Future Launch Dates
September 17th, 2011- Great Pumpkin Festival, North Smithfield High School, North Smithfield, RI.
October 1st and 2nd, 2011- Harvest Festival, Farmer's Daughter, South Kingstown, RI. 11-4PM
October 29th, 2011- Goblins and Gremlins Party, Dexter Training Grounds, Providence, RI. 1-4PM
November 5th, 2011- Carpenter's Farm, 522 Matunick Beach Road, South Kingstown, RI. 1-4PM
Past Launch Dates
October 18, 2008- Old Mountain Field, South Kingston, RI, to benefit the South Kingston Parks and Recreation Department
October 25, 2008- Dexter Training Grounds, Providence, the benefit the West Broadway Neighborhood Association
October 26, 2008- Job Corps, Exeter, RI, to benefit the students
October 31, 2008- Steel Yard, Providence, The Iron Pour and Pumpkin Launch to benefit the Steel Yard
August 9th, 2009 - UMASS Dartmouth, Antique Car Show
September 26-27 & October 4-5, 2009 - Farmer's Daughter, Kingston, RI.
October 31st, 2009 - Dexter Training Grounds. Proceeds to the West Broadway Neighborhood Association
September 28th, 2010- North Smithfield Great Pumpkin Festival
October 9th-11, 2010- The Farmers Daughter, Fall Harvest Festival. Proceeds to the South County Animal Rescue Laague and RI Wildlife Society.
October 31, 2010- Dexter Training Grounds, Gouls and Goblins Parade. Proceeds to the West Broadway Neighborhood Association.
November 6, 2010- Carpenter's Farm, South Kingstown Great Pumpkin Launch. Proceeds to the SK Neighborhood Guild.
This trebuchet (Photo Right) is our third pumpkin launching device. The first generation was a catapult made in 2001 by Rob Cagnetta, Rocky Steeves and some close friends. The catapult, called the "Pumkinator" was a crude assembly of bolted pressure treated wood, garage springs and a stainless steel bowl to hold the pumpkin. The painted black device lasted two years and about 150 throws, topping out at about 80 feet, until is was beaten into retirement.
In 2003, Rob partnered with some savvy, creative colleagues to create a timber frame version of a Trebuchet. This version was based on some on-line designs about 3' in length. Rob and the crew expanded the design to stretch about 12 feet in length and 12 feet in height, throwing pumpkins over 160 feet. Rob parted ways with that crew and the trebuchet in the fall of 2008. The trebuchet is still in use, being modified and improved all the time.
So the third generation Trebuchet (photo right) is based on a 6th century European design, where the crew was inspired by an engraving (see below right). The engraving was not to scale, but it gave enough clues for a design to be developed. Yet just building a Trebuchet can't throw a pumpkin. A trebuchet uses physics. A dropping counterweight creates enough force on an object held in a sling that is released at a finite point to throw the object great distances. That finite point is somewhere in the height of the arc, depending on the desired trajectory. Release to early and the object goes backwards; too late it hits the ground. Then the counterweight; too heavy in the ground, too light barely out of the net. So this untested design took several days of tweaking, using live pumpkin throws to work out the bugs. By our third event, 15 lb pumpkins were traveling 180 feet, veering only 10 feet left to right. Killer accuracy.