The Rookie Championship will be in Chesley as part of the Chesley Homecoming
Small town Ontario will play host to a major timber sports event this summer.
STIHL TIMBERSPORTS is bringing its Rookie Championship to Chesley, Ont., on Aug. 2.
The event will see 12 athletes compete in axe and sawing disciplines.
Organizers originally reached out to STIHL in late 2023 about bringing the event to Chesley in 2024 to coincide with an open house celebrating 40 years of M.E.I. Paving in the community.
Its sister company, Bruce Service Sales & Rentals, is an official STIHL dealer.
But when the timing didn’t work out, the focus shifted to hosting the competition as part of the community’s homecoming, which runs from July 31 to Aug. 3.
“Usually, homecomings are every five to 10 years and Chesley hasn’t had one in about 20 years,” Jodie Stade, marketing coordinator for M.E.I. and Bruce Service Sales & Rentals, told Farms.com. “We thought this would be a cool event to bring to homecoming.”
What followed for Stade beginning in early 2024 was “countless” emails with reps from STIHL headquarters about bringing the event to Ontario.
As it turns out, it’s an extensive process.
“You have to submit an application and get it approved. Then there’s a bidding process,” Stade said. “We had to say where it’s going to be, what the spectator audience is going to be, and why we wanted it.”
STIHL reps also came for site visits to ensure the location fits the company’s values.
“It was very impressive to see how committed they are to the actual timber and nature side of things,” Stade said. “We had to propose locations that showcased nature, and trees, and the outdoors.”
The timber comes from sites that are recognized by the Forest Stewardship Council.
“We are proud to work with FSC-certified plantations in France and the Netherlands as well as responsible forestry to minimise our impact on the environment,” STIHL says on its website. “The main wood for the international competitions and the national competitions in Europe is sustainably grown, harvested and, after the competitions, almost completely recycled and reused in renewable energies, the basis for biomass or even in the furniture industry.”
At the time of Stade’s email chain with STIHL, though, there was no concrete plan to host a homecoming, she said, adding she’d heard rumours that one was in the works.
Once a homecoming event was confirmed, Stade made a presentation to the organizing committee to see if they even wanted the event.
“I prepared a presentation for the homecoming committee based on my research, suggesting that a STIHL TIMBERSPORTS event could be held during our Homecoming Weekend since there were no specific concerts, circuses, or motocross events scheduled. I believed it could serve as a significant attraction for our small town’s Homecoming,” said Stade. “The committee saw it as an incredible opportunity but wanted to know the associated costs. I informed them that I had already approached six local businesses to sponsor this event to bring it to our town. They agreed it was a no-brainer and were extremely grateful.”
In addition to M.E.I. and Bruce Service Sales & Rentals, the other sponsors are Built Wright Fencing, River's Edge Garden Centre, Superior Concrete Finishing, and Hamilton Construction.
"What's unique about these specific companies I personally approached for sponsorship is that each of them uses STIHL products in their operations," Stade said.
The work behind the scenes continued until just after Christmas 2024.
That’s when all necessary parties signed the contract to confirm STIHL TIMBERSPORTS was coming to Chesley.
“After we signed the contract and got a confirmation email back it was like ‘okay, this is set in stone. It’s happening now.’” Stade said.
Excitement is building in the community and abroad.
After finalizing the details and a conversation with a STIHL rep, Stade received the green light to promote the event locally.
But it quickly gained lots of attention.
“Our Facebook event took off like crazy all the way to New Brunswick,” she said. “We didn’t expect it to accelerate so fast.”
With two months to go until the event, there’s still more work to be done.
Stade, reps from STIHL, the local homecoming committee, and local businesses are working on site layouts, accommodations and meals, securing hydro, and other amenities and infrastructure to support the athletes and the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS production team.
In addition to the benefits the event will bring locally, it’ll also introduce Chesley to the rest of Canada.
The competition will be broadcast on TSN and Rogers.
“We are such a small town, but our name will be attached to the event, and it’ll show the rest of the country what small town communities are capable of,” she said.