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Originally a holding pond for the logs of Weyerhaeuser's North
Wisconsin Lumber Company, the Lumberjack Bowl (as it's known
to locals) is home to the Lumberjack World Championships.
As the highest-paying lumberjack contest in the world, competitors
come from all over the world to vie for the title of World Champion
and more than $50,000 in prize money. Australia, Canada, New
Zealand, and the United States were all represented at the LWC.
Normally a town of 2,000 people, Hayward gets a little crowded
during the LWC. "You can expect to serve that many people
a night," said a server at a local restaurant. |
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One of the most exciting and fast-paced events
at the Lumberjack World Championships is the Boom Run. Several
logs are strung together and competitors must sprint from one
dock to another across the slippery, rolling logs. They are
allowed three falls in the water, but any time spent getting
wet means more time on the clock. In these pictures, we see
Katie Hoeschler and Tony Bush making their way across
the Bowl. |
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Sawdust flies as Arden Cogar, Jr. cuts through a log
in the Hot Saw competition. Using modified chainsaws that can
weigh up to 80 lbs., Hot Saw competitors make three cuts–down,
up, and down again-through a 20-inch log in just a few seconds. |
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A longtime tradition at lumberjack shows everywhere, the Axe
Throw requires strength and accuracy to hit a 24-inch target
30 feet away. |
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Rick and Penny Halverson, World Champions in the Jack
and Jill Double Buck Sawing Competition, receive their trophies
from Ben Meadows' Eric Bakkum. |
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Competitors in the Springboard Chopping event possess incredible
strength and agility. After chopping a notch in the side of
a pole, they set a "foot board" about four feet off
the ground. Then they jump up on this board and do it again.
Now eight feet in the air, they chop down a piece of wood attached
to the top of the pole. |
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Guy German, World Record Holder in the 100-Foot Speed
Climb, sizes up the competition before his next race. He went
on to win the World Championship in the 90-Foot Speed Climb. |
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Climbing 60 feet in as little as 15 seconds, Speed
Climbing requires an incredible amount of strength, speed and
courage. Competitors are timed from the time they start their
climb until they are back on the ground. Going up takes all
the muscle, coming down takes all the heart. After reaching
the top, competitors kick out and begin their fall back to the
ground. They are required to "click" at least every
thirty feet on their way down, digging their gaffs into the
pole to slow their descent-but not by much. First to hit the
crash mat wins. |
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Watching her opponent's feet closely, Log Roller Shana
Martin uses lightning-quick footwork to try and knock her
opponent off balance and into the water. |
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Even the kids get their feet wet. Some children in Hayward
start log rolling as young as the age of three. |
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The Lumberjack World Championships have long been a leader
in the recognition and support of the women's events in timber
sports. Some incredible female athletes have come to compete
at the Bowl in a variety of events. Here we see Lizzie Hoeschler
and Shana Martin trying to out-step each other in the
Log Roll.
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Along with using their incredible balance and coordination
to throw off their opponents (literally), competitors in Log
Rolling often splash water at their opponents, distracting them
from watching their feet. Done correctly, the splasher doesn't
miss a step, and his opponent doesn't see it coming. |
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Ben Meadows' Eric Bakkum and Jack Schaffer (middle) listen
while Steve Maina, D.J. Aderman and Andy Bonicatto
(kneeling) explain the time and effort that goes into selecting
the wood that's used for competition in the Lumberjack World
Championships. The LWC follows strict guidelines and uses only
timber that has been selected to be cleared from a forest for
construction or industrial use. All of the timber selected is
turned on a lathe until it meets the exact size needed for competition.
It must also be free of knots and defects, to avoid damaging
competitors' axes and saws. All through this process, none of
the wood goes to waste. Any timber that can't be used in competition
goes to a mill for use in construction. Even the shavings from
the turning process on the lathe are put to use in particleboard.
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To ensure everyone competing in the same event has the same
chance at winning, the officials at the Lumberjack World Championships
take extra care to use wood from the same tree in each cutting
event. Each tree is numbered and each twenty-foot section of
each tree is also numbered. Wood near the base of a tree is
generally denser, firmer and harder to cut. Wood from the top
of a tree is usually easier to cut. During competition, officials
try to give each competitor a cut of wood from the same section
so that each competitor has the same level of difficulty.
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Ben Meadows Company was proud to participate in this year's
Lumberjack World Championships in Hayward, Wisconsin. We were
lucky enough to send some of our staff to Hayward. Photographer
Derek Poff and Copywriter Eric Bakkum took a break from producing
catalogs to bring you the exciting images and stories you see
here. Also along for this wild ride was one of the people you
might speak to from our Technical Services Department, Jack
Schaffer. He was at this year's championships discovering more
about the event and the people that make it great.
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