ESPN TIMBERSPORTS

Carbondale, Ill. (Sept. 23, 2009) — The best collegiate lumberjacks will be converging on Southern Illinois University-Carbondale for the kickoff event of the 2010 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series presented by Carhartt.

Eleven regional colleges and universities will be vying for the Midwestern STIHL TIMBERSPORTS crown in the Collegiate Series that SportsTravel Magazine nominated as a top collegiate multi-discipline event.

ESPNU cameras will be on site Saturday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. CDT to capture the action. Each school's top athlete will go head-to-head in four professional STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series disciplines. The top lumberjack earns a $1000 scholarship donation from STIHL for his school and advances to the Collegiate Championship to be held in 2010, where they will compete against the four other qualifier winners and one wildcard pick for the title.

The winner earns a spot in the 2011 STIHL® TIMBERSPORTS® Professional Series presented by Carhartt.

"This marks the third year STIHL has hosted the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Midwestern Collegiate Challenge," said Roger Phelps, promotional communications manager for STIHL Inc. "This region has shown tremendous potential and growth in the sport, especially with our 2009 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series champion Adam LaSalle coming out of this region."

LaSalle, a University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point alumnus will compete in the 2010 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Professional Series.

"I'm honored to be the 2009 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series champion," said LaSalle. "The fact that STIHL has created such an opportunity for college lumberjack athletes not only furthers the sport, but creates an avenue from the amateur to the professional ranks.

"The 2009 Collegiate Championship was an amazing experience for all involved and one I'll obviously never forget."

"SIU-Carbondale is excited to host its first STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series," said Charles Ruffner, associate professor in the forestry department and faculty sponsor of the SIU forestry club. "Having the top lumberjack event in the country at our school enables us to showcase our forestry department, which offers majors in forest hydrology, forest resources management, urban forest management, and forest recreation and park management."

Before the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Midwest Collegiate Challenge competition, a training session will be conducted by professional lumberjack Dave Jewett, who has been competing in the professional series for more than two decades and is one of the hosts of ESPNU's coverage of the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series.

Jewett will provide pointers to the collegiate lumberjacks, demonstrate techniques involved in the lumberjack disciplines and assist the athletes in improving their skills Saturday, Sept. 26 at 12:30 p.m. CDT at the competition field.

Since 2003, the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series has traveled to college campuses across the country to seek out the best amateur athletes and give them the opportunity to advance in the sport.

The student competitors compete in the single buck, standing block chop, stock saw and underhand chop. Competitors from the attending schools are judged based on the professional STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Series rules.

In addition to the Midwestern Collegiate Challenge, the Collegiate Series consists of four other regional events and one championship. The complete schedule for the 2010 STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series includes:

•  Midwest hosted by Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Ill. in Carbondale, Ill., Sept. 26, 2009
•  Western hosted by Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., March 19, 2010
•  Southern hosted by University of Little Rock-Monticello in Monticello, Ark. March 25, 2010
•  Mid-Atlantic hosted by the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, Pa., April 17, 2010
•  Northeast hosted by Paul Smith's College in Paul Smith, NY April 24, 2010
•  Collegiate Championship, location and date to be announced

The entire 2010 season of the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series will air on ESPNU.


STIHL TIMBERSPORTS Collegiate Series Midwestern Qualifier

When: Saturday, Sept. 26 at 4 p.m. CDT

Where: Camp Ondessonk (competition field), 3760 Ondessonk Rd., Ozark, IL. 62972

Colleges:
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich.
Michigan Tech University, Houghton, Mich.
Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Ill.
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Ill.
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.
University of Missouri, Colombia, Mo.
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisc.
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Stevens Point, Wisc.