Heaviest jack o'lantern

The heaviest jack o'lantern was carved from a pumpkin grown by Travis Gienger (USA) that weighed 2,749 lb (1,246.9 kg). This record was confirmed at the 50th Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off, held in Half Moon Bay, California, USA, on 9 October 2023. Following the competition, the gigantic gourd, nicknamed "Michael Jordan", was transported to Clarence, near Buffalo, New York, where caricature artist Eric Jones (USA) carved it with a series of military-themed motifs on 7 November 2023 to commemorate Veterans Day (11 November).

Characters within the patriotic design included several veteran service people, an American eagle and a full-size service dog. The theme was chosen to resonate with the release of a film entitled Iron Will: Veterans' Battle with PTSD.

As this is now the heaviest (and largest) pumpkin ever assessed in competition, it takes the title from a 2,684 lb 2 oz (1,217.5 kg) gourd, grown by Stefano Cutrupi (Italy) and carved by Udo Karkos (Germany), made for the Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, on 6 November 2021.

Thanks to his pumpkins, horticulture teacher Gienger is no stranger to GWR books, having grown several giants which have gone on to become record-breaking creations. In 2022, his 2,560 lb (1,161.2 kg) gourd, dubbed "Maverick", was transformed into an eagle-themed jack o'lantern by carver Mike Rudolph (USA); it had a record circumference of 242 in (20 ft 2 in; 614.7 cm), until "Michael Jordan" came along with a pre-carved measurement of 642.6 cm (21 ft 1 in).