Column: Good, all-around taste of Libby Logger Days
Shooting photos of a special event that runs over a four-day stretch does tend to challenge one’s stamina. But in the case of Logger Days, well, the assignment was both fascinating and fun.
This year represented my first coverage of Libby’s heritage-inspired festival. The independent group that put it all together deserves a big pat on the back and hopefully it will continue long into the community’s future.
My first taste of Logger Days came on Thursday afternoon with the Little Logger Run. A good representation of the region’s cutest kids lined up to race various distances within the rodeo arena. After reaching one end, they put on a plastic logger’s hardhat and raced back in an attempt to capture first place.
The water fights were pretty entertaining. First up were the kids as they steadied a hose with a stream of water directed toward a beach ball. Later, the adults picked up a much bigger and more powerful hose with the targeted object being a keg.
One of the most entertaining events on the first day was the lip sync contest. Kids of all ages got up on stage in the main arena and moved to the groove. I give them a lot of credit … I would never have the courage to do such a thing. Afterward, the tug-of-war contest was staged and it appeared the team with the biggest muscles pulled out the victory.
We caught a little bit of the White Hawk concert. Not too many people were watching early on, so hopefully they drew a bigger crowd later into the evening. A little blond-haired toddler thought they were pretty cool – she had moves that would lead to a pulled muscle if I tried them.
On the second day, I had to recruit some help to get all of the photos taken. I was able to watch some of the kids logging events in the late afternoon but then needed to get over to the Legion baseball game to see how the Loggers were doing (pretty well, I might add).
However, we had a photographer there to shoot the Bull of the Woods competition – which I really wanted to see. I have this fantasy that I could compete in it myself – but it’s different to go through the moves in your head compared to actually getting up on a log and trading punches. After seeing the photos and size of the winner, I think I’ll just stick to hiking for exercise.
The queen coronation, Copper Mountain Band’s concert and fireworks closed out the evening.
I had a rough start on Saturday morning. Jumping out of bed at 7:30 a.m., I rushed down to the Community Health Center for a photo of the start of the 5K/10K Fun Run. About 30 seconds before the start, I realized that I had left my camera’s memory card back at the house. I had downloaded the previous day’s photos and forgot to put the card back in the camera.
Feeling stupid, I hurried back to the car, picked up the memory card and tried to find the 10K route. I ended up near a water station where I shot several photos, including one of the overall top finisher. So, it worked out OK and I met a few nice volunteers. Maybe I’ll catch the start next year.
I next headed to Mineral Avenue to shoot the annual parade. I tried to shoot photos of every float and entry to be posted online in our photo galleries. I’ll admit that a few did get by me and my photos were simply out of focus on a few others. But I think I got most … if you want to check out the pics, go online to our website at www.thewesternnews.com and on the home page, click on the “Photos” tab. Then find the Logger Days album on the gallery page.
Another one of my favorite events followed on Saturday afternoon. The adult logging events were staged in the main arena and I met some pretty cool loggers who really know what they’re doing. It was amazing to watch these guys – and gals – in action.
That evening, the lawnmower race demonstration was staged before a pretty good-sized crowd. I believe organizers hope to make it an actual competition for locals next year.
Things calmed down on Sunday with a few final events. That was when I had some time to spend with my son at the carnival. Unfortunately, the Zipper got the best of him and he had to spend some time in the bathroom when we got home. Thank goodness, he didn’t lose it in my car!
(Brad Fuqua is the managing editor of The Western News. He can be reached at thewesternnews@gmail.com )