Huskers

Last week 50,000 people poured into small (pop. 5,521) Fairmont, Minn. Besides hotels every spare room for miles around was filled. Though 23 restaurant stands were set up to peddle hamburgers, hot dogs and coffee, many a prudent farmwife brought along great hampers of cold fried chicken, head cheese, hams, doughnuts, layer cakes and pies. Twenty-four State police directed the jammed traffic of cars from as far away as Kansas and Ohio. More exciting than any football game to Fairmont's visitors was that day's sporting event--the 11th annual National Corn Husking Championship.

By noon thousands covered the hill above Fairmont Canning Co.'s field. They struggled down the slope and along the lanes cut four rows wide through the 15-acre patch of specially planted corn. In the field stood 18 huskers with their managers and trainers. Beside each was his brand new steel wagon drawn by a rubber-tired tractor. While four bands played and loudspeakers blared, National Guardsmen did their best to keep the friendly crowd from getting in the way of the contestants.

Sherman Henriksen of Eagle, Neb., the defending champion, was a favorite, but even some Nebraskans favored Harry Brown, from Beemer, up in Cuming County. He had placed second last year. To spur on two Iowa entrants, Estherville sent its Drum & Bugle Corps to Fairmont. The folks from Redwood Falls, Minn, brought along the town band to cheer on their Ted Balko, 29, four times Minnesota champion, fifth in national honors last year.

At the starting gun there were cheers for Balko. He was husking in his own State and in a familiar stand of corn. His rivals went down their rows ahead of him, but Balko was picking his corn carefully, husking it clean.

Standing 6 ft. 2 in. high, weighing 190 lb., he charged through the corn. Husking barehanded, with his hook strapped tight to his right hand, he grasped each ear off its stalk tight in his left hand, ripped away the husks with his right, snapped the ear from its stem. Bang--bang--bang went the hard husked ears of bright corn against the tall bangboard--about 40 per minute. Balko fell farther and farther behind in the race down the field, but his wagon box was filling faster. Drenched with sweat, he husked the corn on his own rows quicker than a man could pick it up.

After 80 minutes the finish gun boomed. The judges declared Husker Balko the winner. He got $100 and a gold watch. Second place ($50) went to South Dakota's champion, Richard Anderson, who barely beat out Nebraska's Harry Brown for third place ($25).

Champion Balko's record of 25.78 net bushels in 1 hr. 20 min. was far below the world's record of 36.9 net bushels, set in 1932 by Carl Seiler, Illinois' left-handed champion.

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