Great Outdoor Timber Games

ESPN Great Outdoor Games

Publication Date: July 2001

The ESPN Great Outdoor Games will return to Lake Placid, N.Y. July 12-15, 2001. Last year the inaugural event drew more than 15,000 spectators and 200 competitors from around the world and featured competitions in fishing, timber events, target sports and sporting dogs.

"We enjoyed a warm welcome from the people of the Lake Placid area and look forward to the ESPN Great Outdoor Games returning next year," said George Bodenheimer, ESPN President. "The beauty of the area provided a terrific backdrop to the competition for our telecasts, and we hope to build upon the tremendous first-year success."

ESPN will once again partner with Lake Placid's ORDA, the Olympic Regional Development Authority, for event support ranging from logistics to generating attendance to recruiting volunteers. Events will be held at the Olympic Speed Skating Oval and Mirror Lake, and other nearby venues.

Some of the outdoor timber events will include:

Timber Hot Saw

Extremely loud and lasting no more than ten seconds, the hot saw competition features twelve competitors using modified engines on their chainsaws in an attempt to make the fastest three cuts in a 20-inch log. Power, control and precision all play an equal part in posting a strong time in the hot saw competition. These modified chainsaws can weigh up to eighty pounds a piece and rev at extremely high rpms. If you've got the power to hoist the saw, you now need to control the saw well enough to cut three complete discs of wood off a log.

Men's Timber Endurance

Some lumberjacks are excellent choppers. Some are better sawyers. But only one can demonstrate their all-around skills and take home the gold medal as the Men's Endurance champion. In this unique event to the ESPN Great Outdoor Games, the top lumberjacks in the world will compete in three different events consecutively. They'll start with the underhand chop, then move to the standing block for another quick chop. If that isn't draining enough, they will then move on to the single buck phase to saw through big wood and post their time.

Timber Speed Climb

No wimps allowed in this event at ESPN's Great Outdoor Games. Imagine the strength required to virtually run up a 65-foot pole. Using specialized spurs and a rope sling, these competitors combine nimbleness with powerful legs and shoulders to haul themselves up towards the sky as fast as they can. Ascending a 65-foot spar pole is only half the goal of this event, though. Climbers must indicate that they have reached the top by ringing a bell affixed to the top of the pole. At that point they're half-way home. Time is not called until they make it back down. In their descent, climbers are required to "spur" the pole in each of the designated sections of the pole. Freefalling is not an option...though these guys come very close. Time is not called until the climber hits ground.

Timber Springboard Chop

Typically one of the most grueling timber events, the springboard requires a number of specialized skills. Competitors must first chop notches in the side of an upright pole. Then they must set their "foot boards" into those notches. Once the board is set, they must climb up onto the board and repeat the process one more time. Now eight feet in the air and standing on a wooden plank sticking out of the side of a pole, the competitors must combine incredible balance and strength to chop a piece of wood that is attached to the top of their springboard pole. Time is called when they have completely severed the block of wood atop the pole.

Timber Team Relay

In the Timber Team Relay, lumberjacks and lumberjills take the stage together. In each heat the male competitors start the race at the first of five stations. The team relay starts with underhand chop. The next station is the standing block chop. But those competitors can't start chopping until their teammates on the underhand have finished their task. After the first two stations, the ladies line up for the single buck leg of the race before handing the reigns back to the men for the stock saw. The final station in the relay is the speed climbing leg. No matter how well the previous four teammates have performed, all eyes will fix on the team anchors as they ascend the 65 foot spar pole. A slip or slow climb can tighten up the race in a hurry.

Tree Topping

Similar to the speed climbing, yet with an added challenge, the Tree Topping contest requires twelve competitors to ascend a 65-foot spar pole with a razor sharp crosscut saw tethered to their bodies. At the top, they must completely cut a disc off of a log that has been affixed to the top of the pole. Only then is time called.

Log Rolling

The centuries-old talent of walking on a floating log has evolved into an amazing event at ESPN's Great Outdoor Games. When the log rollers take to the water all eyes will focus on a rare breed of athlete. Starting with wider logs and becoming progressively more narrow, rollers will square off - two at a time - in an effort to roll their counterpart off the log and into the water. Rollers use their amazing footwork to roll the log with both forward and backward revolutions, changing pace and direction to disrupt the balance of their competition. In each pairing, the first to win two falls moves on to the next round.

Boom Run

At the 2000 ESPN Great Outdoor Games, The Boom Run was part of a three-tiered event called Run, Roll and Drive. This year the boom runners have the spotlight all to themselves. The Boom Run features a series of logs connected end-to-end by a short chain. The logs are floating and are generally soaking wet on top and bottom. The goal: Sprint from one dock to the other and back across this treacherous floating, spinning, platform in the shortest amount of time. To say that nimble, nifty footwork is a prerequisite would be a gross understatement. Boom runners have to match their unique athleticism with great fearlessness for there are only two things a boom runner can hit if they have a misstep - the water or a log.

This year's event will air from July 26-August 5, 2001 on ESPN and ESPN2. For more information on the Great Outdoor Games, check out their website at www.greatoutdoorgames.com