Tag: Chainsaw Competition

“Watch The Chips Fly” – Another Huge Success

| September 13, 2014 | 0 Comments

by Jenny Chissus

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The excitement of the competition is palpable!  The noise is something you can’t ignore – and the draw to the event site each day is something phenomenal!  To see our beautiful natural spruce logs turn into incredible masterpieces each year in the most beautifully situated community in Alaska is an experience that becomes an addiction!  If you’ve never seen a chainsaw carving competition, or been to Seldovia – you are missing out!

The Chainsaw Carving Competition is a very special Seldovia event, which not only brings a fantastic weekend of activity, excitement, art and fun to Seldovia, but adds a flavor to our town, a growing ‘outdoor museum’ of art that enriches our community that we are able to enjoy year-round!

Toby & Elaine Craft -Photo from 2007 Carving Competition - photo by Jenny Chissus

Toby & Elaine Craft -Photo from 2007 Carving Competition – photo by Jenny Chissus

This was Seldovia’s 9th Annual CICCC (Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition) which started in 2006 under the guidance and encouragement of two local carvers, Toby and Elaine Craft. (Pictured at the right)  Toby and Elaine had competed before in chainsaw carving events and thought it would be a fantastic competition to host in Seldovia.   There had always been the ice carving festival in Fairbanks, but the chainsaw carving of local spruce, this was the first of its kind in Alaska!   Tom and Mary Glover were  instrumental in gathering the committee and an amazing tradition was formed!

Master Carvers for the Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition 2014 - photo by Chris Crosta

Master Carvers for the Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition 2014 – photo by Chris Crosta

This year, along with two carvers from out-of-state, Jeff Samudosky from Gig Harbor, and Chris Foltz from North Bend Oregon, Toby and Elaine came all the way from Texas to be a part of our event as judges!  We truly appreciated the opportunity to thank them in person for this GREAT idea – and acknowledge them for being the inspiration and the namesake of our competition!  It was so good to see them again in Seldovia!  Toby generously awarded our People’s Choice Winner – Jeff Samudosky, with a pair of beautiful hand carved orcas.

There were some big changes to the competition this year!  The biggest change was the venue – as the competition site was moved from the old cannery lot across from the AMHS dock to the parking area next to our new Gateway Pavilion in the heart of town.  In spite of the noise of the saws, the committee received unanimous support for the move by the businesses and residences in the area.  This put the competition next to the harbor and right in the middle of all the action on Main Street!  It turned out to be a fabulous change, bringing more people and activity to the competition.  The second change was adding competitors from out of state.  We have always had carvers from Alaska in our competition, and it truly raised the bar for our event and brought awareness to the national chainsaw carving competitions and competitors that Seldovia is a great place to compete!

The Master Carvers for the 2014 Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition were:

Rob Younkins with the Raven God legend - how mankind received the first salmon

Rob Younkins with the Raven God legend – how mankind received the first salmon – photo by Chris Crosta

Log 1

29″ x 8’4″

Rob Younkins

Anchorage, Alaska

Rob carves with his wife as his assistant at these competitions! He is an easy-going, fun-loving, no-sweat kind of guy!  And, as you’ll note in this bio – a bit of a comedian!  Previously a landscape architect, this is his first year carving full-time, though he’s has competed in the Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition since 2010.  Rob took 3rd place in the 2013 competition with his native dancers!  He also enjoys writing, reading and doing polynomial long division.  “All of these interests help my carving technique to stay unique and imaginative.”  When his wife was in labor with their first child, she said “Hurry up, I need to get to the hospital!”  Rob replied “Just a minute, I have to finish this bear!”  He did mention that he is thinking about going “full cowboy” – boots, hat, buckle and most importantly, a sleeveless shirt!
Jeff Samudosky with his Alaskan Wildlife masterpiece - photo by Chris Crosta

