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| Saturday: Wynyard back on track for title By Steve Bowman, GO Games Staff June 1, 2002 MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Jason Wynyard is back. The huge lumberjack who gave up the title of Stihl TimberSports Champion a few months ago is back on track to regaining the title he has held for four of the last five years. The fact he won is no big surprise. The surprise came in how he did it. Wynyard won only one of the six events, while nemesis's Dave Bolstad of New Zealand and Matt Bush of Croghan, N.Y. each won two events. "He just silently clipped away with high finishes in every event,'' said John Hughes ESPN timber analyst. "It's really unusual for someone to win the overall and not win at least two events.'' Wynyard's worst finish was sixth place in the Hot Saw event, but he backed those up with a win in the Single Buck, a second place finish in the Standing Block, and a fourth and fifth in the Underhand Chop and Springboard respectively. Wynyard's finish served notice that the perennial champion is not ready to give up his title for another year. Bolstad won it in Alaska in 2001, walking away with the championship after winning four of the six events. Since then, pundits have wondered what this competition would hold. It was the first time the two competed against each other since the title changed hands. At this time neither is ready to predict the eventual outcome. "All of this means nothing,'' Wynyard said. "The finals is the ultimate test.'' The same candor was present in Bolstad, who was unfazed by not finishing on top. "I would be fine finishing second or third in all the qualifying events,'' Bolstad said. "The finals are a different day.'' The Stihl TimberSports Series is boiled down to four qualifying events, held over two weekends of competitions. The first of those four was held Saturday during the Ducks Unlimited Great Outdoor Festival. The second will be held Sunday. The next two will take place in August, with the championship scheduled for September. During the course of the four competitions, lumberjacks garner points during those rounds with the sum total deciding who the top 12 will be in the finals. At the finals, the competitors begin anew competing in head-to-head competitions to see who wins the most points over a two-day period. While Wynyard and Bolstad may want to play down the impact of the first round of competition, pundits are quick to point out that the showdown certainly points a series that will be full of fierce competition. "The horses are out of the gate, and it looks like it's going to be neck and neck,'' Hughes said. The race, though, won't just boil down to the two heavy weights. The first day of competition proved there will be others who will factor into the race. For starters, there are two Americans who have their sights set on the finals as well. They include Matt Bush the 1995 Stihl TimberSports Champion. Bush bolted out of the gate, winning the first two events, the Springboard and Stock Saw. He finished in third overall in the points standings, just two points behind Bolstad and five points behind Wynyard. The other is Dave Jewett of Pittsford, N.Y. who won the Stihl Sawing Championship during the contest, based on his exceptional finishes in the sawing events of the competition. Bolstad won the other daily championship, the Carhart Chopping Award. He won the Underhand and Standing Block events and nearly took the Springboard. Despite his excellent finishes, he couldn't match the steady overall performance of Wynyard. But Bolstad will get a chance to catch up in Sunday's round.
Stihl TimberSports Series STOCK SAW Competitor Place Time Matt Bush 1 13.480 David Bolstad 2 13.485 Harry Burnsworth 3 13.590 Warrick Hallett 4 13.630 Jerry Gingras 5 13.793 Dave Jewett 6 13.970 Paul Pfenniger 7 14.120 Mike Forrester 8 14.330 Jerry Scutt 9 14.350 Jim Taylor 10 14.415  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories |
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