SOUTH CHARLESTON, WV (LOOTPRESS) -Ten schools competed in the 2021 Capital City Pumpkin Drop at Appalachian Power Park in Charleston on Thursday to watch their pumpkins drop several feet.
Hosted by BridgeValley Community and Technical College, students followed specific instructions to design a contraption that would hopefully protect a pumpkin when dropped, using math and science skills to develop their containers.
Some of the materials used to keep the pumpkins safe were yoga mats, paper cups, milk crates, plastic water bottles, water jugs, blankets, and pillows. Pumpkins are dropped and have to hit a target on the ground. Some survive the drop and others do not.
Due to COVID-19, limits were placed on the number of students each school could bring -up to six students each. In total, eleven schools participated from seven different counties.
Three grade-level categories compete for the honor of being the grand slam pumpkin. Monetary awards are presented to winning teams.
This year’s winners were:
Most Creative Design:Â Â Tug Valley Jr. Sr. High School
Most Sustainable Design:Â Eastern Greenbrier Middle School
Elementary School:
First Place: Lakewood Elementary School
Middle School:
First Place: Walton Middle School
Second Place: Logan Middle School
Third Place: Hayes Middle School
High School:
First Place: Bumblebee STEM
Second Place: Â Tug Valley High School
Third Place: Hannan Jr. Sr. High School
Grand Slam Champion: Walton Middle School