Timberfest making return

SANDPOINT — After a 15-year absence, Timberfest is returning to the Bonner County Fairgrounds on Saturday.

“It’s a smaller scale, but I think it’s going to be really fun,” said Bonner County Fair and Facility Director Rhonda Livingstone.

Timberfest was an annual occurrence at the fairgrounds from the early 1990s to 2001, bringing in timber sports competitors to face off in pole climbing, birling, ax throwing and saw contests.

Timberfest was originally a Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce event that ultimately faded.

“It’s the same challenge that a lot of events face – it’s a lot of volunteer work and it’s labor intensive,” said Shawn Keough, a former chamber official.

Keough said the set-up and tear-down of the event took an immense amount of work. Volunteers also grew weary when new ranks of volunteers to help shoulder the burden failed to materialize.

Keough credits Livingston and the fair board for the resurrection of Timberfest.

“Really, her leadership is what is coalescing folks to give it a shot,” said Keough.

This year’s iteration will have a little more emphasis on timber sports exhibitions, although there will be several tug-of-war competitions and even a Jell-O wrestling contest.

The lumberjack exhibitions will be conducted by Carson Bosworth, a Bonners Ferry native. His exhibition crew includes Ty Oliver of Clark Fork.

The show will feature a mixture of traditional and modernized lumberjack sports.

Timberfest exhibitions will include obstacle pole race, ax throwing, underhand chopping, standing chopping, springboard chopping and chainsaw carving as well as tree climbing, single and double crosscut sawing and log rolling.

There will also be a hot saw exhibition, which has lumberjacks taking hands with souped-up chainsaws powered by engines that began their lives in a snowmobile or a motorcycle.

Hot saws are a far cry from the predictability of stock saws, which means noise, plumes of sawdust and the prospect of thrown chains.

While Bosworth has been serving as something as an timber sports ambassador nationally and abroad, a group of loggers from Bonner and Boundary counties have been keeping the tradition alive locally.

“There’s a solid core in Priest River, Priest Lake, Sandpoint and Bonners Ferry,” said Keough.

Livingstone is glad the county is able to resurrect the event because of the timber industry’s support of the fair and fair programs.

“The timber industry has been really good to us,” said Livingstone.

It’s also hoped that the event grow to be as straight as a pine and as sturdy as an oak.

“We’re starting off small,” said Livingstone. “Hopefully, it will get bigger.”

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INFO BOX

Timberfest lineup

n 10 a.m. — Bosworth Lumberjack Exhibition No. 1

n 11 a.m. — Tug of war (team competition)

n Noon — Bosworth Lumberjack Exhibitiion No. 2

n 1 p.m. — Block stacking

n 2 p.m. — Bosworth Lumberjack Exhibition No. 3

n 3 p.m. — Tug of war (finals)

n 4 p.m. — Awards and auction

n 5 p.m. — Jell-O wrestling

n 6 p.m. — Doors open for Devon Wade Band performance