Jeff Samudosky with his Alaskan Wildlife masterpiece – photo by Chris Crosta

Log 2

35″ x 8’9″

Jeff Samudosky

Gig Harbor, Washington

1st Place and People’s Choice

Originally from Connecticut, Jeff has traveled and lived in many places across the US and Canada.  He is 100% self-taught, and has been carving for over 16 years!  His company, JMS Wood Sculpture shop and gallery is located in Gig Harbor, Washington.  Jeff was featured as an animal anatomy specialist on Discovery Channel’s carving reality show – Saw Dogs!  Jeff has won the first place award at 9 competitions in the last 3 years, including Chetwynd in BC Canada, Loggerodeo in Washington and at the Husky World Cup in Germany!  He has placed 2nd or 3rd in 5 other competitions over the past 3 years!
Chris Foltz' yellow--eye fish - photo by Chris Crosta

Chris Foltz’ yellow–eye fish – photo by Chris Crosta

Log 3

31.5″ x 8’4″

Chris Foltz

North Bend, Oregon

3rd Place

Chris has been a professional Competition Power Sculptor for 5 years and holds more than 15 1st place international wins including Ice & Wood Sculpture.  Chris has been profiled on Reality TV Series Saw Dogs – on the Discovery Channel and has been the USA Team Captain at Fairbanks World Ice Art Championships since 2009.  In addition to being a Husband & Father of 3, Chris also has other endeavors, as he is an Executive Chef and Chef Instructor at Oregon Coast Culinary Institute “OCCI”.  Owner of “Divine Sculptures” Professional World Class Ice & Wood Sculptures serving the West Coast and Beyond
Ben Firth with his grand seal - photo by Chris Crosta

Ben Firth with his grand seal – photo by Chris Crosta

Log 4

35″ x 8’5″

Ben Firth

Anchor Point, Alaska

Ben Firth is an artist who works in a wide variety of mediums.  This is the 4th year he and his son Silas have competed in Seldovia.  Ben is joined by 4 of his children in Seldovia this year – Silas, Aurora, Sarah and Josiah.  Between Ben, Silas and Aurora (his daughter), there is a lot of beautiful artwork to be seen and purchased in his studio, located at mile 161 on the Sterling Highway.  Stop by and see the many artistic talents of Ben and his family!
Derrick Stanton with his Alaskan Raven -photo by Chris Crosta
Derrick Stanton with his Alaskan Raven -photo by Chris Crosta

Log 5

39″ x 7’4″

Derrick Stanton

Kenai, Alaska

2nd Place

Derrick Stanton has been carving now for eight years. He and his wife Becky along with their five kids run Derrick Stanton Log Works. This was Derrick’s sixth year carving in Seldovia. He has won once in Seldovia and twice in Saw Fest, which in held in Soldotna, Alaska. Along with his awards he has received People’s Choice twice. Derrick and his family look forward to coming down to carve in the Seldovia competition every year.

With the competition this year, we have almost 50 carvings in our community, representing 9 years of competition!  Some folks have referred to the masterpieces as Seldovia’s Outdoor Carving “Museum”!  Most of the carvings are outdoors, under cover and in front of businesses and in parks about town, don’t miss those that are located inside the library, museum and Multi-purpose room!  If you look at photo blogs from Seldovia, you will note that the majority of the photographers have found that our carvings are one of the most photographed items in Seldovia!  The otters, the slough homes and the carvings are the symbols representing our community!

Ben and Silas Firth working together on the seal. Photo by Sonny Chissus

Ben and Silas Firth working together on the seal. Photo by Sonny Chissus

If you are a Chamber of Commerce member, and are interested in hosting one of the carvings at your place of business – please feel free to contact one of the Chainsaw Committee members for consideration.  We have our 2014 carvings to place as well as a few others that will be relocated this year.

Obviously, none of this could happen without the huge financial, physical and volunteer support from so many individuals, organizations and businesses in Seldovia! A Huge thank you goes out to the Seldovia Chamber of Commerce for believing in, and sponsoring this fantastic event.  The whole purpose of the competition is to bring new people to town to stay in our hotels and B&Bs, eat in our restaurants and to add beauty to our community!  This was one more reason for folks to choose Seldovia as their vacation destination!  There has been a ton of support and interest in the competition as well as the beauty it provides the whole community year-round!   As you can see from this long list of sponsors, there are many folks generously giving of time, energy and finances to bring this event to Seldovia and make it a success!

