Spud days in Shelley

The potato is a humble and versatile thing. It grows underground, away from the limelight.

But in Shelley, the potato is revered and for one day a year here, it’s the spud’s time to shine and enjoy the spotlight.

The people of Shelley hold the potato in such high esteem, in fact, that on the third Saturday of every September – this year, that’s Sept. 20 – literally the entire city turns out for the annual Spud Day celebration in honor of the Russet potato.

Bingham County is the epicenter of potato production in Idaho, which easily leads the nation in total spud production each year.

About 60,000 acres of potatoes are grown annually in Bingham County, many of them right around the Shelley area. This means close to 20 percent of the 14 billion pounds or so of spuds produced in Idaho annually are grown near Shelley.

Shelley Spud Day draws an estimated 12,000-15,000 people. The city of Shelley itself has a population of just over 5,000, so that means people in the surrounding area come out of the woodwork to help the city celebrate the Idaho potato each year.

“It draws a crowd, that’s for sure,” said Shelley potato farmer Bryan Searle, president of Idaho Farm Bureau Federation. “It’s really impressive how many people show up for that event each year.”

Searle said Shelley area residents are very proud of the potato and the Spud Day event is an extension of that.

“We grow a lot of potatoes right here and it’s important to remind people of that and continue to celebrate that fact,” he said. “The Spud Day celebration is a fun way to do that.”

The event is planned and organized by the Shelley-Firth Kiwanis Club, with help from the city and plenty of volunteers. During their weekly meeting, Kiwanis club members recently spoke to Idaho Farm Bureau Federation about the event.

The local high school sports teams are known as the “Russets” and pride in the community’s potato roots was a major theme of the discussion.

“We’re the Russets. How much more pride can you get than that?” said Kiwanis member Chris Zweifel.

“A lot of class reunions are planned around Spud Day,” said Idaho Potato Commission CEO Jamey Higham. Like Searle, he attended high school in Shelley and was a Russet. “It’s a huge deal for Shelley.”

Many if not most kids who grow up in the Shelley area spend at least some time helping with the annual spud harvest. High schools in the area close for a few weeks each fall to facilitate this.

Kids working the spud harvest “is a rite of passage,” said Kiwanis member MerAnda Miller. “I think every kid in Shelley should do it at least once. You have to appreciate your roots and where you come from.”

The IPC’s big Idaho potato truck has made several appearances at the event, as has Spuddy Buddy, the potato commission’s mascot. They will again this year.

The day-long celebration includes several potato-themed activities such as potato sack races and a timed potato picking contest where participants try to put as many potatoes in a burlap sack as possible.

Kiwanis member Justin Maddux is a relative newcomer in Shelley and he said he figured the potato picking contest would be a relaxed event.

Wrong.

“People take it very seriously,” especially people who work on a farm, Maddux said. “They take a lot of pride in picking fast and winning the championship.”

Higham said his favorite event of Spud Day is the potato picking contest.

“It’s pretty competitive,” he said.

The celebration includes a parade with dozens of entrants and a plethora of activities, including a tug-of-war contest that results in the losing team being pulled into a giant pit of mashed potatoes.

“The parade is the best part,” said Kiwanis member Daryl James. “It’s the biggest parade I’ve seen for a small community. It’s just jammed with people.”

For the tug-of-war event – Spud Tug – instant mashed potatoes are prepared in a cement mixer and then poured into a big hole. At least a few members of the losing teams end up in the pit.

The annual celebration, which provides free baked potatoes to participants, has attracted national attention over the years.

“Good Morning America” covered the event in 1990 and the 1991 Spud Day was covered in National Geographic Travel Magazine, New York Times and Better Homes and Gardens.

In 1993, ESPN showed live footage of the tug-of-war contest.

During a spud peeling contest in 1991, participants peeled 694.6 pounds of potatoes in 45 minutes, which bested the world record and earned them a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The event is free, although parade entries and vendors are charged a fee. Any proceeds go back into the community, says Kiwanis member Sharylee Shanks.

For example, one year’s proceeds were used to build a new batting cage for the high school. Another year’s earnings were used to help build a pickleball court.