In celebration of Canada’s 150 birthday, the North Thompson Valley is set to unleash the best competitors in the west and beyond in a ‘Battle of the Axe’ like no other into the community of Barriere at the North Thompson Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 1, 2017.
The full day program of logger’s sports, under the watchful eye of Ben Lefler (laughinglogger.com), has just under $10,000 in price money up for grabs, with over 50 entrants from B.C., Alberta, the East Coast, U.S.A., Australia, and France. In addition to watching lumberjacks and lumberjills racing side by side to climb 60’ poles, the other classes include:
• Pole Climbing - two competitors racing each other to the top and back!
• Spring board chopping – competitors going two boards high chopping small pockets into the side of the tree while placing boards into those pockets so as they can reach the top of the tree where they proceed to sever the block at the top. This is considered the most extreme chopping event.• Underhand chopping – chopping a block in half beneath your feet.
• Crosscut sawing – cutting a disc of a log of wood using modern day racing saws
• Hotsaws – bringing it into the future with saws built out of bike engines.• Team relays – who is the best in the bush. This is how contracts were secured back in the day.
• Tree fell – a line of trees are placed upright, then on “GO!” a bunch of fallers would race to land their tree on a marker in most spectacular fashion! In this competition it will be done ‘old school’ with and axe and saw – never been done this way in competition before.
• Best Local Competitor (must have a postal code from Kamloops to Blue River); includes three divisions -stock saw racing, axe throwing, choker set.
There is no gate admission to this “full day of entertainment” event, which also includes Barriere’s Canada 150 Celebrations with fun, food, displays, vendors, music and entertainment – all at the fairgrounds facility on Dunn Lake Road in Barriere, B.C.
The Logger’s Stomp Dance starts at 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. Tickets ($10) at Country Feeds or tickets will be available onsite until 5 p.m.
Gates open at 7:30 a.m. with a Lions Club Pancake Breakfast, watch the lumberjack competitions from the beer garden in the covered grandstands, browse the Canadian Heritage Displays, be entertained all day at the ‘Camp in The Woods Stage’, enter the kids into the children’s parade or have your photo taken in a costume from days gone by.
Dry Camping onsite just $20.
For more information about the Bull In the Woods Logging Competition call Jill at 250-319-8023; for information about the all day Canada 150 celebration call Donna at 250-672-5672.
This event is hosted by the North Thompson Fall Fair and Rodeo Association, and sponsored by: Thompson Nicola Regional District, Black Press, North Thompson Star/Journal, Clearwater Times, Echo Equipment Canada, North Thompson Communities Foundation, The District of Barriere, Lower North Thompson Community Forest Society, Quality Contractors, Royal Lepage Westin Realty (Barriere), The Bear Radio Station 93.1FM, Tolko Industries, Gilbert Smith Forest Products Ltd., Fraser Ranches (In Memory of Alex Fraser), K&G Contracting, and Leah Flor-Investors Group.