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June 2010 Classifieds

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Our best leisure reading from our not-so-sharp minds.

A Japanese company and an American company decided to have a canoe race on the Mississippi River. Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race. On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile.

Afterwards, the American team became very discouraged and morally depressed. The American management decided that the reason for the crushing defeat had to be found and formed a “measurement team” made up of senior management. Its conclusion was that the Japanese had eight people rowing and one person steering, while the Americans had one person rowing and eight people steer

Branching Out by David Abbott

There comes a point in any young man’s life when he needs to leave the nest and fly on his own, get out from his father’s shadow and establish himself as his own man, with his own story to tell, his own trails to blaze. It’s a normal, healthy final step in the assertion of independence that is the process of becoming an adult. Brandon Rampey, 31, came to that place two years ago when he left his father’s traditional logging operation and started his own company: Renewable Energy Innovations, Inc.

Rampey started working for his father, Steve Rampey of Rampey Logging, when he was 19. He ran the loader on one of Rampey Logging’s crews, sorting and loading trucks for 10 years, gaining valuable experience. He also went to college at night and earned a degree in accounting. Throughout that time the Rampeys considered adding a fuelwood chipper to the operation, but the elder Rampey was never quite convinced it was the right idea. They almost tried it once before fuel prices went sky

Courting Bioenergy

The forest products industry has long touted the fact that wood or some derivative thereof is used in the production of literally thousands of products. But the rapid-fire announcement of dozens of proposed wood-based bioenergy projects in recent years has caused quite a stir. For loggers and wood suppliers, long in the trough of this recession, it offers renewed hope for recovery and a return to profitability. But it has also stirred up the henhouse, bringing out the Chicken Little naysayers who declare the end of resource sustainability, runaway stumpage costs and unfair competition.

The engine driving many of these renewable energy developments is fueled more by policy and ideology than by market forces, i.e. the desire for energy dependence and protection of environmental quality. Millions of dollars from various Dept. of Energy and USDA programs in the last two or three years has seeded the research, development and ultimate commercialization of renewable energy projects

Nameless Texas Towns

The houses mill wives lived in approximated country standards. Homes in the quarters closely resembled the better sharecropper houses on area cotton farms. Most mill families lived in homes similar in size and amenities to those of tenant farmers “on thirds and fourths,” and the housing of the blue-collar elite approximated the country standards of small land­owners, complete with cow barns and chicken houses.

Just beginning his sawmill career around 1900, Guy Croom’s father had to accept a poor, shabby home for his wife and young family at the mill town of Warren. Guy Croom told: “It was the shabbiest place we ever lived in. The roof leaked and everything around it was in a state of decay. The floor to the outdoor privy was practically flat on the ground, and the door would not close completely.” At this home, snakes regularly surprised toilet users and a rotten fence collapsed on Guy’s baby brother. However, a few years later at Elmina in Walker County: “We moved into a ni

Storm Survivors

As Hurricane Katrina churned in the Gulf of Mexico in August 2005, third generation tree farmer Osmond (Oz) Crosby made reservations to fly into New Orleans the day after the storm made landfall. He knew regardless of where it came ashore, Katrina would impact his Mississippi tree farm. That flight, of course, was diverted to Jackson, Miss., where Crosby loaded a rental van with water, ice, baby food and other supplies, and drove south to his hometown of Picayune, Miss.

“It really does impact you when the high school gym where you grew up is converted into a shelter and they’re serving 15,000 meals a day in the parking lot of the church you went to as a boy,” Crosby says.

Timber Expo… Ho!

Rain or shine, the once relocated and twice delayed Timber & Biomass Expo Southeast is a go for June 11-12 near Valdosta, Ga. Delayed by poor markets induced by an unraveling economy, and again by prolonged rainfall, the event has gained momentum as both markets and the economy have stabilized and improved.

Loggers, landowners, foresters, established mill and bioenergy representatives and others are expected to turn out in strong numbers to interface with an exhibitor lineup consisting of 65 manufacturers, major brands, equipment dealers and providers of services and supplies.

Current Industry News

As I write this in late April, winter is still hanging on in the high country. We have had a skiff of snow the last few mornings. I don’t know if winter is getting longer or as I get older I just notice it more. I tend to stay by the fire a little longer and look for excuses not to go outside till it warms up.

At first I thought it might be just in the Northwest, but as I travel around the country I see a trend that is too large to ignore. I am not alone when it comes to getting older. Data indicates that the average age of logging contractors is on the long side of 55. In one sense the logging industry is blessed with a wealth of experienced professionals who have seen it all before and realize that what goes around comes around. They don’t panic over issues they have no control over. But without an infusion of new blood all that experience will do little good in the future.

New Products and Technologies

John Deere has released its E-Series wheeled harvesters and forwarders to North America following an initial launch in Europe. They’re designed with stronger frames than their predecessors and equipped with rotating and leveling cabs, offering 360˚ of visibility. The automatic air-conditioning of the new cab, top-quality upholstery, low noise and vibration levels and a wide range of additional accessories ensure first-class operation.

The four models in the E-Series harvester family include the 1070E, 1170E, 1270E and 1470E. The 1070E is available in a 4-wheel or a 6-wheel version. New generation harvester heads are part of the series, with the H414 developed especially for the 1170E, and the compact H412 compatible with the 1070E and 1170E.

Jimmie Locklear On Managing Risks by DK Knight

For the past 19 years I have worked on the insurance side of the forest industry. Prior to that I grew up in a family logging operation, which I eventually owned outright. I would never pretend to grasp all there is to know about either. I will say, however, that adequate insurance coverage is a key element for any logging business.

Someone has defined insurance as “the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for a premium;” adding that it “can be thought of as a guaranteed and known small loss to prevent a large, possibly devastating loss.”