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AIZKOLARIS, a Basq. lumberjack competition consisting
of chopping large logs with an ax [Basq. aizkora - ax,
also Span. corte de troncos - cutting through trunks].
The most popular event is a time trial in chopping through
short pieces of trunk placed in a transverse (horizontal)
position on the ground whereby a competitor stands astride
the trunk section and chops down the middle. The trunks
used in aizkolaris are thicker than in the Ang.-Sax. >TIMBER
SPORTS. Chopping through a vertically placed piece of
trunk (Span. corte vertical) or individual and pairs sawing
events (tronzadora - una persona and tronzadora - parejas,
respectively) are less common. The national championship
is held in 3 categories according to trunk diameters,
i.e. 60, 54, and 45in. respectively (pulgadas). The min.
diameter in the horizontal trunk chopping event is 36in.
(about 91cm) and the max. diameter is not limited but
is usu. 72in. (about 182cm), sometimes 80in. and over
100in. in exceptional cases. |
History. The oldest mention of aizkolaris dates
back to the 16th century. The Basq. Country and especially
the Vizcaya and Guipúzcoa regions were then the main source
of material for the shipbuilding industry. Other regions
of the country did not have such thick forests and this
prevented aizkolaris from spreading to these parts. The
Basq. Country was also famous for burning charcoal, which
was essential in gunpowder-making, and therefore competitive
wood chopping was rather popular among charcoal burners.
The leather tanning industry was also one of the driving
forces behind aizkolaris since it created a steady demand
for bark. On the whole, the timber industry was booming
which is best exemplified by the 1787 figures concerning
the Qyarzun valley where 7,425 oaks, 19,600 beeches and
19,655 chestnut trees were felled in just one year. Locally
held competitions became regular and widespread at the
beginning of the 20th century. In 1903 the corrida arenas
in Tolosa, |
The best Basq. choppers are praised by local poets (who
are rarely translated into other languages). Their poetry
is devoted to wood and expresses emotions related to
wood, wood felling and woodworking as in the following
song of Basq. lumberjacks:
Of all the trees the most admirable is
the beech in forest dark.
Sweet words you have for me,
but your heart belongs to another,
May the Lord of Heaven make you
Love me.
Another anonymous song of Basq. charcoal burners and
lumberjacks is included in an anthology of Basq. poetry
published in 1956 by A. Zaval:
On this day in Bazan-Garaya
There was a message from Lorenzo that he concluded a
contract
with Amorraya for tree felling;
[...]
Our whole team went there
To help him ...
The team paraded solemnly
through Bazan-Garaya
But hardly had the tree felling started
When many people got carried away:
And they made a ten duro bet
That Bordabi would not manage to win,
And he won easily:
Such was the pleasure he took in his work.
In the trunk of a tree
Fire sparked instantly
And the bark was soon covered
With a delicate veil of smoke.
And Bordabi was very eager
To climb there at any cost,
And although he won the bet easily,
He came down terribly dirty.
When the tree was just about to fall,
there gathered, as was said,
Droves of people looking:
'Will it fall in the right place?'
There are many in Oyarzun,
Who do not know much about trees.
A great Basq. poet N. Ormaechea 'Orixe' called el grand
bardo guipuzcoano (the great bard of Guipúzcoa) depicts
the legendary axmen in his Euskaldunak. This 40-stanza
poem talks about an ax bet where the 2 best chopping
teams, of Leiza and Huici, enter a competition to settle
long-standing animosities:
The day of the ax duel has come
That great, old tradition
Leiza and Huici shall compete [...]
On the hill the snow is almost half-thigh-deep,
No one, who can move, shall stay in
Leiza. Black spots appear on the white background,
Like flies on milk; or, to be precise, like
Cranes, one after another.
Leiza has a long-standing case against
the Larraun Valley. And while they try very hard
They cannot have it resolved in their favor; but this
time
Leiza hopes that they will win.
The duel is very dramatic:
In the first half of the eleventh, it still
turns his face to the one from Leiza, but soon after
to
The one from Huici. He works more slowly, he chopped
through
the log with a six-hit advantage and
So he climbs the next one ...
Leiza wins beating Huici by 30 logs and the opponents
agree on a return match. The tradition has it that you
always have to give your opponent a chance and the prize
is a herd of rams.
Competitors themselves also write about their feats.
In 1965 an improvising poet, M. Machin, nicknamed 'Errekalde',
wrote an eulogy for M. Irazusta. See also >DRWALI
ZAWODY, >TIMBER SPORTS.
