‘Iron Maiden’ takes first at 2025 ASME Pumpkin Toss
As an engineering tradition, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, or ASME, Pumpkin Toss once again showcased the efforts of the community’s engineers and aspiring engineers, only this year, the invitation to build and compete in the event was extended past Cache Valley to Utah State University’s neighbors from Utah Valley University and Brigham Young University-Idaho. Individuals from Sky View High School also participated in the toss.
Contestants were expected to build a machine called a trebuchet that releases the pumpkin into the air, shooting it hundreds of feet away.
“We recognize that sometimes students need an outlet for all their creativity and ideas,” said Jax Stookey, USU’s ASME president. “They can directly apply their knowledge and skills.”
Stookey said in an interview with The Utah Statesman that each trebuchet is judged by four different categories. These include accuracy, distance, engineering marvel and crowd favorite.
According to Stookey, 22 teams competed in this year’s event. Competitors included but were not limited to students. Stookey said the majority of the student participants were mechanical engineering majors with varying majors in the mix.
Axis Automated Ironworks, a steel company in Logan, has sponsored a team for the past few years. Their trebuchet, called “Iron Maiden,” took first in the accuracy category and took home a win for the second year in a row.
“We had a catastrophic failure, but we improvised. We made it work, and we came out with a win,” said McKay Meccariello, a member of the Iron Maiden team.
Despite unexpected difficulties with their trebuchet, Meccariello and his team were still able to defend their title.
“It’s all so much fun,” Meccariello said. “Cheering everybody on, hitting the targets — it’s exhilarating to watch those pumpkins fly up in the air.”
Meccariello wasn’t the only one having fun at the pumpkin toss. Environmental engineering student at USU Katelin Budge and her team added their own spin to the event. The team’s trebuchet was “Harvester #20” and had a medieval theme. All participants on the team kept with the theme by cosplaying as their own character.
“It’s super fun to work on something, especially as part of a team, and be able to see the direct results of your efforts,” Budge said.
On the other side of the caution tape that drew a border between the danger zone and the safe zone were the people who made the event possible and the crowds cheering on the pumpkins getting launched into the sky.
Stookey said seeing all the work that ASME put into the event come together was a rewarding experience.
“My favorite part of the Pumpkin Toss is getting together with ASME crew and just being able to see the fruits of our labor,” Stookey said. “We get to see our efforts paid off in this big event, and it’s really gratifying to know that we were part of this event.”
For some spectators, the best part of the event was seeing just how high some of these trebuchets could toss their pumpkin. Anna Davis, one of those spectators attending with two friends, said in the few minutes since they had arrived at the event, the height the pumpkins reached had been her favorite part.
After the competition ended, the event was far from over. Hanging over a minivan at about 100 feet in the air was one large pumpkin preparing to be dropped. After a countdown from the crowd and one previous attempt, the pumpkin was dropped on the van and left a large, pumpkin-sized dent on the roof.
Other attractions included many food trucks frequented by attendees and tents promoting other engineering events.
Ambassadors for the College of Engineering were in attendance to promote their E-Week, a summer camp event where potential engineers come to learn about USU’s engineering program. According to ambassador Trevor Vorwaller, they handed out flyers and candy in hopes to inspire future engineers.
ASME holds more opportunities for engineers than the Pumpkin Toss. In the spring, ASME is holding their Soapbox Derby, where contestants will build and race gravity-powered cars. They also provide opportunities for networking and learning professional development skills. Stookey said these activities help students build their resumes, perform an elevator pitch and gain other technical skills.
“We are aimed at helping student engineers get a foot in the door for experience in the real world,” Stookey said.