Pets and children alike competed in costume contests during the Wadesboro Fall Festival last Saturday. The festival also included explosive pumpkin “carving” that sent pumpkin chunks flying several feet out.
Justin Jones, a fourth- and fifth-grade science teacher at Anson Middle School, showed the crowd a variety of science experiments from the stage on the town square. He enlisted young school children as lab assistants.
Jones mixed dish soap and butane to make fiery bubbles, exploded a balloon filled with helium by touching it with fire and “carved” pumpkins using a chemical reaction that destroyed the pumpkins, sending pieces of the squash from the stage across the square and into the street.
His young assistants first held a contest using individual pumpkins filled with calcium carbide and water, lighting them to cause the explosions. Then, Jones lit several pumpkins connected together, setting off a chain reaction.
The crowd screamed and clapped.
“I wasn’t ready for that,” one man said, despite Jones’ warning that the pumpkins would explode.
Besides science, kids also played games, trick-or-treated at local businesses and decorated pumpkins. Many participated in a kids’ costume contest, where vampires, cowgirls and more showed off their outfits.
Meatballs the Pug met his match in the pet costume contest.
Contest host Alex Sewell, town manager, had said before the contest that Meatballs was “cocky” about his chances. Despite the dog showing up dressed as a lobster and sitting in a black pot, the dog lost to the three 2016 grand champions who entered together, Sally, Dixie and Max.
Scarlet, a dog that was available for adoption from the Anson County Animal Shelter, won the award for being the funniest. Rex the Farmer had the “best personality,” Rugby was the “scariest,” Lizzy was the “most likely to go places,” and Reece Cup was the “cutest,” the judges deemed. Daisy was named the “biggest hot mess.” Sparky took third place overall and Meatballs won second.
“I heard Meatballs is already demanding for a recount,” Sewell said.
The dog’s Instagram account, @meatballsthepug, includes a photo of the pug in his costume and a caption that the contest was “rigged,” though the pug “got over it quickly by crushing his dinner pizza.”
Reach reporter Imari Scarbrough at 704-994-5471 and follow her on Twitter @ImariScarbrough.
