From NBC40 — The first ever New Jersey Punkin Hurling Championship kicked off today in Mullica Township. While the World Champion Punkin Chunkin Festival is held each November in Delaware, Jennifer Husko finds out event organizers hope to keep delivering a piece of the action to South Jersey for years to come.

Those pumpkins are out of here…the first ever-New Jersey Punkin Hurling Championship has begun.

And you may have guessed it but the point of the competition is to load and toss an officially weighed pumpkin as far as possible using a team made mechanical device.

Seven teams from Maryland, New York and across the Garden State are competing at Butterhof’s Sadybrook Farm in Mullica Township for the first ever New Jersey championship title.

The New Jersey Hurl is modeled after the three day World Championship Punkin Chunkin Festival in Delaware held the first weekend in November each year.

Boy scout troop 634 out of Galloway competed last year and knew they had to give south jersey a piece of the action. “These machines are tiny compared to Delaware…we loved it so much that we had to bring this thing home to South Jersey and that’s what we’ve done,” said Glenn Battschinger, Scout leader and New Jersey Hurl Organizer.

The New Jersey Hurl didn’t quite draw as many people like the festival in Delaware, but they hope this event takes off in a big way. “This is here to stay, we need to grow this event hopefully next year we’ll double or triple in size.”

Organizers say it’s all about teamwork and while most of this years teams are boy scout troops, they challenge anyone to get a team together and show off their chunkin skills. “We’re highly encouraging elementary, high school, university students to get involved with punkin chunkin, the physics involved, camaraderie, teams … you’ll see that out here with teams today.”

Because teamwork is half the fun. “I challenge people to just come out and see this craziness, you can’t imagine the fun that these teams are having.”

Proceeds from the New Jersey Hurl Championship will go to the boy scout troops and other charities.