Let's start today's Now I Know with an apology: I should have shared this story two weeks ago because if I had, you could have been there to see the glory that is the panda in a giant pumpkin, as seen above. So, my apologies. The good news is that you have almost a whole year to plan for the next time something like this could happen.

The panda pictured above isn't a panda -- it's a person in a panda costume, or at least, the head part of a panda costume. But, to be clear, he is actually in a giant pumpkin, not a boat. He's participating in the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta, an annual festival in the Portland suburb of Tualatin, Oregon. 

The event is basically what it sounds like: a boat race featuring a bunch of people guiding hollowed-out giant pumpkins around the water. The regatta takes place in mid-October every year (with a Covid-19 pause in 2020 and 2021). As a Portland activities website explains, "event is broken into four different pumpkin races that last 15-20 minutes. The first race is for the pumpkin growers. The second is for sponsors and special guests. The next race is usually the Tualatin Police versus the public or the local fire and rescue team." And then, finally, pumpkin boat racers from around the world take to the lake. Per that Portland website, "in early September, the event organizers [ . . . ] open a special lottery for the public. Those selected will get to participate in the final race of the day."

Participants in the races often dress up in costume -- it's almost Halloween, after all! -- as seen below. And as also seen below, the races gather a big crowd. In some years, as many as 20,000 spectators show up to watch the giant gourds and to participate in the dozen or so activities on the lake's shore. For the non-boaters, there are costume contests, a 5k run, lots of booths and food, and of course, a giant pumpkin weighing contest.