Flipping Pancakes

The Dragon Football Team joined in to lend a hand today with the Fargo Kiwanis Pancake Karnival.   Slightly disappointed that we did not break the Guinness Record (established last year), it was still a great day to give back to the community, not to mention eat some pancakes.

Record effort falls short at Kiwanis Pancake Karnival

By: Sherri Richards , INFORUM

The people turned out for the pancakes, but the griddles just couldn’t keep up.

The Fargo Kiwanis Club fell short Saturday in topping its Guinness World Record for the number of pancakes served in eight hours, though a record number of people turned out for the 51st annual Pancake Karnival, held for the first time at the Fargodome.

With the switch in venue, the club used all electric griddles, instead of the gas grills at the Fargo Civic Center. The electric grills take longer to cook the pancakes, said Richard Solberg, a Kiwanis member and the Guinness coordinator.

So, volunteers put only two pancakes on each plate instead of four.

At the end of eight hours, they had served 32,667 pancakes.

Last year, the Kiwanis Club served 34,818, setting the Guinness record and taking the title from its rival, a Lions Club in Lubbock, Texas. That club will try to reclaim the record next Saturday.

However the Kiwanis fundraiser set a different record Saturday with 13,998 people passing through the Fargodome doors by 3 p.m.

Last year, the total day’s attendance was 10,198.

On Saturday, lines wound around the concourse, down the escalator, a hallway and snaked across the dome floor. Pancake-goers reported waiting 30 to 90 minutes.

“It’s like Disney World, the lines keep going,” said Jamie Mattern of Fargo. “You think you’re almost there and then you go back again.”

But Mattern said the breakfast was “worth the wait.” It was her first time at the event.

Solberg said they wanted to apologize for the delays, and the club should have been more prepared for the crowd. But overall, he was happy with the move to the dome.

“We could never have gotten this number of people” into the Civic Center, Solberg said. “They would have been standing out in the cold.”

Arday Ardayfio, co-chairman of the event, was a bit surprised by the strong turnout, considering it was Valentine’s Day and President’s Day weekend.

“It’s a good problem to have,” he said. “We didn’t think this would happen.”

Attendance for the 12-hour event was 16,590, not counting the more than 500 volunteers. Ardayfio said that they don’t yet know how much money was raised, but he did say they set a record for the amount raised at the door and probably set a record for advanced ticket sales.

Richard and Liz Adamson of Fargo are yearly attendees of the Pancake Karnival. They don’t mind the lines.

“It’s a social event. And it helps the community,” Richard said.

“And I don’t have to cook,” Liz added.

Some came to the dome for a meal and a marriage. Four couples tied the knot during the event.

Denise Larsen and Cary Muscha were the first to exchange vows amid the aroma of sausage and syrup, with 1,800 additional guests applauding them.

The wedding was held on the concourse, while breakfast was served up on the dome floor. After the ceremony, the new Mr. and Mrs. Muscha, of Amenia, N.D., and their guests went down to eat pancakes.

“A different kind of wedding cake,” Larsen said.