‘Ax Men’ features area aqua loggers
Published 11:57 am Thursday, February 4, 2010
This season of the History Channel’s “Ax Men” features two local aqua loggers as part of a rugged new crew who guide last season’s stars through the danger filled black water of the Suwannee River in search of cut timber that was lost in logging campaigns years ago.
My father, Steve Livingston, is one of those men.
On the first day of filming the reality TV show, about the perils and high risks involved in the logging business, my mom said to my dad, “You’re not even going to shave? What about a haircut?” Jasper native Steve “Uncle Buck” Livingston chuckled and replied, “I’ll have to check with my producer first.”
And so it began.
Four months later, I trekked across a muddy timber yard where a few “Ax Men,” including my dad and fellow Jasper native Patrick “Pond Bear” Swilley, were sawing their most recent findings into prized boards.
Third rule of logging:
Do not wear flip-flops.
“Hey now, remember, I’m the brains of this operation,” the laid back owner of Collin’s River Logging, Joe “Injun Joe” Collins, shouts out as I approach.
“Yeah, yeah, I hear ya,” scuba diver Jessie “The Catfish” Horstman, replies.
After hours of playful bickering, the development of the running joke “Shhh, she’ll write it down,” and three logs loaded, sawed, and later piled, the men gather around a barrel fire of scrap wood to discuss their newfound fame.
“It’s awesome,” Patrick said of his newest, if temporary, career-TV personality.
“Yeah, he’s a regular Fresh Prince of Jasper,” Joe said jubilantly.
Second rule of logging:
Bring your sense of humor.
“See, you should’ve worn some of those multi-colored toe socks with your flip flops,” Joe said to me. “I used to come walkin’ in the bar where my band played with flip flops and 10 different colored toes.”
The filming on the Suwannee lasted for more than six weeks. The camera crew stayed at local hotels and rode out to the job site each day, said Steve. For Steve, getting to know the camera crew and being “behind the scenes” of a television show was the best part of filming.
The camera crew followed last season’s foul-mouthed stars Jimmy and James Smith as they traveled from Washington to White Springs, and teamed up with Collins River Logging to recover century-old, but perfectly preserved timber.
Things quickly turned into a West versus South dynamic.
“We called them the west-coast Yankees,” joked Steve. “We were out to show them what real aqua logging is about.”
Joe added: “It only took us a few hours to melt them down and pour them into the river.” He cited last Sunday’s episode where James is shown falling off the logging boat into the Suwannee, ruining his cell phone as well as his pride.
Next, the conversation changes to the origination of their rather unique nicknames used on the show.
“Steve’s nickname comes from the movie ‘Uncle Buck’ where John Candy comes to baby-sit and leads the kids astray,” said Joe. “That’s Steve; he’s our mischievous Uncle Buck.”
During Steve’s first appearance on “Ax Men” he’s shown sinking the logging boat as a practical joke. “That was too much,” he says with a smile after sending Jimmy and James running for higher ground.
As for Patrick, it’s easy for anyone who knows him to figure out how he got the nickname of “Pond Bear,” said the short, stocky and outspoken – and let’s not forget hairy – scuba diver.
“Once, he came up from diving and had lily pads stuck to his back,” said Joe. “We just called him the Pond Bear from then on.”
Patrick steals the show later in the season, but we’ll have to wait and find out how.
“The Hollywood comes out of our man,” joked Steve.
Patrick also wears a few new scars from the shows filming, reminders of the dangers involved in Suwannee River logging.
First rule of logging:
Safety.
One thing the show does not over-dramatize is the danger involved with logging in the Suwannee.
“There are all kinds of interesting things to run into,” said Joe. Disorienting dark water, gators, and rocks are just a few examples of hazards. “It scares the hell out of some people.”
“Whenever something rubs against my leg in the Suwannee, I just tell myself, ‘It was just a mudfish, it was just a mudfish,'” said Swilley. “I came up on a manikin once. You can just imagine.”
Although all the men agreed being “full-time Hollywood” would be great, they said stardom is not what interests them. They hope to use their transient fame to better inform the public about aqua logging and recovered wood. “It has a positive impact on the environment because it has the least impact,” said Steve.
“Every log we pull out of the river is a tree that doesn’t get cut,” Joe added. “But if nothing else, we got our 15 minutes of fame.”
