Groundhog Day event attracts 100
Spring is coming early this year. Buckeye Chuck made that prediction under overcast skies Friday morning outside the studios of WMRN and iheartmedia in Marion.
More than 100 people attended the event; thousands more watched online and listened on the radio.
“It is 7:41 a.m. in Marion, Ohio, USA, on Candlemas, Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, 2024,” Eric Mosley, the morning’s emcee, announced.
“Buckeye Chuck, Ohio’s official weather-reporting groundhog, has not seen his shadow, which, by folklore of Groundhog Day, means that we can get out the short sleeves and put the coats away, because spring is right around the corner.”
People from across the state came to watch Buckeye Chuck
The crowd gathered in darkness before sunrise Friday morning outside the broadcast center of AM-1490 WMRN, 1330 N. Main St. in Marion.
Mosley asked attendees about their travel that morning to see who had driven farthest.
Many of the crowd were from Marion County, but the majority were from 30 and 40 miles away.
“How many of you are more than 40 miles away?” Mosley asked. There were a few shouts. “Where are you from?” the emcee asked.
“Washington County,” a man answered.
“How far is that?”
“About 180 miles.”
Two more people then announced they were from out of state: one from North Carolina and the other from California.
“That is amazing,” Mosley said. “Our little town is bringing people in − Buckeye Chuck is bringing people in.”
A few people in the audience even said they were celebrating their birthdays the morning of Groundhog Day.
‘Buckeye Chuck has a lot better track record’
As the sky brightened, Mosley announced Pennsylvania’s Punxsutawney Phil had come out moments before and had not seen his shadow.
The crowd moaned, because they knew “the other guy” only has about a 40% success rate in weather predicitons. “It’s not that we have anything against Phil,” Mosley said.
“We just know that Buckeye Chuck has a lot better track record.”
A few minutes later, the morning was bright enough for Buckeye Chuck to crawl out of his portable bedroom and onto the podium.
“Chuck! Chuck! Chuck!” the crowd chanted.
The rodent’s first order of business was to munch on a breakfast of carrots, sweet potatoes and kale.
“He’s pretty cute,” Mosley said. The audience agreed.
Finally, the whistlepig wiggled his nose and looked toward the heavens.
“It looks like he’s made his decision,” Mosley said.
“That’s a determined look he has on his face.”
Buckeye Chuck has long history of predicting the weather
The practice of relying on hibernating animals for weather advice started in Europe sometime in the 1700s, according to a history compiled by the National Weather Service.
Europeans selected the Christian holiday of Candlemas for the ritual since it came on Feb. 2, which is the mid-point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox.
Buckeye Chuck became Ohio’s official weather-predicting rodent in 1979.
After the original woodchuck’s passing, “Buckeye Chuck” became a title bestowed upon the reigning rodent of the day.
“We have the original Buckeye Chuck mounted in the studio,” Mosley said.
The current Buckeye Chuck is a 1year-old groundhog named Murray who lives at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. ztuggle@gannett.com 419-564-3508