By Tyler Barth
PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. - Though on a different scale, one of Picatinny’s favorite past times continued on Friday, March 13 with the Spring Fling, as high school teams sent produce flying into Lake Picatinny with catapults and trebuchets.
This event was a makeup for the annual Pumpkin Sling, which was cancelled last year due to the government shutdown. As pumpkins are out of season in the spring, the three teams used cantaloupes instead.
“It is work disguised as fun. You’re learning all the component systems, and there’s the science, technology, engineering and math, and there’s a little bit of art, where you create the design,” said Giulia Grotenhuis, the event’s coordinator. “You might search on the internet to see what the different styles are, and then you pick one and develop it from there. It’s very creative.”
According to Grotenhuis, the Pumpkin Sling goes back to the early 2010s, but Picatinny hosted it for the first time in 2016.
Sussex County Technical School has been involved since the first edition at Picatinny and are often a force to be reckoned with. They won their third consecutive gold medal this year by launching a cantaloupe 246 meters.
“This design wasn’t a kit and there weren’t any instructions, so we came up with it on the engineering side, then we talked to welding about how to put together and with what materials,” said engineering teacher Chris Land.
“It’s significant, and it’s not a toy.” Simply going forth without any sort of plan, Land continued, doesn’t work, and the students know this.
The school’s welding teacher, Josh Conklin, noted how much fun it is seeing students taking over and working together in real life situations, and that such projects prepare them well for the working world ahead of them. Additionally, the pair said, the trebuchets are fantastic on a portfolio when applying to college.
“I've had a number of students go off and have interviews for colleges, and they bring the portfolio, and they have a picture of themselves standing next to this. First they have the design, and then they show a picture of themselves standing next to it,” said Land.
New Providence High School finished the day in third with 22 meters as their best. According to technology and construction teacher Dan Barletta, most of the information gleaned is simply from building their catapult. New Providence is a small team, and Barletta noted that everything the team brought fits into the back of a pickup, which they take pride in.
“I hope they have a fun experience, and that they see that, if they push themselves, they can build whatever they want. I hope that they learn from their mistakes and bring it forward into future builds,” he said.
“This year, we were able to combine metal work with wood, which is not something we get to do a lot because our shop is a bit smaller. We have to be resourceful. It’s a good challenge,” said student Andre Marques.
West Orange High School finished second, with a best of 153 meters. According to woodshop teacher Max Grossman, his students tried many different iterations and adjusted many variables seeking the optimal trebuchet design.
“Over the years, it’s all changed, and as the kids keep experimenting, they build on the previous, and we ended up here,” he explained. This experimentation brought the team far, as according to student Sullivan Plitt, “everything that could go wrong did go wrong” during testing, but the team pressed on.
“I’m confident in our machine. With positivity, a good mindset and a lot of work, you can get anywhere,” said student Liam Coleman.
Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Agile Sustainment and Ammunition and Commanding General of Picatinny Arsenal Maj. Gen. John T. Reim praised the event as part of the arsenal’s STEM outreach and recruitment efforts, calling it “a real-world application of mathematics, physics and engineering.”
According to Combat Capabilities Development Command Program Manager Rob Barea, barring any unforeseen events, the Pumpkin Sling should be back for its usual date in October later this year.
| Date Taken: |
03.16.2026 |
| Date Posted: |
03.16.2026 18:14 |
| Story ID: |
560672 |
| Location: |
PICATINNY ARSENAL, NEW JERSEY, US |
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