ESPN TIMBERSPORTS

Boom run

LEHI, Utah — In the semi-finals of the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Quarterfinal boom run competition, Olivia Judd and Shana Martin made their way through to the finals. Judd, who has trained with Shana Martin, outpaced favorite Alyse Schroeder by less than two-tenths of a second. It was a first trip for Judd, and, as the times were announced, she leapt into Martin's arms in celebration.

"I was not expecting that at all," Judd said. "I tend to get nervous during competition. To be in the finals with Shana, who taught me everything, is the best feeling ever."

The two joked as they stretched together before the final run, with Martin taking the chance to knock Judd over at one point. Asked if they had any friendly wagers on the run, Martin quipped, "Well, I bought her lunch today, so she's going to let me win."

As it turned out, Martin did win the round after Judd slipped on the first leg of the run.

"That was the most expensive lunch I've ever had," Judd said later.

On her way past the finish line, Martin showed some footwork that was intended to prevent an issue came up last year when she "bounced right over the laser bar," and failed to stop the timer.

Martin confessed that she still had a lot of training to do, wanting to concentrate on overall fitness and her running stride, though she quickly turned the topic back to congratulating Judd.

"I'm ecstatic for Olivia," Martin said. "She's my friend, my training partner and now she's going to Georgia with me."

To which Judd immediately replied, "I'm calling it right here, I've got her in Georgia."

Third place finisher, Alyse Schroeder, who bested Katie Rick in the concession race said that she will be training hard in the two weeks leading to the Stihl Timbersports Semi-finals in Columbus, Ga. Schroeder even went as far as to purchase a boom run to practice on at her house.

Schroeder said that temperature would be the major factor in differentiating between the Utah venue and the Semi-final in Georgia, although, she admitted, the Utah altitude "takes your breath away."

Overall, Schroeder remarked that she was excited by a shift in the boom run competition toward some of the younger competitors.

"The top people are changing, and we're taking our spots," she said. "Our times are less than a half-second away from each other and it's really exciting."

Tanya Fischer and Jenny Atkinson grabbed the fifth and sixth spots for the Georgia competition.


Speed climb

Last year at the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series Championship in Columbus, Ga., it was Oregon's Brian Bartow who narrowly defeated Wisconsin's Derek Knutson to take home the title of speed climbing champion. This year it was Knutson who took the upper hand, posting the fastest time of the event with a blistering 11.6-second run to overtake Bartow in the finals of the opening round of competition in Lehi, Utah. Both competitors will advance to the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Championship later this month.

Knutson's run drew gasps from the crowd as he grabbed huge air on the way down from the 60-foot pole — exactly, he said, as planned.

"I was talking with Cassidy (Scheer, a fellow competitor) before the race and decided to go big on the last run," said Knutson. "Brian is such an incredible climber that you never know what he's going to do, and his last run is always the fastest.

"I knew I had to go big because he's got the fastest down out there."

Bartow hit the mat in 12.47 seconds despite a pulled inner quad suffered during warm-ups, significantly slower than his qualifying time of 11.925 seconds. In the consolation round, Stirling Hart defeated Cassidy Scheer by a time of 12.64 seconds to Scheer's 13.11.

The top six competitors from Utah now advance to the Championships June 19-21 in Columbus, Ga. Despite his dominant performance, Knutson said there was still work to be done.

"I got a little winded towards the top, so I'll probably do some more running and more training on my ups," he said. "The last 10 feet make a big difference."

Knutson also praised this year's field of competitors, saying "everyone's going to come to Georgia really fast. Columbus is going to be a whole new ballgame."