Great Australian Pumpkin Roll attracted entries from 355 adults and 179 children. That’s a whole lot of pumpkins rolling, tumbling and smashing into gutters.<\/p>\n

In fact, there were so many entries that organisers at one stage feared they wouldn’t get through all the rolls before the Burnett Highway had to be reopened to traffic.<\/p>\n

(What other country would block a major national highway to allow people to have fun with vegetables?)<\/p>\n

The street parade in the morning also attracted a good crowd and ATMs quickly ran out of cash.<\/p>\n

Market stalls lined the highway and back street, while Dickinson Park was also a hive of activity throughout the day.<\/p>\n

There were also plenty of pumpkin-themed attractions, including cooking demonstrations, carved pumpkins and pumpkin displays.<\/p>\n

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