By Pete Wurdock
On Saturday morning, October 5 the ORV trails in Northern Luce County were ablaze with 300 people who gathered for the third annual Pine Stump Scavenger Hunt.
Rob Stein, owner of Pine Stump Cook Shack and Drinkery, has become known for hosting unique events.
The competitors started on equal terms. They left Pine Stump one by one, none of them knowing what the day had in store. They traversed as far as Crisp Point, making stops at the Ugly Fish Baking Company, the Mouth of the Two Hearted, the Reed and Green Bridge, Pike Lake, Little Lake Harbor, and Culhane Lake.
Each ORV drove to the stations and were asked if they had one of the following items in their vehicle: A tow rope, a mechanical compass, paper map, bug spray, fire extinguisher, water, and pine stump swag. They received a stamp for each item they had and returned to home base to draw a playing card from the deck. The best hand was crowned the winner, with well-deserved bragging rights.
The participants loved it, but it was the Tahquamenon Area Schools (TAS) Athletic Department who loved it the most because the proceeds, estimated to be $5,000-6,000, will go directly to the school’s athletic department. Funds were raised through participation fees, 50-50 raffles, and dozens of donated raffle items.
TAS Athletic Director Anthony Kitzman attended, and 12 student athletes participated in the day-long event. Kitzman was beyond excited when he learned this ride would benefit his student athletes.
“They actually approached me to see if we wanted their backing. And I wasn’t going to turn it down. The money is going to go to the sports boosters and they are going to put into the fund for pay-to-play,” Kitzman explained.
Stein saw it as a win-win.
“We knew the school has had some issues with their sports programs so we were looking for a good cause and an organization that would partner with us,” he said. “My part was easy; I just stayed out of the way and cooked.”
Stein was grateful for the support he received and for the way the community has embraced his efforts since buying the business five years ago.
“So many neighbors and friends stepped up to help,” he said.
Stein credited Newberry residents Rich and Amy Rottier as the brainchild behind the scavenger hunt; they were the main organizers for the two prior scavenger hunts.
“Rich and Amy were a huge part of this. So were Chris Wahl, Doug Ginnever, Bill and Cathy Glime, Sandy Kitson and Charlene Bowen, as well as my awesome kitchen and wait staff,” Stein said.
This event also promoted the beauty of the U.P. to visitors and locals alike. Dave and Lori Millsaps traveled from Chicago to attend after hearing about it on Facebook. “We didn’t realize how much there was to do up here. We absolutely love it here,” Lori Millsaps said.
Mary Griffith and her husband Rob made the trip from Grand Rapids. “We loved it,” Mary said. “We’ve done our fair share of ORV rides up here and this one was the best. It got us out to experience a lot of things we’ve never seen before.”
Sponsors included Renze Power Sports, Subway, the Sunshine Shack of Newberry, S&J, Halfway Lake, Pizza Hut of Newberry, Zellar’s Village Inn, Pleasant Moose Lodge, Bodi Auto and Tire, Pickelman’s One Stop, Nicolet Bank, Foster’s Ace Hardware, Exclusive Moose, Maters Stop-and-go, Oswald’s Bear Ranch, Yooperlites, and Eric’s Septic Service.
