NRCS STEP Intern Placed 3rd at the Game of Logging Collegiate Finals

Megan Bujnowski, of Hudson, New Hampshire, is a NRCS engineering aid under the Student Temporary Employment Program (STEP) and a second year University of New Hampshire (UNH) student in Forestry Technology. Megan served this past summer on a NRCS survey team that completed 50 surveys across the state.

Megan is involved with the UNH Woodsmen Team, which is a university-recognized co-ed sports club and is sponsored by Campus Recreation. UNH has fielded a team for more than 40 years.

The Woodsmen Team is dedicated to keeping alive the traditional skills used to cut timber and get it to the mill. Events include sawing, chopping, axe throwing, log rolling, pulp tossing, and other traditional skills.

Recently, Megan placed third at the national Game of Logging Collegiate & Landowner Finals at Paul Smith’s College in Paul Smith, New York during October 19 & 20, 2007.

“I like the challenge of being a woman in forestry,” Megan says. “It makes me try ten times harder, especially because I’ve met so much resistance from others.”

Megan competed in eight different chainsaw events at the Game of Logging competition, including precision bucking, spring pole, tree felling, speed limbing, precision stump, speed cut, precision boring, and match cuts.

High school marked the beginning of Megan’s interest in forestry and chainsaw competitions. She won the state Future Farmers' of America (FFA) Forestry competition in 2006 and was the first female to do so, to boot. Later that year she placed first at the Big E regional competition, again, as the first female to win. During her high school career she ranked 10^th nationally.

Megan is excited to continue working in forestry at UNH and is also enjoying being able to continue working for NRCS during the school year.

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