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We want to extend a very appreciative thank you to our 1st Platinum Sponsor, Conoco Phillips, who was our top sponsor of the event this year.  We are working with them as they are in the sponsorship position to select a carving of their choice from the competition to place in their corporate office!  We will let you know when that is decided!

We couldn’t do this competition without our GOLD Sponsors – the Swisher Family and Hopkins Brothers Construction – who procured these fabulous logs for the competition.  Without their generous donation and effort to transport these great logs to our site – this competition wouldn’t happen!  Thank you!
Jim Samudosky working on the wolf at the top of the carving. Photo by Sonny Chissus

Jim Samudosky working on the wolf at the top of the carving. Photo by Sonny Chissus

To the following Silver Sponsors who donated at least $1,000, in cash or in-kind: AeroTech LLC, Alaska Air Taxi, City of Seldovia,  Elitewood Cabinets, Seldovia Fishing Adventures, Seldovia Chamber of Commerce,  Seldovia Property and Winter Watch.  Thank you for your very generous donations and assistance with this event!

To our fabulous Bronze Sponsors – who donated $500 or more to our event either in cash or in-kind:  Alaska Marine Highway System, The Seldovia Native Association, The Seldovia Village Tribe and Spenard Builder’s Supply! We are so grateful for your support of our event, recognizing that it is a worthwhile and asset to our community!
We want to thank OUR MANY GENEROUS COMMUNITY SPONSORS, to those who hosted a meal:  Byron and Margie McCord who provided breakfast every morning for the carvers and their families, Linwood Bar and Grill, Perry’s Cafe, Bridgekeeper’s Inn, Indian Valley Meats and Suzie and Jerry Stranik.  The two new carvers to our competition, Chris and Jeff were totally impressed with the royal treatment they received at our event!  They were usually offered hotdogs and hamburgers at other competitions, and in Seldovia they enjoyed a home cooked breakfast each morning, delicious pot roast lunch, gourmet hotdogs, fresh halibut dinner and a glorious community potluck!  The carvers were very well fed!  Thank you!
Derrick working on his majestic raven. Photo by Liane Crosta

Derrick working on his majestic raven. Photo by Liane Crosta

We appreciate the community for their support and excitement in hosting the carvers and their families.  Thank you to Tobben and Tanya Spurkland, Dick and Sammie Reason, Cory and Dawhn Bodyfelt, Brent and Raewyn Weyer with Seldovia Fishing Adventures and Mike and Nicola Holman who generously offered their homes and rooms to host our carvers this year!

Thank you again to the City of Seldovia for the use of this spectacular location and for the ongoing support in the set up and breakdown of the site!
Without ALL of your financial, in-kind and Physical support – this couldn’t come together so beautifully!  We appreciate the following individuals or businesses that gave generously for the auctions or donated in a financial way!  Alaska Airlines, Alaska USA, Bear Creek Winery, The Boardwalk Hotel, Captain’s Coffee, Central Charters, Central Suites of Seldovia, Crabpot Grocery, Dancing Eagles, Homer Electric Association, Homer Brewery, Kachemak Gear Shed, Mike Sage, Smokey Bay Air and Thyme on the Boardwalk!
Rob putting finishing touches on his Raven God. Photo by Sonny Chissus

Rob putting finishing touches on his Raven God. Photo by Sonny Chissus

I also have to acknowledge the most AWESOME Committee ever – that truly pulled together to bring this great event to you this year.  Unfortunately, due to a family emergency, I had to fly out of Seldovia on the 1st day of the event, leaving the committee to manage the weekend without me.  Thankfully, I have an incredible husband, Paul “Sonny” Chissus, who loves the Chainsaw Competition as much as I do, and we have a committee of fantastic individuals:  Chris and Liane Crosta, Byron and Margie McCord and Suzie Stranik – who made it all come together!

