BOWDOINHAM — The Vonderweidt family knew they wanted to grow a large zucchini when they heard a couple of months ago about the new zucchini races coming to Celebrate Bowdoinham.

Chris Vonderweidt of Bowdoinham said after the races Saturday that the construction and decorating was last minute. That’s because the family didn’t want to cut the zucchini from the vine too soon and risk it drying out. It grew for six weeks. They came armed with a hefty zucchini, its intimidating size partially masked by a colorful paint job and curled ribbon that streamed from the rear end.

“It really happened organically,” he said.

The Vanderweidt team found some plastic rollerskates at the Recycling Barn in town and took off the wheels and installed them on their zucchini.

His daughter, 6-year-old Amelie Vanderweidt, named it Rainbow Racer. She painted it blue, purple and pink, with her little sister, Sophie, and inserted star candles as antenna-like appendages. They were the design team while their father served as the pit crew Saturday. Rainbow Racer careened off the track along with the other competitor and toward a fast-moving volunteer. The judges called for a do-over

In the end,  it was a tie for the large class of zucchini. Amelie Vonderweidt took home a first-place prize — a free pizza — along with Merlin Schlawin. Lyndon Cloukey won for the small class and Alice Drummond won for best design.

The races were held in the Matthew Townsend Parker Memorial Skatepark, located next to Mailly Waterfront Park in the downtown where Celebrate Bowdoinham takes over once a year.

While some of the zucchini speedsters made it all the way to the finish line, some didn’t get very far before they rolled over, crashed or skidded out. Due to good engineering, the fruit itself stayed intact and the audience didn’t have to see any gruesome wrecks.

There were failures and triumphs on Saturday. The only rule was that the zucchinis had to have wheels and there where wheels of all sizes — some plastic, some rubber, some cardboard.  Contestants now have a whole year to plan for next year’s race and to find ways to improve their design — and perhaps to grow a bigger zucchini.

The race drew competitors of all ages and a lot of laughter.

“It’s the coolest thing in the world,” said Chris Vonderweidt of the zucchini races. “It makes me just love this community even more. Farming, skatepark, good old fashioned fun. What’s not to like? It’s uniquely Bowdoinham.”

Jan Marks, a board member for Merrymeeting Arts Center, helped organize and judge the event. She said it was a larger turnout than expected and a great success. The zucchini races will return next year, she said.

dmoore@timesrecord.com