Championship Proves To Be AnotherThriller (NAPSA)—Although David Bolstad is not a postman in his native New Zealand, he really delivered in Ketchikan, Alaska. Neither the driving rain, the 11 other competitors or the gloom of the encroaching Alaskan night could keep him from his appointed round of winning the STIHL TimBERSPORTS Series championship. Bolstad endured the cold, wet conditions of a late summer Alaskan squall to handily win the Series championship by dethroning fellow countryman and fourtime defending champ Jason Wynyard. Australian Kerry Head placed third. Bolstad jumped to an early seemingly insurmountable lead, winningall three chopping events and tallying 36 points out of a possible 72. But an uncharacteristic sixth place in the Single Buck event left a glimmer of hope for Wynyard, who won that event and placed second in the Underhand Chop and third in the Standing Block. Wynyard had also stumbled early, finishing a disappointing seventh in the Springboard; so after four events, the two domi- nating Kiwis weretied in points. With the two machine sawing events left to go, the STIHL Stock Saw and Hot Saw contests, the eyes of a capacity crowd at the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show arena were focusing on the last event—the super-performing Hot Saws—for the championship showdown. Butit was in the Stock Saw where the championship changed hands. A bobble in the Stock Saw is what most observers agree cost Wynyard his unprecedented fifth straight title. With an incredible 11th place finish and the two points it carried, Wynyard effectively was out of the number one position for good. All that could change the inevitable would be a Bolstad disqualification or lastplace finish in the Hot Saw. But it was not to be. Indeed, even though Wynyard won the final Hot Saw event, Bolstad The 2001 StTIHL” TimBeRSPORTS” Championship in Ketchikan, Alaska, proved to be another thriller with David Bolstad from New Zealand dethroning fellow countrymanandfour-time defending champion, Jason Wynyard. placed a solid third, earned 10 points and cinched his first TIMBERSPORTS championship. “T just really wanted this. I think that’s what the difference was this year,” Bolstad said. Wynyard bested Bolstad last season in a saw-off after they finished regulation competition tied in points. “T trained hard all year and I was very determined and very motivated to do better.” Bolstad takes home a new, Next Generation Dodge Ram Truck and prize money. Wynyard, for the first time in five years, takes second place. Kerry Head took third. Fellow Aussie Dale Ryan took fourth place and Dave Jewett from New York gave the American contingent their best finish this yearin fifth. All competitions filmed in Branson, Mo. and Ketchikan will air this season, culminating with the championship program from Ketchikan. Log on to www.stihl usa.com/timbersports.html to view a full schedule of ESPN and espn2 show airings or check your local listings.