Chris carving the details on his yellow eye fish. Photo by Liane Crosta

Chris carving the details on his yellow eye fish. Photo by Liane Crosta

Thank you to my in-laws, Paul and Ginny Chissus who rallied even more volunteers (Carolyn, Cathy, Harmony & Jan) to assist with the auctions and registration for the Mini Marathon as well as helped out in any other way that came about!  Thanks for jumping in and doing whatever needed to be done to make things happen! We totally appreciate Tobben Spurkland who added his experience and professionalism to our 1st annual Mini Marathon!   And to the Crosta family, including Bryce and  Lindsey who helped mark the course and monitor the marathon!  Thank you to Mike Webber and Mark Wegner who assisted on the site and helped Sonny with the logistics and details of running such a busy event!

I know there were additional helpers this weekend – and  I don’t want to leave anyone out, we so appreciate ALL of you!  Thank you! Thank you!  Thank you! You are what make this event incredible – just ask the carvers – I think they understand best the amount of work, planning and generosity required to make a successful competition.

Thank you so much to Chris and Liane Crosta who took great photos of the event – please enjoy their slideshow below!

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Two of the Crew! Photo by Liane Crosta

Two of the Crew! Photo by Liane Crosta

To the carvers – Ben, Chris, Derrick, Jeff, and Rob – THANK YOU for being a part of our 9th Annual Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition!  You guys are AMAZING, and we are thrilled to host you and your families!  We are so fortunate to have your masterpieces become a part of our Seldovia Community!  To Chris and Jeff, who took a chance – and flew all the way from Washington and Oregon to be a part of this small community event!  We hope you have enjoyed your time in Seldovia, and that you could feel our appreciation and enjoy the small-town hospitality and exceptional working environment!!   Isn’t this the MOST BEAUTIFUL setting for a competition you’ve ever seen?  We hope that you will consider competing in our event in the future and bringing your families!

Thank you to our Judges for the competition this  year:  Jeremiah Campbell, Toby and Elaine Craft, Alan Haskins, Ed Packer and Brian Slover – we appreciate your time and expertise in the area of art, beauty and/or wood working!
Start of the Mini Marathon - photo by Chris Crosta

Start of the Mini Marathon – photo by Chris Crosta

chips button-2This year we added two extra “events” to the weekend to raise funds for our competition!  The first was the daily auctions, with gifts from local businesses – which was fantastic, and the generous winners got some great deals while supporting the competition!  Then we had our 1st Annual Seldovia End of Summer Mini Marathon!   Thanks again to Tobben for helping in a HUGE way to make the race a success.  We were impressed with the turn out for the End of Summer Mini Marathon, as we had 22 participants – mostly from Jen and Keith’s wedding party!
  • In the women’s division, Naomi Gallien came in first place, with Jennifer Giles (Swick) in second, and Cola Lewis bringing up 3rd place.
  • In the men’s category, Jeff Swick took 1st, Bryan Chartier with 2nd and Keith Swick came in 3rd.
  • In the Senior division, Ed Packer took 1st place, and Margie and Byron McCord came in tied for 2nd.
  • There was only one runner for the 10K this year – so Lars Spurkland won 1st place (that was easy!) – but I have to mention that he didn’t come in last overall  due to the double distance – he crossed the finish line before 9 of the 5K competitors!  Great job Lars!
  • We did have a Red Lantern Award – which honors the last person to cross the finish line – and that went to Crystal and Courtney Collier!

 

9th Annual “Watch the Chips Fly” Chainsaw Carving Competition on Labor Day Weekend!

| August 22, 2014 | 2 Comments

by Jenny Chissus

Please go to our FACEBOOK page to see photos as the competition progresses!

ScottEagleAs we tolerate the August rain, and our kids begin school, we have to face the fact that summer is coming to a close. It has been a glorious Seldovia summer, with plenty of warm, beautiful sunny days, full of fishing, friends, good food and exceptional beach combing!

This summer saw plenty of new beginnings in Seldovia, from the exciting renovations and reopening of the Boardwalk Hotel, Amon’s Coffee House – a quaint coffee shop serving breakfast and lunch on the slough to the Kacheyak Trading Post – we’ve seen some new energy in town that is contagious! Both the Tidepool Bakery and Cafe as well as Seldovia Fishing Adventures is under new ownership and it is nice to see this energetic interest and excitement in serving our community and visitors.

