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A mix of clouds and sun during the morning will give way to cloudy skies this afternoon. High 91F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph..
Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low 68F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
Despite high temps throughout the county, hundreds of spectators showed up for the 25th Annual Logging Jamboree at the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum in White Pines on Saturday.
George Harrison from Grass Valley took home the top prize for best overall performance, while his family members also participated.
The annual celebration brings together amateurs and professionals to compete and honor the history of the area.
The Logging Jamboree is in part a fundraiser for the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum.
Competitors oil up their saws before bucking begins.
Timber used in the competition was donated by Sierra Pacific Industries.
Axes are thrown at large wood slices painted with targets, aimed at a center marked by a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer crammed into a hole.
Competitor Alana Black rushes to collect her axe during the speed axe throw competition.
Refreshments including snow cones for the kids and cold beer and local wine helped to keep the crowd happy despite high temps.
Amateur sawyer Hunter Blacksmith of Valley Springs wielded the oldest saw in the competitions, an XP 1100 that was first introduced to the market in1962.
Despite high temps throughout the county, hundreds of spectators showed up for the 25th Annual Logging Jamboree at the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum in White Pines on Saturday.
George Harrison from Grass Valley took home the top prize for best overall performance, while his family members also participated.
The annual celebration brings together amateurs and professionals to compete and honor the history of the area.
The Logging Jamboree is in part a fundraiser for the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum.
Competitors oil up their saws before bucking begins.
Timber used in the competition was donated by Sierra Pacific Industries.
Axes are thrown at large wood slices painted with targets, aimed at a center marked by a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer crammed into a hole.
Competitor Alana Black rushes to collect her axe during the speed axe throw competition.
Refreshments including snow cones for the kids and cold beer and local wine helped to keep the crowd happy despite high temps.
Amateur sawyer Hunter Blacksmith of Valley Springs wielded the oldest saw in the competitions, an XP 1100 that was first introduced to the market in1962.
Despite record-high temps throughout the county in recent weeks, hundreds of spectators showed up for the 25th Annual Logging Jamboree at the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum in White Pines on Saturday, Sept. 3.
The annual celebration brings together amateurs and professionals to compete and honor the history of the area. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the event, and the return after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19.
Refreshments including snow cones for the kids, cold beer and local wine helped to keep the crowd happy, while saw-wielding competitors put on a show.
George Harrison from Grass Valley took home the top prize for best overall performance, receiving a brand new STIHL MS 271 chainsaw, donated by Ebbetts Pass Ace Hardware.
Harrison is no stranger to the event, as the 76-year-old sawyer has been a competitor for decades.
“I enjoy doing this kind of play day,” said Harrison, who is a timber falling contractor by trade.
It was a family event, with Harrison’s wife, Tina, and sons competing alongside him.
In the Jack-and-Jill competition, Tina and George Harrison placed first, sawing through their log in just 8.09 seconds.
In the Men’s Double Buck competition, George Harrison and son George Harrison Jr. placed first, with a time of 12.35 seconds.
George Harrison also won first place in the 4.0-5.0 ci (cubic inches) working stock category, with a time of 6.53 seconds using an MS 500i saw, and in the 4.0-5.0 ci modified stock category, with an initial time of 4.75 seconds using a 681 saw, tying with Adam Artzer on a 680. Harrison broke the tie with a run-off time of 4.5 seconds.
Harrison took home first place again in the 5.1-6.0 ci working stock competition, with a time of 5.85 seconds. Roland Harrison was second at 7.37 seconds, and Jon Rupley came in third at 7.53 seconds.
First place again went to George Harrison for the 5.1-6.0ci modified stock category, with a time of 4.10 seconds using a 2100 saw. Roland Harrison placed second, at 5.06 seconds, and Dan Rupley was third at 5.38 seconds.
Roland Harrison took home first place in the choker setting competition, with a time of 16.15 seconds. He also took first place in the limber pole (also called obstacle pole or aerial bucking) competition, where contestants travel the length of a log that is propped up five feet off the ground, slicing the 8-inch end off while balancing on the log, before returning down the length of the log back to solid ground. Harrison managed this feat in 25.57 seconds.
In the hotsaw competition, George Harrison placed first at 9.33 seconds using a MAC 325. Bob Waddell placed second, with a time of 12.1 seconds, and Jon Rupley placed third with 13.57 seconds.
In the unlimited hotsaw competition, George Harrison took first with a MAC 125 at just 3.69 seconds. Steve Artzer was second, with a time of 4.40 seconds, and Bob Waddell was third at 5 seconds.
Axe competitions included the women’s axe throw, which had three female contestants this year. Alana Block took home first place, Tina Harrison took home second, and Monica Lewis placed third.
Winners for the amateur axe-throwing competition were Mike Slaight in first, Cam Johnson in second, and Joel Blacksmith in third place.
Jon Rupley was the first-place winner of the pro axe-throwing competition, narrowly beating Dan Rupley, who came in second, and George Harrison, who placed third.
Dan Rupley placed first in the speed axe throw, with a whopping score of 48 points. Rupley managed to throw and retrieve his axe eleven times during the allotted sixty seconds, scoring four or five points each time. Second place was Aidan Harrison with 39 points, and third was Zach Montgomery with 35.
Several of the saws used in the day’s competitions were vintage, with the oldest, an XP 1100 that was first introduced to the market in1962, wielded by amateur sawyer Hunter Blacksmith, of Valley Springs. Prior to this year’s jamboree, Blacksmith had never competed. While he didn’t take home any wins, he enjoyed the day’s festivities.
“It’s always a good day when you can throw some chips,” said Blackwell.
Competition organizer and event announcer Aaron Rasmussen-Bates, who also runs the Tuolumne Lumber Jubilee, was happy with how things turned out.
“It went really smooth,” said Rasmussen-Bates, who has been involved in the competition both as a competitor in previous years and as an organizer since he took the reins from Steve Kafka in 2018.
If you missed the jamboree, fear not! Many of the day’s competitors will also compete in the upcoming Lumberjack Day competitions, to be held in West Point on Oct. 1.
The Logging Jamboree is in part a fundraiser for the Sierra Nevada Logging Museum, which is managed by the nonprofit Friends of the Logging Museum in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service.
For more information, visit https://sierraloggingmuseum.org/ or call 209-795-6782.
Marie-Elena studied creative writing, art, and photography at University of Nebraska at Omaha, graduating with a BA in Studio Art -Visual Media. She moved to California from Nebraska in 2019 and is happy to call Calaveras County her home.
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