Penn State Mont Alto will host the 10th annual Mid-Atlantic Woodsmen’s Meet and STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate and Professional Series Mid-Atlantic Qualifier next weekend, April 16 and 17, on its intramural field at the corner of PA-233 North/Park Avenue and Slabtown Road. The events will be filmed for later broadcast by ESPN-U and ESPN2. The events are free and open to the public; attendees are encouraged to bring a lawn chair.
Saturday's Mid-Atlantic college meet will feature head-to-head competition between the Penn State Mont Alto Woodsmen and teams from Allegany College (Maryland), Haywood Community College (North Carolina), Montgomery Community College (North Carolina), and Pennsylvania College of Technology. They will compete in 26 events (men, women and team) including: the team pulp toss, single buck, belayed speed climb, dot split, and pulp toss for distance. Events will run concurrently from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., and from 1-5 p.m.
In a separate event Sunday, the campus will host the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series Professional and Collegiate Series qualifying competition. This event is being be produced at four additional college campuses throughout the spring, and the Professional and Collegiate Championships will return to the Oregon State Fair Aug. 26-28, 2011. One college competitor for each participating team on Saturday will face off during the Collegiate Series qualifier on Sunday.
In the professional series, top lumberjacks from around the country compete in a series of five regional qualifiers to determine who will advance to the championships. Potential applicants must provide a “resume” of achievement in the sport developed through competition in various lumberjack sports events and STIHL TIMBERSPORTS competitions. Series officials select only the top applicants for inclusion in the STIHL competition. From more than 100 applications, only the top 50 U.S. chopper/sawyers are selected to compete. This qualification process ensures that only the best compete, while leaving room for athletes to break into the top ranks.
The Collegiate Series boasts more than 60 participating schools and airs on ESPN-U. Woodsmen teams and forestry clubs from participating schools select their best lumberjacks/jills to go head-to-head in four disciplines, the single buck, stock saw, standing block chop and underhand chop using professional rules and professional-sized wood. Top regional qualifiers compete at the Collegiate Championships held in conjunction with the Series’ professional championships. There, the ultimate winner earns not only the Collegiate Championship title, but a buy into the following year’s STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Professional Series.
For more information about the Mid-Atlantic Woodsmen's Meet on Saturday, April 17, contact Craig Houghton at 717-749-6239.
For more information about the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series Professional and Collegiate Series, visit the official website here.