Jessica Berg-Collman had a fantastic tournament at the Namekagon River Roll- Offs held July 23 in Hayward, Wis. Jessica placed first in the U17 age group and later placed first in the semi-pro division. It was her first time competing in the semi-pro class. Only semi-pro and professional logrollers are allowed to wear spikes in competition, so it was her first time wearing spikes. Jessica will compete in the World Championships this week at the same venue in Hayward, Wis.
In a year or two Jessica Berg-Collman will enter either the professional logrolling competitions or—at the very least—compete in the semi-pro division.
Jessica won first place in the U17 age group at the Namekagon River Roll-offs on Sunday, July 23. The event is largely used as a tuneup for the World Championships, which will be held this weekend at the same venue in Hayward, Wisconsin.
Later in the day Jessica competed against a strong field of semi-professional log rollers and, once again, placed first. This was the first time she rolled in spiked shoes and semipro. Amateurs are not allowed to wear spikes.
Competing for the first time for the North Shore Rollers was Luke Johnson in the 8-10 year old boys division, placing 5th, and Paige Everson, placing 4th, in the 8-10-year-old girls’ division. Despite not placing in the medals, both had outstanding tournaments and rolled long matches against their competitors.
Lucy Shaw once again did very well, placing third in the girls’ 8-10-year-old age bracket. Moving up a division this year, Wellesley Howard-Larsen placed sixth in the 11-14-year-old girls’ group. Wellesley rolled two strong matches, coming within a blink of moving into the medal rounds.
Above: Head coach Jenny Atkinson was proud of the way her young protégés rolled at the Namekagon River Roll-Offs. Standing with Jenny (L-R) Wellesley Howard-Larsen, Lucy Shaw, Paige Everson, Jessica Berg-Collman and Julie Collman.
Head Coach and eight-time World Champion Jenny Atkinson was up against a strong field of 18 pros, some half her age. But Atkinson showed her experience and her conditioning and managed to place an impressive 4th place. These are the best women log rollers in the world so it was great to see Jenny do so well, especially after coming back from a battle with breast cancer.
When Atkinson, a teacher in Stillwater and summer resident of Clearwater Lake, isn’t available to coach, Julie Collman and Vicki Shaw handle the duties. The two ladies also helped the kids at the meet and did an excellent job in preparing them for this competition. The team looked sporting in the competition because Studio 61 hair salon provided shirts and sweat tops emblazoned with sponsor names and team name. After the Worlds, the next tournament is the following week in Grand Marais for the Fisherman’s Picnic. More and more champion log rollers and boom runners are coming each year. The field should be full and the competition hot so come out and cheer for the kids.
Left: On the right, Luke Johnson had the bad luck—or good luck—to roll against two boys who have been world champions for their age brackets. Luke didn’t beat either boy, but he made them work long and hard to beat him.
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