TEN thousand people demonstrated their enjoyment of potatoes, by attending the bi-annual Thorpdale potato festival on March 12.
Thorpdale is a traditional and premium potato growing region in West Gippsland, in Victoria.
The festival was an annual event that went into recess after 25 years. Two years ago, the re-invigorated festival attracted 10,000 people through its gate.
That was repeated this year. What is special is the large number of young people on the organising committee of 60 people.
The festival was busy all day, with attendees able to participate in feats of strength, skill and speed – including potato packing races, potato peeling contests, tug-of-war, sack and spoon and potato races, potato bowling, throwing 50kg sacks of potatoes onto stacks of pallets and running 350 metres carrying a 50kg bag of potatoes.
The pallet throw record was set in the 1980s, when local growers Laurie Manuelle and Lino Giardino threw a 50kg bag of potatoes onto a stack of 22 pallets.
This year was the closest it came to be overturned – five teams of two men competed and Perry Askew, Thorpdale and Tommy Pastura, Melbourne, won at 19 pallets.
“The winners threw their bag about three metres in the air,” said festival MC and potato grower, Kelly Durkin.
“They tried to beat the record, but fell short at 20 pallets.”
A family fun day, also on offer was blind feeding of mashed potato, a Hessians on the Field contest (with a special guest) and festival mascot Chippy was busy giving small bags of potato crisps to children.
Miguel Maestre, chef on Channel 10’s Living Room, along with a production crew, was filming segments for a future episode and dressed up for the fashion parade, entered the potato peeling contest and spent time talking with people.
The preceding day, he visited local potato growers and filmed a segment, on farm, cooking with potatoes.
Festival food included baked potatoes, potato soup, sweet potato and cinnamon muffins, slinky spuds, potato pizzas and chips and dips.
All funds raised support local community groups, including the CFA, kindergarten and swimming pool.
