Left: Ali Duclos studies the feet of her barefooted competitor to try to get an edge on the log. Duclos, from Lutsen, finished third in the U-10 girls’ division at the Minnesota State Log Rolling championships held at Fisherman’s Picnic. Above: Kody Koblitz of Onalaska, Wisconsin and Ellie Davenport of Hudson, Wisconsin put on a demonstration of highly skilled, fast-paced, white water log rolling at the end of the tournament for an appreciative crowd.
In front of a large Fisherman’s Picnic crowd, the Cook County Community YMCA North Shore Rollers hosted the 4th annual Minnesota State Log Rolling Championships on Saturday, August 1.
Thirty-eight kids from the Midwest turned out to roll on various sized carpeted western cedar logs on a warm sunny day in the allday, round robin tournament that featured several age group world champions.
With eight-time log rolling/ boom running world champion Jenny Atkinson announcing, two time U-7 girls’ world champion Libby Magnone from Wauconda, Illinois defeated Grand Marais’ Lexi Plummer to take the state title. Sullivan Johnson of Hayward, Wisconsin placed third.
Local rollers dominated the U-10 girls’ bracket. Riley Goettl defeated Taylor Everson 3-2 in falls in an exciting championship match that featured multiple thrills and spills. Ali Duclos of Lutsen came away with the third place award.
Jasper Priest of Minneapolis defeated Nolan Kubareck of Hayward to take the U-10 boys’ division, with Hunter Lyons of Hayward taking third.
Livi Pappadopoulos of Holmen, Wisconsin and Anna Davenport of Hudson, Wisconsin squared off in the toughest division of the day, the girls’ U-13 bracket. Once again Pappadopoulos won 3 falls to 0. That’s not a knock on Davenport who is a very talented roller, but Pappadopoulos is a multiple age group world champion who rarely takes a fall in a tournament. Morgan Thill of Hayward finished in third place.
Dominic Wilson of Grand Marais had the fewest total falls in the boys’ U-13 age group to take the crown. Jacob Diethart of Somerset, Wisconsin placed second with Dominick Magnone of Wauconda, Illinois finishing third in a strong boys’ field.
Alicia Diethart of Somerset, Wisconsin was the lone U-17 girl, so she was awarded the title, but that didn’t mean she received a free pass. Instead, Alicia, large in heart but small in size, rolled against the three boys in the U-17 bracket and took one match (3 falls to 2 falls) against Jake Kubarek, and gave the other two boys quite a tussle for their money.
Kody Koblitz of Onalaska, Wisconsin defeated Andrew Serpico of Hudson, Wisconsin for the U-17 boys’ title, with Jake Kubarek placing third.
When he wasn’t helping with the tournament Chris Serpico of Hudson, Wisconsin was rolling in the adult sport division. Serpico took on two new rollers from the county, Martha Brummitt and Andrew Beavers. Beavers, a good sport, had never rolled before the tournament and his full immersion into the water was quick and hilarious. Brummitt has rolled for about three months and she did a little better, finishing second to Serpico who took it easy on his competitors.
Finally, Ellie Davenport and Kody Koblitz put on a demonstration of elite, high-end white water log rolling for the public. Ellie, who will be a senior in high school this fall, recently finished second in the professional women’s division at the Hayward Lumberjack World Championships, and she is the top-ranked women’s roller this year based on her multiple wins at professional tournaments. The much bigger, stronger Koblit zhad all he could do to knock Davenport off the log as each roller kicked water into their opponents’ face and rocked the log back and forth as they kept the log spinning at a dizzying speed.
All in all it was a great demonstration, fun for the two rollers and a great chance for the crowd to see the skills of a professional log roller and another one— Koblitz—who will soon be a pro himself.
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