Cabbage wars: Alaska’s best look to walk the talk tonight

WASILLA — Fairgoers and growers will soon see if previous Giant Cabbage Weigh-off contenders can walk their talk of winning the world-famous competition.

Last year, Wasilla dentist Steve Hubacek claimed first place in the Alaska State Fair staple with his 92.15-pound cabbage, easily beating out Salcha’s Brian Shunskis and his 83.35-pounder. Asked after his defeat if he thought he could bring Hubacek down this year, Shunskis said, “I know I can.”

However, thanks to 2015’s hot, dry summer, neither man’s competing greens came close to the world-record weight of 138.25 pounds, set by Palmer’s Scott Robb in 2012.

Hubacek has beaten Robb before, most recently in 2014. He had taken a year off, thinking he might expand the break into a longer hiatus, but returned after Robb broke their “deal” in the interim.

“I told Scott he better break a hundred pounds or I’m coming back,” Hubacek said.

While Hubacek was redshirting in 2013, then-10-year-old Keevan Dinkel of Wasilla came in and beat both Shunskis and Robb with his 92.3-pounder, which at the time weighed more than Dinkel himself.

Last year, Robb took a break from growing the green giants to pursue the red cabbage record, which hasn’t been broken since Mary Evans of Palmer set it at 45.25 pounds in 1994. He won the 2015 competition, but was a ways off the record with his 31-pound red.

Alaska State Fair Crops Superintendent Kathy Liska said Robb has not entered any crops at the fair this year because he’s been building a new home, which has taken time away from growing.

The fair has seen seven new state records in crops this year, Liska said, including a 6.12-pound straight-neck yellow zucchini; a 7.12-pound tomato; a 20.2-pound cucumber; a 37.42-pound bushel gourd; a long gourd of 116.125 inches; and Tuesday’s giant pumpkin, which weighed in at 1,469 pounds.

“The warm crops did very well this year,” Liska said.

Cabbages, unfortunately, prefer cooler weather, and with another hot, dry summer this year, Liska said, it might be tough to break 100 pounds.

Nevertheless, Dinkel, Shunskis and Hubacek will duke it out with their heaviest heads at the 21st annual Giant Cabbage Weigh-off in the state fair’s farm exhibits building at 7 p.m. tonight.

Contact reporter Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.