COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | JULY 22, 2021 | 3B
CART
from B1
among the teams.
“I had this old raggedy
cart that needed use which
made me want to do this,”
said Heather Lawson, a
member of The Golden
Gamblers team. “I just like
having a good time, so I just
wanted to come down and
have fun and enjoy the fes-
tivities.”
After the first round of
trials, four carts moved
on to the winners bracket
while the other four went to
the losers bracket. Of those
carts in the losers bracket,
Bohemia Mining Owners
Association (BMOA) and
Lemati Enforcer were elim-
inated in just two races, a
BMOA member suffering a
minor injury on their final
run.
As the trials progressed
and the contestants began
to get the hang of the new
competition, unique strate-
gies were unleashed in the
race.
“I tried to get the best
bearings I can get so I can
have as little resistance as
possible,” said DJ Wyrick, a
member of The Bookmin-
ers team. “Plus being heavy
with a light cart means that
the cart will be technically
faster than us, so we hope to
use the weight to our advan-
tage.”
The carts that tended to
have the most success in
the trials were the ones who
were quickest while picking
up the sacks and turning
around.
Tommyknockers would
pick up all three sacks at
once to save time and even
took to diving headfirst
back into carts.
Whatever the strategy
was, contestants agreed that
the time put into making
the cart was well worth it
once the starting gun fired.
“We got two-inch steel
angle irons, reclaimed cedar,
steel axles, and about 100
hours into this cart,” Wyrick
said. “I even made outfits
for the competition, so I’m
all in. It’s been a lot of fun.”
With the trials winding
down and the bracket be-
coming clearer with each
race, two carts stood out
from the rest: D&D Min-
ing Co. and Covered Bridge
Brewing Group. The two
teams employed the quick-
est and most efficient strat-
egies of the first day of trials,
as they were the only two
undefeated carts heading
into Sunday’s final.
Just based on the smiles,
excitement and laughter
from the crowd, it was evi-
dent that the first day of the
Ore Carts racing tourna-
ment was a grand success.
The Finals
The competitors returned
on Sunday to crown a cham-
pion of the inaugural run-
ning.
As the excitement rolled
over from a fun-filled Sat-
urday, the best teams re-
mained in the winners side
of the bracket on Sunday
with two teams still holding
onto an undefeated record.
As the tournament inched
near the final race, some
confusion was spurred in
one of the semi-final races
with E Clampus Vitus con-
fusing when to start, either
on the sound of the gun or
with someone saying ‘Go,’
which allowed the Covered
Bridge Brewing team to get
the initial win.
After some conversa-
tion among the official cart
race rule committee it was
decided to have a rerun of
the semi-final between E
Clampus Vitus and Covered
Bridge Brewing teams.
While Covered Bridge
Brewing Group still ad-
vanced to the final after the
rerun, all parties involved
wanted to make certain of
the integrity of the compe-
tition and allow the proper
teams to advance fairly.
Subsequently, the bracket
was examined as the final
race approached with team
D&D Mining still hold-
ing an undefeated record
throughout the whole week-
end.
Team Covered Bridge
Brewing had sustained one
loss and needed to win the
next two races to proclaim
the title.
After a close champion-
ship race, team D&D Min-
ing held on to their per-
fect record all the way and
ran the table to the final,
crowned the champions of
the inaugural Ore Cart rac-
es during Bohemia Mining
Days.
A member of the D&D
Mining told The Sentinel af-
ter the race, “Well, it’s what
we set out to do and we
accomplished our goals by
winning and it feels good
[going undefeated].”
The double elimination
caused confusion at times
but was the most fun and
fair option giving teams a
chance to bounce back and
advance after suffering one
loss.
At the awards ceremony,
the top three winners were
bestowed with mining tro-
phies and plaques which will
be displayed in the Bohemia
Gold Mining Museum until
next year when the titles will
be challenged again.
D&D Mining received
the first-place pickaxe tro-
phy and $100 in Sacajawea
coins, which the team do-
nated back to the BMD or-
ganization to help maintain
the ore cart races as a feature
of the festival.
Covered Bridge Brewing
Group came in second with
the mining pan trophy and
$75 in coins.
Lastly, E Clampus Vitus
received the third-place
sharpened shovel trophy
and donated their $50 win-
nings to the Bohemia Gold
Mining Museum.
All top winners received
mining claims as well.
With a less than typical
amount of planning due to
the COVID-19 pandemic
for this inaugural competi-
tion, there were moments
that felt impromptu.
Looking forward to this
event next year, volunteers
are optimistic about the
growth of these races, and
are eager to make this fun
and engaging event a staple
in future Bohemia Mining
Days.
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W 11th Ave
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