Buddy the Elf paddles a pumpkin…and wins?! One wild race you’ve gotta see!

Buddy the Elf Just Won a Pumpkin Race — Yes, Really

Only in Oregon would you find a guy dressed as Buddy the Elf paddling a giant pumpkin across a lake… and winning.

Over the weekend, the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta took over Tualatin, Oregon, and it was everything you'd hope for: floating pumpkins, wild costumes, cheering crowds, and a whole lot of chaos.

Gary Kristensen, rocking the full “Elf” look — curly wig, green coat, yellow tights — hoisted his kayak paddle in triumph after crossing the finish line in a 936-pound pumpkin. Yep, that’s not a typo. He carved it out, climbed in, and paddled like a holiday hero.

This annual event has been going strong since 2004, and it’s basically a mashup of Halloween, a water sport, and a costume party. People race in hollowed-out pumpkins on a man-made lake while spectators cheer (and laugh) from the shore. Some pumpkins sink. Some racers spin in circles. But it’s all part of the fun.

Kristensen summed it up perfectly: “You’ve got an exciting activity that crowds love, you’ve got the costumes, cheering people, spectacle, pumpkins sinking — it has everything.”

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