Natural resources student wins regional timbersports competition
Marty M. "Scooter" Cogar II competes in the underhand chop event in the Stihl Timbersports Series Collegiate Southern Qualifier. Image courtesy of Danielle Hernandez, University of Georgia.
BLACKSBURG, Va., April 5, 2011 – Virginia Tech’s Marty M. “Scooter” Cogar II of Blackstone, Va., a junior majoring in wildlife science and environmental resource management in the College of Natural Resources and Environment, won the overall competition in the Stihl Timbersports Series Collegiate Southern Qualifier on March 18 in Watkinsville, Ga.
Cogar competed against 13 representatives from other colleges and universities across the Southeast in the standing block chop, single buck, stock saw, and underhand chop. The University of Georgia hosted the event in conjunction with the 54th annual Association of Southern Forestry Clubs Conclave.
“I believe that this is one of my best accomplishments in my life,” said Cogar. “I didn’t know that I would win at this level, but I knew that I had a good shot at it.”
“I am really proud of students like Cogar because they come up through the 4-H program, which many people do not realize is sponsored by the land grant universities in each state,” said Jeffrey Kirwan, professor emeritus and 4-H forestry Extension specialist. “I know from Cogar’s Extension agent, Terry Abston, that he was very active in the Nottoway County 4-H program, teaching trapping to younger members and competing nationally in the 4-H shooting sports program.”
Associate Professor Philip Radtke, the Forestry Club’s faculty advisor, helps the students practice and compete in the contest annually. “The Forestry Club enters its top woodsman into this competition, and this year, Cogar won a ‘chop-off’ against two of his teammates,” said Radtke.
In addition to his work with Tricia Jones, a former U.S. Champion crosscut sawyer who volunteers as the coach for the Virginia Tech team, Cogar has trained with professional choppers and sawyers from across the Mid-Atlantic, including his family members Paul, Arden, and Jamie Cogar, all of whom compete professionally. “I felt this gave him a better than 50-50 chance,” added Radtke.
Cogar’s win earned him a $1,000 scholarship and a trip to compete in the Stihl Timbersports Series Collegiate Championship at the Oregon State Fair in August.
The College of Natural Resources and Environment at Virginia Tech consistently ranks among the top three programs of its kind in the nation. Faculty members stress both the technical and human elements of natural resources and the environment, and instill in students a sense of stewardship, land-use ethics, and large-scale problem solving. As a land-grant university, Virginia Tech serves the Commonwealth of Virginia in teaching, research, and Virginia Cooperative Extension.
- Lynn Davis
- Comm Director, College of Natural Resources and Environment
- 540-231-6157
- davisl@vt.edu
