Table of Contents

July 2008 Classifieds

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The Lighter Side of Logging

Points to Ponder

After eating, do amphibians have to wait one hour before getting out of the water?

Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how popular it remains?

Do Lipton Tea employees take coffee breaks?

If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?

Good Numbers by Tonya Cooner-Vots

Loggers and associated manufacturers turned out in surprisingly good numbers for the 25th iteration of the Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show, held June 6-7 just south of town in the intensely-managed Mississippi State University (MSU) John W. Starr Memorial Forest. According to show officials, an estimated 6,000 people of all stripes passed through the gate.

“Despite the industry’s problems and a slow economy, attendees and exhibitors stepped up,” says Show Manager Charles Burkhardt. “We were very pleased with the participation, and I think exhibitors and attendees were satisfied with their Mid-South Show experience this year.”

It’s a Struggle by Jennifer McCary

For twenty years, third generation Bobby Goodson, owner of Goodson All Terrain Logging, has logged mostly hardwood bottoms of eastern North Carolina. Initially, he ran a low ground pressure operation and converted to shovel logging about 12 years ago. The logger proudly notes that the company has grown every year. Some years that growth was razor thin, but it never went backwards. This year isn’t shaping up that way.

When SLT visited the jobsite, the crew was diligently working to retrieve felled timber on a deep bottomland tract, which would soon be underwater. Heavy rains on the heels of an extended drought had accumulated too much water too fast, so the reservoir had opened the locks to release the excess downstream. Goodson’s job was in its path. By the time SLT’s visit ended, water had covered the truck access road at the landing.

Multitasking by David Abbott

Jack McFarland, owner of McFarland Timber, 38, recently learned that he has been selected as the Louisiana Forestry Assn. Logger of the Year for 2008, and with good reason. He is something of an oddity in the industry for several reasons. He did not grow up in logging, choosing to take it up later in life. He owns and has owned several successful unrelated businesses, including a chain of laundromats. He is also a successful local politician, serving as President of the Winn Parish police jury.

McFarland is one of three Louisiana contractors who have agreed to evaluate a new technology (patent pending) called Timber Guide from Genesis Industries. McFarland had Timber Guide installed it on his feller-buncher, and was so impressed that he’s installed in all of his machines.

Survival Tactics by Tonya Cooner-Vots

There’s a saying that you have to spend money to make money, but in these times of unpredictable fuel prices, Rueben “Curly” White has not hesitated to spend money to help make and save money; he’s recently bought a couple of new machines that according to him, drastically reduce fuel usage.

White, 51, logs for Sumter-based Johnson Company doing business as White’s Logging in Clarendon and surrounding counties. It’s been a very beneficial relationship; White says that while they’re finding themselves moving more often as of recent, they’re still in timber and most importantly, still working. “I’ve been working for Johnson Co. since 1997,” White says. “They’re one of the most honest timber dealers I’ve ever worked for.”

Current Industry News

Two long-time Prentice Loader Championship rivals were at it again at Expo Richmond 2008, May 16-17, in Richmond, Va. Harry Pickett, Hilliard, Fla., and Brent Hill, Lillington, NC, have gone head-to-head in many Prentice loader contests over the years and both competed in the 2006 Grand National Championship. This time Pickett was in first place after the initial run, but Hill snatched the grand prize away from him in the Trophy Run.

Carter Machinery, headquartered in Salem, Va., provided the Prentice 2384 for the contest, which drew 110 players. The event is also a fundraiser for Log A Load For Kids. The charity will receive $1,052 collected through voluntary contributions and the company’s match.

New Products & Technologies

Gator Teeth, made by Timberblade Inc., debuted on Tigercat’s 724E feller-buncher at last September’s Carolina Log’n Demo. Gator Teeth use new patent pending technology that, according to Timberblade, sets new standards for durability and performance.

Each Gator Tooth is a square bit featuring four main cutting points. Beneath the main cutting surface, two additional cutting tips feature, making a total of 12 cutting tips on each tooth. As all 12 tips make contact with each tree cut, the cutting is dispensed over a larger area, making the tooth last longer and cut better. Field testing, spread across varied conditions in multiple states, has indicated that the additional cutting tips of Gator Teeth, which keep the cutting edges sharp longer, produce longer life and cut more efficiently. This can also increase productive uptime and save on fuel.

Skidder Strikes, Kills Logging Supervisor

BACKGROUND: A forester and a logging supervisor were walking on a skid trail towards the yard after inspecting a harvest operation. It was mid-afternoon on a clear winter day in the Northeast. Deep snow in the woods made walking on the skid trail a logical choice. To avoid skidder traffic, the pair diverted to a recently unused skid trail that had a light, undisturbed covering of snow. Grapple skidders were yarding whole-tree wood to the yard and returning with brush to fill a nearby soft spot in the active part of the trail in flat to gently rolling terrain.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS: The forester, in his 50s, and the logging supervisor, 70, were both in good physical condition and had many decades of safe experience around active harvest operations. The forester was wearing a high-visibility orange hardhat and vest. The supervisor was wearing a green hardhat and coat.

Summer At Home by Tonya Cooner

According to gasbuddy.com, regular unleaded gas prices in the South range between $3.77 and $4.09. Diesel prices range between $4.59 and (gasp) $5.09. Yes sir, over the $5 mark. Mind you, that’s of this writing, about a week after the Mid-South show closed the gates on another great event. Fuel prices, as we’ve seen, can and will change at the drop of a hat. But we’re all aware of gas prices; like the weather, it’s a sure fire subject to come up in conversation these days.

This isn’t another pained litany about gas prices, I promise. I commented in another H-B magazine recently that higher fuel prices will inevitably cause many to change leisure travel plans, maybe even return to a way of life that’s long been enjoyed in rural communities—visiting with neighbors, family and friends at home or relatively close to home. I recall several summers of my youth where adults passed time outside on lawn chairs, on a porch or in the