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A Logging Podcast

Wood & Iron

For Loggers. By Loggers.

Wood & Iron is a podcast that explores the needs and challenges of today’s logger. Join our hosts as they explores business operation, policy navigation, and the future of logging with loggers from the Midwest to the West. The goal of Wood & Iron is to promote a successful and sustainable logging workforce in our forested states by offering relevant and timely information that you can listen to during your time in the cab.

Produced by the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point’s Wisconsin Forestry Center and is hosted by WFC’s High School Program Manager Jared Schroeder and Manley Jobs host and WFCA executive director Blake Manley. Wood & Iron is available on Apple PodcastsSpotify, YouTube Music, and many other platforms.


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Upcoming Episodes

Season 1 | Episode 1

Introducing Wood & Iron

January 15, 2026

Introducing Wood and Iron, a podcast for loggers, by loggers, with Blake Manley, Executive Director of the Western Forestry and Conservation Association and Jared Schroeder of the Wisconsin Forestry Center.

Season 1 | Episode 2

Beyond the Saw

February 15, 2026

Join us as we talk with consulting forester and owner-operator Matt Carothers of Superior Woodlands Company, LLC. We discuss the challenges he faced and opportunities he embraced throughout the start-up, growth, and maintenance of his company.

Season 1 | Episode 3

Failure Is Not an Option

March 2026

Join us as we discuss the essential skills of resiliency, respect, and a strong work-ethic necessary for ensuring economic viability and longevity with Jody Hendrickx of Hendrickx Logging, Inc.

Season 1 | Episode 4

Passing the Torch

April 2026

Explore logging succession in real life. Set the stage for a smooth generational transition in your family business. Hear real stories about succession in the industry.

THIS MONTH’S GUEST

Beyond the Saw

Matt Carothers

February 2026

Matt Carothers is a husband, father, and consulting forester from Hazelhurst, WI. As owner-operator of Superior Woodlands Company, LLC he advises families, small businesses, and conservation organizations on long-term forestry rooted in his lived experiences with the struggles and successes of land ownership. Matt is an ACF credentialed forester, an American Tree Farmer, a FISTA-trained woods worker, and an MBA graduate sharing his passion for forestry with students, retirees, and everyone in between.


MEET YOUR HOSTS

Blake Manley

Executive Director of the Western Forestry and Conservation Association and Host of Manley Jobs

Blake brings over 25 years of forest sector experience in logging, procurement, timber sale administration, education, training, and lumber manufacturing. A University of Idaho graduate with an emphasis in Timber Harvesting, his passion for forestry education has impacted Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Washington, and California through diverse initiatives promoting industry awareness.

Jared Schroeder

High School Program Manager, Wisconsin Forestry Center, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point

Jared is a 14-year veteran of the public school system where he taught high school biology in a small rural Central Wisconsin school. Jared has always had a sense of awe when it came to the forest. Growing up on a farm in Wisconsin he saw and experienced the necessity for sustainable forest practices. As an educator he saw the power that curriculum can have on shaping the minds of students. He now works for the Wisconsin Forestry Center at UWSP where he is developing an immersive applied curriculum for secondary school settings that aims to aid in workforce development in forestry industries. 

MEET THE EDITOR

Joe Rogers

Wood & Iron Audio Editor

Behind the scenes at Wood and Iron, Joe Rogers serves as the audio editor. Rogers graduated from UW-Stevens Point in 2006 with a degree in business administration and joined Sentry Insurance that same year. He was infected with the podcasting bug in 2009 and has been editing and producing podcasts and videos ever since. After 15 years with Sentry, he left in 2021 to pursue freelance projects. When he’s not spending time with his patient wife, Kelly, or curious 7-year-old, Dane, you can find him playing tabletop miniature games, cooking ethnic cuisines, administering Salesforce orgs, hiking (quite moderate) inclines, designing games, or reading just about anything. 


Wood & Iron Resources

Send us your question!

Have a question or comment for our hosts? How about an idea for a future episode? Let us know; we’d love to hear from you! Email us your questions, comments, or ideas.

Sponsor Wood & Iron

Want to advertise your product, company, or organization on Wood & Iron? Sponsor a season or an episode!

Learn more by reaching out to Susan Barrett at sbarrett@uwsp.edu.

THIS MONTH’S EPISODE SPONSORED BY