In the October 2018 edition of Southern Stumpin’, Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Managing Editor David Abbott recounts his time at the 2018 Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show. Abbott writes, “It’s official: we owe Al Gore an apology. Global warming is for real legit…as anyone who attended the Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show in Starkville, Miss. on September 21-22 might attest. It was HOT, by most accounts at least as hot as the 2016 version of the biennial event, which was held in August. Ok, so the global warming part might be debatable, but what’s not at all debatable is that more details about the show, and a whole mess of pictures I took there, are included in this very issue on page 32. In the meantime, for this spot, I thought I would tell you about some of my experiences at the show.”

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Managing Editor David Abbott visits Huntsville, Arkansas’ Jerry Whittmore Timber, Inc. Jerry Whittmore Timber, Inc., is probably the biggest timber producer in northwest Arkansas, in terms of number of loads hauled. So believes the company’s owner, Jerry Whittmore, 49. Most loggers in his area, he says, field smaller operations hauling maybe two loads a day, some only one. Many are running older equipment, and some don’t have a loader. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but by contrast, Whittmore has a fully mechanized operation averaging six loads a day, sometimes more. In ideal conditions, they have hauled as many as 14 loads in a day. Whittmore and his younger brother Conley, without any background in the industry, decided to start a logging business together in 1993; Conley was 20 then and Jerry, 23.

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Associate Editor Jessica Johnson travels to Apex, North Carolina to visit Jimmy Williams Logging. For Jimmy Williams, 42, the booming economy of the Research Triangle portion of North Carolina (the metropolitan areas of Raleigh and Durham, and to some extent Chapel Hill) hasn’t slowed his operation, JM Williams Timber, as much as you would think. Five miles from his house, which also houses a 40x50 shop with 20x30 metal shop, 40 houses are being framed. But landclearing and aggressive management by the Forest Service, Army Corps of Engineers and the state of North Carolina is keeping the pine growth healthy. Williams’ markets are at least 50 miles away, but he’s able to work close to home. However all that population growth is not without its drawbacks. “You can’t build a sawmill anywhere near here. Way too many eyes on you,” he says.

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Associate Editor Jay Donnell has the opportunity to attend Bandit Industries’ 35th anniversary celebration in Remus, Michigan. Bandit Industries held its 35th anniversary celebration and equipment demonstration on September 11-12 at its headquarters here. Dealers and end-users worldwide observed ongoing modifications to Bandit’s manufacturing facilities and enjoyed a full day of live equipment action. Attendees were treated to a big reception at the Sleepy Hollow Hideaway where a casino night and dinner was held to kick things off on day number one. On day two dealers and customers bussed over to Bandit’s headquarters, where Bandit employees stationed around the plant provided attendees information about recent improvements and new machines in prototype stage.

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Editor-in-Chief Rich Donnell attends John Deere’s media event at the company headquarters in Moline, Illinois. John Deere Vice President of Worldwide Forestry, Tom Budan, kicked off the company’s Forestry Media event on September 17 by announcing the launch of the L-Series II skidder and wheeled feller-buncher line. The first units had shipped just the previous day. Budan, addressing the gathering at the John Deere World Headquarters, said the new products represent major enhancements to the original L-Series introduced in 2015. He said they exemplify Deere’s ongoing and total commitment to the forestry industry, and he noted substantial investment in the nearby Deere Davenport Works plant in Iowa, where the new units are built, assembled and prepared for shipment.

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Managing Editor David Abbott reports on the 2018 Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show, held September 21-22 in Starkville, Mississippi. Abbott writes, “The Bulldogs might not have been on fire up in Lexington that Saturday, but it was a hot one down in Starkville. The calendar called Saturday, September 22 the first official day of fall, but summer had no plans to go down without a fight. The 2018 Mid-South Forestry Equipment Show opened on Friday, September 21, which was technically the last day of summer—and it was a scorcher. Of course, that’s nothing new in the South, so the temperature did nothing at all to dissuade the hardy members of the logging community from showing up, like they do every day. In fact, the woman behind the madness, show runner Misty Booth, reports that this year’s crowd was right up there with the biggest MSFES has ever seen.

Southern Loggin’ Times magazine Executive Editor DK Knight remembers industry veteran Pat Crawford. Knight writes, “One former logger who will long be remembered for advancing mechanical timber harvesting was Pat Crawford, eminent founder of the Timbco and TimberPro brands that originated in northeastern Wisconsin. His life ended on August 19 at age 92 at his home in Shawano, Wisc. Hundreds of family members, friends, customers, business affiliates and others from multiple states and countries turned out for his memorial service on August 25. Even though his health was failing, Crawford regularly peeked in at the goings on at TimberPro until the end. Being at the plant, watching machines come together, and interfacing with his family and employees, not to mention customers and dealers, was what it was all about for him.”

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