R.A. Franco, 'Aizkolaris', DRV, 1983, 32-56; R.A. Franco,
'Aizkolaris', JYDV, 1978, 107-196; Herri Kirolak, Aizkolariak,
13-20. |
 |
The number of trunks is agreed
upon by the competitors beforehand usually from 6 to 20
(less frequently 2-4) logs per competitor. Sometimes trunks
of different diameters are selected. For example, during
the Basq. Country championship in 1981 each participant
had to chop 6 trunks of 60in. and 6 of 72in.; in 1983
- 4 trunks of 72in., 4 of 60in. and 4 of 52in. The competitors
usu. chop more thinner and fewer thicker trunks. 72in.
and thicker trunks are not so easily obtainable these
days so very often competitors have to chop through 2
or 4 trunks instead of just 1. In 1968 a competition was
held in Tolosa which involved chopping through 4 trunks
of 108in. (about 274cm) each. In 1924 J.A. 'Keixete' chopped
through 20 54-in. trunks in the following (accumulated)
times (in min. and sec.):
1 - 2'27'', 2 - 5'06'', 3 - 8'01'', 4 - 11'12'', 5 - 13'38'',
6 - 17'20'', 7 - 20'10'', 8 - 23'25'', 9 - 26'10'', 10
- 29'34'', 11 - 33'05'', 12 - 37'07'', 13 - 40'50'', 14
- 44'32'', 15 - 48'17'', 16 - 52'14'', 17 - 55'55'', 18
- 60'25'', 19 - 65'07'', 20 - 69'32'' (final result).
Aizkolaris competitions are held in main town squares
or corrida arenas (San Sebastian, Bilbao in Spain, etc.)
and outside cities and towns at picnic grounds and often
attract as many as 20-30,000 spectators and are broadcast
on TV and on the radio. Large groups of contestants can
be seen competing simultaneously. At the national Basq.
Country championship, there are, e.g., 40 short trunks
and 40 competitors.
The ax used in aizkolaris competitions is called an aizkora
in Basque and there are 3 basic types: 1) an illargi-aizkora
(literally a moon-shaped ax) whose blade gets symmetrically
wider towards the cutting edge of the blade which is crescent-shaped;
2) a bizkaya aizkora - a Vizcaya ax with a blade wider
by the handle and with the relatively straight cutting
edge slanting down towards the handle; 3) a napar aizkora
- a Navarre ax with a blade of equal width but slightly
slanting towards the handle. There is a wide variety of
local competition types and in 1970 the Federación Navarra
de Atletismo (Athletic Federation of Navarre) adopted
a uniform set of aizkolaris rules. These rules are adhered
to during the Basq. Country and Navarre lumberjacks' championship
(Reglamento del Campeonato Vasco-Navarro de Aizkolaris). |
Azpeitia
and San Sebastian were used for the first time as aizkolaris
competition venues and the first outstanding aizkolaris
competitors such as J.M. Goenaga Odriozola, nicknamed
'Achumberia', and P.M. Otaño Eceiza (1870-1956), nicknamed
'Santa Agueda', became widely known. A duel held on the
27th Dec. 1903 at the corrida arena in Azpeitia is considered
the greatest aizkolaris contest of all time. The competitors
chopped through 4 almost 2m-thick trunks (in a 4-log event
called kanako egurrak in Basque and cuatro de vara in
Spanish). The odds on 'Achumberia' were 5/1 against. The
duel attracted about as many as 5,000 spectators. After
chopping through the first log 'Santa Agueda' was 1min.
35sec. ahead of his rival, after the second log his lead
extended to 7min. 32sec. but after the third 'Achumberia'
was in the lead 58sec. ahead of 'Santa Agueda'. After
76mins. 'Achumberia's' lead was so substantial that 'Santa
Agueda' conceded defeat 2mins. before the competition
officially ended. Two more outstanding wood choppers at
the turn of the 19th century were J. Soraluce Arrizabalaga
'Korta' (1868-1954) and J. Aramburu 'Keixete' (1881-1962).
Between the world wars, I. Elorza 'Kortaberri' and Arrizabalaga
'Ondárroa' were considered the most famous competitors
and I. Orbegozo Juaristi 'Arriya', J. Iturbe 'Aguiñeta'
and J.J. Narvaiza 'Luxia' were widely admired during the
first 2 decades after 1945. In 1970s and '80s there was
a number of renowned lumberjacks including: J. Orbegozo,
F. Astibia, M. Irazustra, J.J. Nervaiza, J. Aierbe and
J. Aguite. The Span. championship is held in the Basq.
Country and it is traditionally dominated by Basq. competitors.
There is a tendency to establish contacts with competitors
from countries where timber sports are also popular. In
1976 a W.Ch. in Basq. Events was held in San Sebastian
that attracted wood choppers from Australia, the US and
Canada. The championship events included 1) individual
chopping of 2 horizontal and 2 vertical 45in. logs (winner:
Jackson of Australia, time: 1min. 58sec.); 2) 3-person
team chopping of 6 vertical 45in. logs, 6 vertical 54in.
logs, 3 vertical 45in. logs and 3 vertical 54in. logs
followed by 3 horizontal 60in. logs and 3 horizontal 54in.
logs (winners: Australia, time: 58min. 31sec.); 3) individual
chopping of 45in., 54in., 60in. and 45in. horizontal and
vertical logs (winner: a competitor nicknamed 'Arriya
II', time: 14min. 41sec.); 4) the same combination for
teams of 3 (winners: the Basq. Country, time: 45min. 49sec.). |
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