Laurence O’Toole
A gruelling competition series throughout the USA and Canada has ended with Australian champion axeman Laurence O’Toole finishing with a new world record … and being robbed, too! Source: Timberbiz
But, he’s back Down Under this week and getting ready to tackle the Royal Shows around the country.
When detailing his stint in the US, Laurance said he had had a really solid summer of chopping and sawing.
“I managed to win 6 out of 9 hotsaw races and get one second. Major wins were the USA Championships in Morgantown and the Open World Championships in Powel River, Canada,” he said.
“I cut some fast times along the way, especially at the Cherry Valley Outdoor Games where I broke the world record in cold start 3 cuts of 18” aspen. 5.21 secs.
“However, not everything went to plan, that’s for sure.
“My new set of axes I had prepared and sent over from my NZ axe maker are still missing in the mail … then to top it off right before the Lumberjack World Championships on the drive back from the west coast my back-up set of axes got stolen out of the car while in a hotel car park.
“I actually didn’t find this out until the day of the competition so you could imagine my surprise when I went to the car to find my stuff gone.
“I borrowed some axes and tried to block out the disappointment of my gear being stolen and won the underhand and springboard and got third in the standing.
“Not a bad way to finish the summer,” he said.
Now, though, with his arrival back in Australia Laurence says he’ll have to hit the ground running with the raft of Royal Shows.
- 10-19 August Brisbane Ekka (Royal Queensland Show)
- 31 August -9 September Adelaide Show
- 14-16 September Timbersports Finals
- 22 September – 2 October Melbourne Show
Again, Laurence was quick to extend thanks to the many people who have and continue to help him achieve success on the gruelling circuits around the country and around the world.
“I am sponsored by Komatsu Forest (he has a two-year deal with the major company) as my main sponsor and also by Peterson who I just signed with for the summer. [Komatsu Forest has been a dealer for Peterson products since 2010 selling their Horizontal Grinders, Disc & Drum Chippers and Flails].
“It’s great to have world-wide industry-based companies showing a real interest in our traditional lumberjack sports,” he said.