ChainsawCarvingCompetitionLogoThis year, over Labor Day Weekend, we are saying goodbye to summer with a ton of style, music, activity, athleticism, art and noise! This will be the 2nd year that we have hosted the Seldovia Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition at the end of summer!

TobyElaineCraftA little History:  We began this thrilling competition in 2006, with the guidance of two local carvers, Toby and Elaine Craft. The Crafts had competed in chainsaw carving competitions in other states and believed that bringing this type of competition would be a real asset to our community! Thus, the Seldovia Craft Invitational Chainsaw Carving Competition was born!

This will be our 9th year hosting the competition in Seldovia, (the first 7 years it was held on Memorial Day weekend) and we are so excited to announce our theme this year is “Great Alaska!” Also, this year, in addition to top Alaskan carvers: Ben Firth of Anchor Point, Derrick Stanton of Kenai and Rob Younkins of Anchorage – we have two carvers coming up from Washington and Oregon to compete in Seldovia! Chris Foltz from North Bend, Oregon and Jeff Samudosky from Gig Harbor, Washington have both competed internationally and have placed first in many events from the US, Canada and Germany! We are very excited to be opening this competition to master carvers outside of Alaska!

CarvingCrew2013Our event has always been a very intimate group, carvers who enjoy the time they spend in the art of carving, as well as the time together socially. Sponsored by the Seldovia Chamber of Commerce, we are thankful to garner so much support from the community as a whole! The Chainsaw Committee raises all the support from the local businesses and individuals. We bring the carvers over from Homer, lodge and feed them for the weekend as they create these beautiful masterpieces that will stay in our community for locals and visitors to enjoy!

JimmyBigSawThis year we have moved the competition site to the brand new Gateway Pavilion at the small boat harbor!  We are going to enjoy the glorious views, and being centrally located in the heart of town will make it easy for folks to stop by and enjoy the festivities!

The masterpiece carving logs are from local spruce, with a minimum diameter of 26″, and all are at least 7 feet tall. The carvers arrive on Thursday the 28th of August, and begin prepping their logs that evening, with the debarking and setting up of scaffolding. Carving will begin at 8am on Friday the 29th, and will continue through Sunday at 1:00pm. Obviously, there will be breaks for lunch, and dinner – snacks and great conversation!

SeaOtterCarvingAtSBEIt is an amazing transformation from a log to a masterpiece! My favorite day is Friday when the log has its greatest transformation, as the chainsaw cuts away to reveal to the crowd, the brilliant imagination of the carver! Saturday is incredible as the detailed work begins to evolve out of the rough design.   Sunday brings the work to completion with the fine details, textures all revealed and the final coating is put on the carving in preparation for judging.  We will also have quick carves during the competition time, and that is a great time to stop by and see high-speed creativity!

Sunday at 1:00pm the carvers have to put down their tools and the judges enter the competition site. Our guest judges this year will be the names sakes of our competition, Toby and Elaine Craft – who have traveled to Seldovia from the lower 48 to be here to experience the competition again. We will also have the Chief Mate of the Tustumena, John Mayer as a guest judge for the competition.

BenFirthThe finale of the weekend is the Community Potluck on Sunday at 1;00pm. Everyone is invited! We will be cooking up burgers and hotdogs and counting on the community for the salads, desserts, chips, dips, etc! While the judges are judging the masterpiece carvings, there will be a community gathering to celebrate the end of the competition and participate in a silent auction of items donated to raise funds for the event, and the final culmination of the event will be the awards ceremony at 3:00pm.

In addition to all the travel arrangements, lodging, food and other necessities required to make the event come together, we are still raising funds to bring the carvers up from the lower 48 this year, which substantially added to our budget!

We are so thankful for the very generous support of this event by the following individuals and businesses!

The list is growing – can we add your name?

