Gourd times roll at Arizona festival

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. --The annual Running of the Gourds Festival, an event that celebrates the fruit's growing popularity, has taken over Pinal County this weekend.

The Pinal Fairgrounds & Event Center has been a gourd-lover's paradise since Friday.

Wuertz Gourd Farm has been putting on the festival for the past 12 years.

There will be more than 60,000 gourds for sale, co-owner Waylon Wuertz said. About 120 vendors will be showing roughly 5,000 pieces of art.

"The diversity of all the gourd art is just amazing," Wuertz told the Casa Grande Dispatch.

A gourd is a type of fruit characterized by a hard shell and is often used for artwork. The items for sale at the festival range from $5 knick-knacks to $15,000 high-end art pieces, Wuertz said. Artists use gourds to make everything from hats to utensils.

The festivities will include the return of Flash Gourden, a "gourd superhero" who sits on the front of a bicycle while someone else pedals.