With showtime now barely nine days away, you may begin to hear the expectorations of your neighbors anytime there are cherries in the vicinity. Cherry season is fully underway in Michigan’s Great Southwest, and my friends at Tree-Mendus Fruit Farm near Eau Claire tell me that cherry pit spitters “are chomping at the pit” to out-distance one another in the upcoming 44th Annual International Cherry Pit Spitting Championship.
Qualification Rounds for the afternoon’s “Olym-Pit” competitions will be held from 10am until Noon on Saturday, July 1 at Tree-Mendus Fruit Farm near Eau Claire. Then, finalists will show their spit-ability shortly after the 1pm Dignitaries Spit-Off.
Dignitary competitors include state government officials and various Judges, State Representatives and government and industry leaders from around Southwest Michigan.
Youth, Women and Championship finalist competitions will follow the Dignitaries Competition.
To ensure the integrity of the cherry pit-spitting sport, no foreign objects may be held in the spitter’s mouth, which would give an advantage in spitting the pit. Denture racks will be provided for those wishing to remove their teeth.
Contestants will select one to three cherries, as determined by the tournament committee, from the regulation variety supplied by the tournament committee. The official cherry of the competition is the Montmorency Cherry.
Each cherry is to be inserted into the mouth whole with all soluble solids eaten prior to the spitting of the pit. No part of the cherry may be removed from the mouth after insertion.
Each contestant must spit his or her pit within 60 seconds of the time he or she is called to the line by the tournament judge. If a pit is accidentally swallowed, that spit is forfeited.
Contestants’ hands must remain below the shoulders (to avoid popping one’s cheeks). In addition, spitters must stand flat on the ground — or ground level platform — to spit and are prohibited from using any kind of mechanical or other device to improve body thrust or spit length (including hydraulic hoists, wall support, etc.).
More competition rules and a list of previous winners and distances is available at www.treemendus-fruit.com
This year marks 44 years of unbroken competition for the International Cherry Pit Spitting Championship
Tree-Mendus is a family-oriented, agri-tourism destination in Southwest Michigan. The farm features U-Pick fruit, family recreation and a country store.
Each July since 1974, competitors and supporters gather for the International Cherry Pit-Spitting Championship. The contest marks the beginning of the tart cherry harvest for our region. The contestant who spits a cherry pit the farthest on the asphalt surface wins. The current world record was set by multi time international champion, Brian “Young Gun” Krause with a spit of 93′ 6 1/2″ in 2003. His father, Rick “Pellet Gun” Krause, heads a family cherry pit spitting dynasty that includes three generations of Krause’s. Pellet Gun, of Arizona, is the current 2016 Champion with a spit distance of 48′ 2 1/4″.
This year marks the 44th year of rendezvous and competition of people serious about their cherry pit “spit-ability”. Competitors come with signature techniques and style for maximum distance. Over 100 qualification round contenders vie for a spot in the afternoon competitions where the top spitters in each category compete for fame and honor. The contestant who spits the cherry pit the furthest wins.
The Cherry Pit-Spit began in 1974 when cherry grower and Tree-Mendus Fruit Farm owner, Herb Teichman, was looking for “something to do” with cherry pits. After beginning as a neighborhood get-together the Cherry Pit-Spit has grown into a truly international competition. And, as Herb himself is known to say, “Cherry pit spitting is a nutritious sport. It’s the most entertaining way to dispose of the pit after you’ve eaten the cherry! Guinness World Records has recognized the International Cherry Pit-Spitting Championship as an official competition.
Entering the competition actually brings you a bonus, inasmuch as the nutritional value of the pit-less cherry – high in potassium and other natural minerals, low in salt and totally fat-free – gives pit spitting an added healthy edge. The Pit Spit’s persistent popularity is “a global demonstration that healthy eating, deep breathing and physical exercise can be accomplished simultaneously, in public, with only a minimal loss of dignity” says Herb Teichman, owner of Tree-Mendus Fruit. “Actually, cherry pit spitting is like a good sneeze–they’re both therapeutic.”
