Corn husking contest keeps skill alive

A high-tech combine can harvest in an hour what used to take all day for a farmer using a hook and horse-drawn wagon.

But every fall, men and women from around the Midwest meet at the National Cornhusking Contest to keep alive the fading skill of picking corn by hand.

"It will be gone if people don't keep it going. When we're done with it then we hope our kids will keep it going. Otherwise you don't see this anywhere else," said Fred Fedeler, 52.

As outgoing president of the National Cornhusking Association, he hosted the annual competition Oct. 21 at Dell Rapids, 25 miles north of Sioux Falls. He also competed in the Men's Open category.

The association is comprised of members in nine states that hold their own competitions: Iowa, Indiana, Ohio, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, South Dakota and Nebraska.

The 1938 national contest was held nearby, drew 20 competitors and well over 100,000 spectators, Fedeler said. This year, 104 people competed and the audience numbered in the hundreds.

The site had to be moved to a different field because of heavy rains in the days before the event. Low, dark clouds hung overhead and a few sprinkles fell as the competition started.

Jake Jacobson, 78, of Roseville, Ill., was among those grateful that the weather allowed them to compete. He was in his late teens and early 20s when he picked corn as a hired man before farming himself. Now he competes for the fun of it.

"I did get 100 bushels a day and scooped it all. Quite a feat then," Jacobson said before competing in the seniors division. "Corn didn't yield near as much as now."

Jacobson used a thumb hook, which is strapped around his right thumb, as opposed to the palm hook that fits in the middle of the hand.

During the 10-minute competition, his weathered hands moved quickly from stalk to stalk as he grabbed the corn with his left hand and used the hook to open the husk, detach the ears and pitch them in the wagon.

The dry corn stalks rustled in the wind and the corn clunked when it hit the target.

"There is a trick to it," he said. "You have to be in a rhythm and never look at the wagon and be ready for the next ear when you throw this ear in the wagon."

Occasionally, Jacobson's beat was interrupted when he had to pick up a wayward ear that fell to the ground.

Each competitor walked along a horse-drawn wagon with a backboard attached to one side that kept the ears from flying over the other side. Points were docked for husks left on the ears, ears left on the ground and ears left on the stalk. Winners were determined by net weight of corn gathered from one row.

"This is mine here," Jacobson said as he caught his breath and waited for his wagon to be unloaded, tested and weighed.

With a net weight of 165 pounds, he finished fourth in his division, 8 pounds behind the winner.

Next year's competition will be held in Jacobson's home state of Illinois.

"Hope to see you all there," he said.

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On the Net:

National Cornhusking Association: http://www.cornhusking.com/