IT is well recorded that Australia's first ever wood chopping competition was held between two axemen in Ulverstone, Tasmania, in 1870 when they wagered £25 on who could fell a tree the fastest.
However history can be confusing because another story tells of a couple of blokes - Tasmanian Joseph Smith and Victorian Jack Briggs wagered a similar amount at the same time to chop three-foot standing blocks.
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The same article went on to say Smith won but there was a difference of opinion and an argument developed into a free-for-all brawl.
In another competition in 1890 on the outskirts of Latrobe, Tasmania, 67 axemen participated in an event, all starting from scratch.
The need of a formal structure to be put in place was now obvious.
The United Australasian Axeman's Association was established, rules drawn up and the sport of woodchopping was formalised on June 13, 1891.
It wasn't long and chopping competitions were held all over Australia and today it is the nation's only listed heritage sport.
It remains an exciting spectator sport due the staggered start, handicapping an exceptional axeman by giving his fellow competitors as much as a 45-second head start, depending on the class.
During COVID the sport was hit hard with WA losing State and world championship opportunities due to events being cancelled, however WA Axemen's Council president and competitor of 28 years, Grant Campbell said they were starting to make a comeback now.
Special thanks are due to sponsor Spearwood Wool which is supporting all competitions held in the Great Southern and, although Woolorama occasionally has featured log chopping in the past, this year it will be held as part of the top six super series.
Mr Campbell expects at least a dozen top axemen will compete to gain points and a place in the WA team for the Christmas carnival in Latrobe, before the season ends in May and he believes WA will have the strongest State team it has for 30-40 years.
"Being able to get out here and give the sport some exposure does gain some attraction and we are seeing many younger kids coming through and getting an interest in the sport and events like the Stihl Timber Series helps," Mr Campbell said.
His vision for young potential axemen is the image of himself.
"I am probably the standard for a wood chopper; a touch over 6'3" and 148 kilograms," Mr Campbell said.
"They are often young kids that don't quite make the elite sports as 13-15-year-olds that are a little bit too heavy but still have that competitive mind-set.
"It is one thing you need when you are out there in the sun and you have to find it within yourself - there's no looking for a team mate - you've actually got to have a little bit of ticker; knuckle down and have a crack for yourself.
"That is when you start to see these kids shine."
The sport is not all about brute force.
It pays to be fit and strong but it is also about skill and technique.
Mr Campbell said there were aspects about the sport that compared favourably with country AFL.
"Especially on good days when you come home with a $1000 in your pocket but also there are the days when you come home with nothing," he said.
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With axes as sharp as razors, it is a fearsome sport but one that novices don't tackle without a pair of chain-mail socks and shin guards.
Once competent Mr Campbell said it was pretty safe and was a great activity for destressing after a hard day at the office.
Eight-year-old Zaden Thomas from Waroona whose father and grandfather were axemen, is among the youngest coming through and competes with a scaled-down axe.
At the other end of his career is former Manjimup forestry worker Bob Reynolds, 86, who still wields the axe and is one of only a handful of WA axemen who have been inducted into the national hall of fame (2010).
"Probably every standard racing axe 10 years ago was bought out of New Zealand but Australia now has its own top makers on the east coast who have learnt the craft," Mr Campbell said.
Typically an axe weighs about three kilograms and is made from a steel billet that has spent 13-14 hours on a grinder, shaping it for the specific timber they want to cut.
The head retails for about $900 and the hickory billet handle is about another $120.
Mr Campbell has four in his competition box, each ground to a finish with a slightly different bevel to suit the grain structure of the timber.
"Just before a competition an axeman will try his axe in the foot holds and if it travels and you can hear it has a nice sharp sound it is the axe he will use rather than one that falls dead when it strikes the wood," he said.
"We cut predominantly WA jarrah here and it's the hardest competition wood in the country.
"Usually if you come out of WA and head east you have a few more revs in you - theirs is a bit like cutting butter."
At Mr Campbell's level, understanding timber is an art gained from years of experience as a machinery operator in the forests around Collie.
With timber industries being phased out, he has transferred his skills to an agricultural contracting business and is based in Darkan.
As the organisation's president, security of wood for log chopping events is one of his key issues.
Harking back to the sport's formative years, the rules set out to make it a fair competition and nothing has changed in that respect.
Each log in an eight-man heat is from the same tree and cut to the same length and lathed to exactly the same diameter for competition.
It is stored together and judiciously recorded and allocated for each and every competition.
The increasing scarcity of wood means they will sometime cut, prepare and stockpile, with each piece numbered and wrapped in plastic, for storage up to two years in advance.
Their accessibility to suitable timber is at the mercy of the government and changing regulations.
Mr Campbell said log chopping competitions were well down the list in terms of priority but the WA Axemen's Council was working to establish a long-term contract to ensure the future of its sport.
