UAM forestry students finish third at Southern Forestry Conclave
MONTICELLO, AR — Forestry students from the University of Arkansas at Monticello finished third in competition with teams from 14 colleges and universities at the 61st annual Southern Forestry Conclave hosted recently by Abraham Baldwin College in Tifton, Ga.
The annual test of technical and physical forestry schools brought competitors from UAM, Georgia, North Carolina State, Auburn, Florida, Clemson, LSU, Mississippi State, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Alabama A&M, Louisiana Tech, Stephen F. Austin, and Abraham Baldwin. Students competed in 14 physical events, including axe throwing, cross cut sawing and pole climbing, and eight technical events, such as compass and pacing, tree estimation, pole classification and photogrammetry.
Stephen F. Austin won the overall competition for the 14th time with Virginia Tech second and UAM third. UAM students have dominated the competition since it began in 1958, winning 31 times, 17 more than SFA.
In the technical competition, Tyler Raines of Warren won both the dendrology (tree and shrub identification) and wood identification events. In the physical events, UAM students placed in the top three in multiple categories. Justin Ballard of Camden was second in the axe throw and represented UAM in the Stihl Timbersports competition.
Greg Craig of Mena finished first in birling and, along with his teammate John Marcus McDowell of Crosby, Miss., placed first in the chain throw. McDowell also took third place in pole felling. Mikaela Farmer of Randolph Center, Vt., and teammate Taylor Gydesen, from Elwood, Neb., finished second in the women’s crosscut competition. Farmer also finished third in women’s bowsaw, an individual event, and, along with her teammate Caleb Wilson of Elwood, Neb., placed third in Jack-and-Jill crosscut.
For more information, contact the School of Forestry and Natural Resources at (870) 460-1052.