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As Alessandra (Allie) Duclos has gotten older, the log rolling competition has gotten more challenging, but so far, she has managed to keep her balance and roll through the young ladies she competes against. And this past weekend was no exception as Allie picked up her fifth amateur world title, this one coming in the U17 girls’ division at the 2022 Hayward Lumberjack World Championships.
In the final, Allie faced Avery Poppe of Hayward. But first, on her way to the final, Allie had to roll against Alivia Poppe, Avery’s sister. Both sisters are talented rollers, and either one presents challenges.
The competition in the U-17 division is fierce. Athletes need to be quick, strong, possess great balance, and have a lot of endurance. All of the log rollers pretty much know each other’s tricks, and all of them are talented. There are four different-sized logs used in the competition. The No 1 log is 15 inches in diameter and 12 feet long. The No 2 log is 14 inches in diameter and 12 feet, while the No 3 log is 13 inches in diameter and the No 4 log is 12 inches in diameter, and each is 13 feet long. Competitors typically start on the largest log, and if no one falls off after two minutes, they switch to the next smallest log. Great matches happen when the log rollers have to battle on the smallest log, which is mostly underwater. As the athletes jockey for position on their side of the log, spinning, stopping, kicking water, anything to get their opponent to fall into the water, it is very entertaining for fans and family to watch. The winner is decided when someone takes three out of five falls.
So, for the U17 girls’ championship match both Allie and Avery decided to skip the first two logs and start on the No 3 log. Neither would have probably taken a fall off of the bigger two logs, but rarely will competitors start on the smaller logs. The action is fast and furious as the log rollers start and stop the logs in a heartbeat.
While Allie had a great tournament, she wasn’t the only North Shore Roller to do well at the ultra-competitive meet. Garrett Plummer placed second in the U10 Boys’ Division and his sister Alexis (Lexi) placed 5th in the U13 girls’ field. Lexi lost to the number two seed, Briella Joas, who lived up to her seed and finished second overall.
Photo courtesy of Rich Magnone
Garrett had an exciting championship match against Jayce Schreiber. Jayce was the number four seed and Garrett the number three seed in the competition, so both had to beat competitors ranked ahead of them to take first and second place.
The Lumberjack World Championships were held in Hayward, Wisconsin, over three days, July 28-30, with the amatures competing the first two days.
While Allie has five amateur world titles to her name, she isn’t the only North Shore Roller to win at Hayward. Past North Shore champions include Jessica Berg Collman, Lucy Shaw, Dominic Wilson, and Paige Everson, all of whom have won world championship titles in various age groups.
The Lumberjack World Championships feature international competition showcasing the best professional timber sports athletes from around the globe competing in sawing, chopping, speed climbing, log rolling, boom running, ax throwing, and more. Professionals compete for points and money while amateur athletes compete for place and awards.
The log rolling and boom running tournament is held yearly in the Lumberjack Bowl, built around an inlet—more like a large pond— of the Namekagon River in Hayward.
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