As you read this, David Bolstad of New Zealand might be sawing a log in record time in Hayward. Or, Elizabeth Hoeschler could be rolling on a log or making a boom run.
The Lumberjack World Championships are being held in Hayward this weekend and have drawn competitors from all over the world to compete in log rolling and boom running, a variety of sawyering and chopping categories, pole climbing and other areas.
This is serious stuff for those into lumberjack skills and history.
The world championships are trademarked in Hayward to the ESPN Great Outdoor Games. More than 100 competitors vie for more than $50,000 in prize money. About 12,000 spectators annually attend the event.
Hayward is a natural for the event. Lumbering was king in northern Wisconsin for decades and remains an important industry in pockets of that state.
AJ Hayward, the town's founder, saw the lumber potential in the area right away and joined another man, Robert Laird McCormick, to establish the North Wisconsin Lumber Company.
Hayward quickly became a boom town and a place where the lumberjacks gathered to party after a hard week in the woods. An expression "Hayward, Hurly and hell" became popular because of the wild times.
Some of these lumberjacks would show their skills in makeshift competitions, the tradition that led to the world championships.
The Lumberjack World Championships began in 1960 as a way to acknowledge the rich history of the logging industry across the United States. Work day skills that were perfected in the forests of the nation became a past-time and soon grew into an exciting and growing sporting event.
Hayward, now a year-around tourist destination, has made the World Championships one of the premier attractions for its summers. The people of Hayward have embraced the lumbering history each summer with hundreds of volunteers and community support.
Some of the competitors from Wisconsin have gained fame around the world. For example, the Hoeschler family of La Crosse has turned out generations of log rollers. Elizabeth, Kate and Abby compete now, and mom, Judy, was a seven-time world championship.
Cassidy Scheer of Hayward won the ESPN Great Outdoor Games Superjack title. His dad, Fred, was a world champion.
Rick and Penny Halvorson of Alma Center hold eight world titles between them. Nancy Zalewski of Hayward holds the world record for the underhand chop. She chopped through a 12-inch log in 29.24 seconds.
These and other Wisconsin competitors go head-to-head with competitors from New Zealand, Australia, Canada and other parts of the U.S. where lumbering is still big.
The women's competition has proven to be one of the most popular crowd-pleasers. Many lumberjack stereotypes have been broken by the female competitors in recent years.
Stihl, a maker of chain saws and other outdoor products, sponsors collegiate and pro timber sports circuits now. The annual Hayward competition has helped build lumberjack sports to the point it has now reached.
You're too late to take in the world championships this year, but if you want to make plans for 2009 keep up on the dates via www.lumberjackworldchampionships.com.
If you're interested in the lumberjack tradition and history in Hayward and the northern part of Wisconsin, you might want to make a trip to the Sawyer County Historical Society Museum, which has some great resources on the subject. You can find more information on it at www.sawyercountyhist.org.