Platinum Sponsor
COP logo220dpi

Gold Sponsors
Hopkins Bros.
Swisher Family

Silver Sponsors
AeroTech09Alaska Air Taxi
City of Seldovia LogoElitewoodCabinets1
SFA Logo
SPLogo
Winter Watch Logo

Bronze Sponsors
Alaska Marine Highway System
Linwood Bar and Grill
Seldovia Native Association Inc.
Seldovia Village Tribe
Spenard Builders Supply

Support Sponsors
Alaska Airlines
Alaska USA
Bear Creek Winery
Boardwalk Hotel
Bridgekeeper’s Inn
Captain’s Coffee
Central Charters
Central Suites
Crabpot Grocery
Dancing Eagles
Mike & Nicola Holman
Homer Electric Association
Homer Brewery
Indian Valley Meats
Kachemak Gear Shed
Perry’s Cafe
Dick & Sammie Reason
Mike Sage
Smokey Bay Air
Stranik Family
Tobben & Tania Spurkland
Thyme on the Boardwalk

Chainsaw Carving Committee/Help
Sonny & Jenny Chissus
Chris & Liane Crosta
Byron & Margie McCord
Mike Webber

If you would like to be a sponsor of this amazing event – please contact any one of our Chainsaw Committee members: Chris and Liane Crosta, Sonny and Jenny Chissus, Byron and Margie McCord or Suzie Stranik.   We are still looking for Silent Auction items and financial support!  We will see you at the site all weekend – and please come and bring a dish to our Community Potluck on Sunday at 1:00pm and stay for the Awards Ceremony at 3:00pm!

CICCC marathon

MiniMarathon5K10KIn addition to the Chainsaw Carving competition, we are having our 1st Annual Seldovia Mini Marathon, a 5K or 10K race (runner’s/walker’s option) on Saturday to raise money for the competition. Registration will be on Friday evening from 5:00-9:00pm at the competition site and continuing at 8:00am Saturday morning.   The starting gun will go off at 10:00am on Saturday!   There will be awards and lots of fun! If you don’t want to race – please show up on the course to show your support – the map of the race is below!

Also this weekend, we have the 907 band (www.907band.com) will be playing at the Linwood on Friday and Saturday evenings from 9:00-11:00pm!

Another HUGE event going on this weekend is the Guitar Masters concert on Saturday night at the Susan B English school. This is a fabulous opportunity to hear amazing guitar talent up close and personal! Click here for more information on this Seldovia Arts Council event.

It is going to be a fantastic and busy weekend!

Seldovia’s Schedule for the Labor Day Weekend

Thursday, August 28, 2014
5:00pm Welcome Dinner with Carving Committee
7:00pm Log Drawing and Carvers begin prepping logs
7:15pm Site Prep – Debarking and scaffolding Set up – NO CARVING TONIGHT
9:00pm Clean up

Friday, August 29, 2014
7:30am Carver’s Meeting at the Site
8:00am Carving Time – Starting horn at 8am promptly
12:00pm Lunch
1:00pm Carving Time
5:00pm Quick Carve #1
5:00pm Silent Auction #1 Opens
5:00-9:00pm Registration for the Mini Marathon (5K and 10K) race at the Competition Site
6:00pm Dinner
7:00pm Carving Time
9:00pm Silent Auction #1 Closes
10:00pm Quit Carving & Clean up
9:00-11:00pm – 907 Band – Live Music at the Linwood

Saturday, August 30, 2014
8:00am Carving Time
8:00-10:00am – Mini Marathon FINAL Registration
10:00am – Mini Marathon (5 or 10K) – Start time!
12:00pm Lunch
1:00pm Quick Carve #2
1:00pm Silent Auction #2 Opens
4:00pm Saws off for 1/2 hour wedding
4:00pm Silent Auction #2 Closes
6:00pm Dinner
7:00pm Carving Time
10:00pm Quit Carving & Clean up
7:00pm  Guitar Masters Concert – SBE
9:00-11:00pm 907 Band – Live Music at the Linwood

Sunday, August 31, 2014
8:00am Carving Time
8:00am Silent Auction #3 Opens
1:00pm Quit Carving & Clean up – Judging Begins
1:00pm Community Potluck Lunch on Site
2:00pm Silent Auction #3 Closes
3:00pm Award Ceremony

Final Day of the Chainsaw Competition!

| September 2, 2013 | 0 Comments

photos by Jenny Chissus

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