CHANNEL ISLANDS HARBOR : Pumpkin Festival Draws Crowd of 1500

A witch pinata twisted in the sea breeze over a parking lot at the Channel Islands Harbor on Sunday, its candied contents harvested by children attending the harbor’s first pumpkin festival.

Captain Mike--the master of ceremonies, clad in a red velvet pirate coat and thigh-high leather boots--had moments earlier spilled the pinata’s Tootsie Rolls and butterscotch candies across the pavement.

“The Captain finished it off with his cutlass,” Michael Bradley, the Captain, said with a smile. “It was at the point where someone had to get it done.”

The festival was part of the weekly Sunday farmers’ market held at the harbor. This Sunday, the usual produce stands were supplemented with a pumpkin bowling contest, the pinata and a pumpkinseed-spitting competition.

About 1,500 people attended, despite overcast skies and a few minutes of drizzle. The seed-spitting contest proved most popular, said Susan O’Brien with the Channel Islands Harbor Assn. Some contestants with powerful lungs managed to propel the seeds nearly 32 feet, she said.

Although many activities were geared toward children, O’Brien said parents had fun too. “We had adults bob for apples,” she said. “They asked if they could do it. It was supposed to be for kids only.”