At the annual Punkin Chunkin event, teams challenge each other to see how far they can fling a pumpkin, using some amazing contraptions — giant crossbows, Trebuchets, spinning turntables, and gigantic air cannons with 100-foot-long barrels. For the chunkin machine-builders, this is serious business. Many teams work all year on their entries. Tune in tonight to view the spectacle. Believe it or not, the largest air cannons have shot pumpkins over 5,000 feet — nearly one mile.

Since 1986, Sussex County, Delaware has been home to the annual Punkin Chunkin World Championships — a 3-day festival where hardcore engineers and backyard tinkerers trailer their gigantic, homebuilt contraptions with one common goal: to launch 8- to 10-pound pumpkins as far as mechanically possible. The competition is divided into seven categories defined by the type of machine — motorized, centrifugal spinners, and the mighty air cannons.

Tonight, the Science Channel airs an hour-long special on the Chunkin Championship — part science experiment, part genuine Americana. Hosted by comedian Brad Sherwood, this special documents the ingenuity of the biggest, loudest, greatest pumpkin hurling competition in the world. Sherwood follows select teams as they journey from machine design to testing their equipment to the competition’s climactic finale, where every team hopes to reach the one-mile mark. Inspired by the original Delaware event, lesser chunkin competitions have been started in other US states, and in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Great Britain.

Punkin Chunkin FAST FACTS:
- The world record for Adult Air Cannons is Young Glory III at 4,483 feet.
– The world record for Adult Torsion is Chucky II at 3,091 feet.
– The world record for Adult Catapult is Fibonacci at 2,862 feet.
– The world record for Adult Trebuchet is Yankee Siege at 1,894 feet.
– The world record for Adult Centrifugal is 2,770 feet.