24 September 2013

Advances in logrolling


Meet Wisconsinite Abby Hoeschler, who is the boom running world record holder.
“I’m the current boom running world champion and world record holder. There are two events: In logrolling, you’re trying to dislodge your competitor from the log (or just be the last one on the log) in a three-out-of-five-round match. In boom running, a course of eight logs tied end to end is attached to two docks, and you sprint across and back. The fastest time wins.”

“It uses a lot of core ... and a lot of butt, because you’re in the squat position — really digging in. It’s kind of like chair pose in yoga. You keep your shoulders up, with a strong core. It’s an all-body workout."
More about her and the sport in the StarTribune.  In the video she is promoting a synthetic log she developed and is marketing to help popularize (and standardize) the sport.  To overcome the logistic problem of transporting 500-pound logs, the synthetic ones are hollow, made of polyethylene, then filled with water at the site of use to bring them up to mass.

Here's a video of the women's  boom-running competition at the Lumberjack World Championships. And this one of the finals of the men's logrolling competition in 2011:

4 comments:

  1. The log drivers waltz pleases girls completely. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upsZZ2s3xv8

    ReplyDelete
  2. Also called birling: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/birling

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ah, Sue beat me to it. That is some golden-childhood grade Canadiana right there.

    ReplyDelete