July–August 2015 33WOODCHOPPING
FROM LEFT: PAUL RAFFAELE; COURTESY ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NSW HERITAGE CENTRE
Laurence, one of the best Australian
axemen, was also tapering off after
months of solid gym work and
chopping hundreds of logs. Laurence
has won seven world championships
and even beaten the best Americans at
lumberjack championships in
Hayward, Wisconsin.
As the axemen got ready to travel
to Sydney, Peter Knight was preparing
more than 4000 logs to be trans-
ported to the Easter Show. Peter has
had the contract to supply the logsthere for several years and they are
taken from regrowth forests in NSW
and Victoria. Melvin Lentz, the only
American ever to win the 375mm
World Championship Standing Block,
had told me that the logs are much
harder than those in the American
lumberjack competitions. “That’s why
the Sydney Easter Show is the pinnacle
of our sport,” he says.
On the show’s opening day, the
woodchopping arena was crowded as
the 220 competitors were shepherded
through scores of events. Amanda
Beams joined Heather Warren in the
demanding double-handed sawing,
and then competed in the underhand
chop where contestants stand on a logand chop down to halve it lengthwise.
“Women don’t compete in the
standing block because it’s too danger-
ous,” she says.
Also at the show is Eddie Fawcett.
He is the founder of a dynasty that has
crafted Tuatahis – the world’s finest
racing axes and saws – at his factory in
Masterton, New Zealand, for almost
half a century. “We get the iron from
the one forge in Europe,” Eddie says.
“It’s made with a high-carbonised
secret mix.”
Next to a backyard axe-head, the
Tuatahis are diamonds versus paste.
Axemen pay $600 for one of these top
racing axes, and some have dozens.
“They’re so sharp you can shave with
them,” David Foster remarks.
Many of the contestants in the
World Championship Standing Block
are using Eddie’s blades. “We may be in
for a surprise in the race,” he told me,
with a mysterious smile, before the
world champion event.
Midway through the competition,
David nervously lined up for the world
championship double sawing. The
contestants included Laurence, and
David’s partner was Jamie Head from
Queensland. Each gripped one end of
a razor-sharp saw to cut through a
huge log, which nowadays is cut
commercially with chainsaws. David
grunted with the exertion as he threw
his frame into the effort, sending
sprays of sawdust from the log. The
crowd cheered him as, with a final
lunge, the severed end fell to the
ground. He seemed stunned, unable tobelieve he was the world champion
again, and then, in a display of tri-
umph, brandished the saw with one
hand and thrust a fist into the air.T
ODAY IS the final day, and,
moments ago, just before the
most important event – the
375mm World Championship Standing
Block – a sudden storm sent down a
shower. But the spectators are still in
their seats, ignoring the drenching.
The axemen dare not look away
from their logs to see who is ahead.
A split second can mean the differ-
ence between being crowned world
champion and leaving Sydney as an
also-ran. I watch the favourites,
Adam Lowe and Laurence O’Toole –
the New Zealander finishes one side
of the log and is into the second by
the time the Victorian races around
to the uncut side.
A roar from the crowd alerts me to
a surprising sight. Both are behind
unfancied Victorian Glenn Gillam,
chopping near the end of the line. His
axe is a blur, arcing repeatedly at high
speed. With his log almost parted,
Glenn swings the axe for a final
massive blow. Bang! The top half of
the log flies through the air.
Adam comes in second with
Laurence third. Nearby, Eddie Fawcett
is sporting a huge grin. “I said there’d
be a surprise,” he tells me. “Gillam
was...using my latest improved racing
axe, a secret, and that made the
difference. Next year...they’ll all be
using it.” AGShow stoppers. Adam Lowe (left, at left)
races Laurence during the 2015, 375mm
World Championship Standing Block event.
The sport began in Australia in the early 1870s;
pictured above are the competitors at the
Sydney Royal Easter Show in 1926.The axemen dare
not look away
from their logs.