Dion Lane had a heart problem in the 2000 ESPN Great Outdoor Games.

There wasn't anything wrong with him physically. Lane's problem came during the rigorous competition of the Men's Endurance race in the timber portion of the Games.

"It looked as if he just quit," said John Hughes.

Hughes is an ESPN analyst and commentator for the Great Outdoor Games. As a competitive lumberjack, he knows the value of having determination and a will to win at all costs. But he quickly noticed that Lane, a favorite in the endurance race, lost the things that mean the most during the heat of competition.

It didn't go unnoticed by the other competitors either. The word spread quickly that Lane seemed to have the heart of a pea.

This year, though, Lane has fixed his heart problem.

"He's coming back with a vengeance," Hughes said. "He feels a lot more confident. He's obviously done his homework, he's done the mental preparation and he's competed a lot better."

Lane, 25, is from Auckland, New Zealand. At 6-feet 4-inches and tipping the scales at 280 pounds, Lane epitomizes the stereotype of a lumberjack.

"He's a gentle giant," Hughes said. "He's got all the physical attributes to be the best. Now, I think he's got the mental attributes to take him there."

That could figure greatly in the outcome of the ESPN Great Outdoor Games, especially in the endurance competition. Most of the competitors in the timber sports have their specialties. One may excel in the underhand chop; another may be good in the standing block event and another in the crosscut saw event. But in the endurance event, a competitor has to excel in all of them.

"Doing one of them takes a physical toll, but to put all three of them together that's something totally different," Hughes said. "It's a real endurance test."

A test that is exclusive to the ESPN event. Standard timber events utilize all of the parts of the endurance competition separately, but the Great Outdoor Games is the only forum that combines the three.

"That makes it a special event, one everyone wants to win," Hughes said. "It's about bragging rights. Anyone can have a good day and win one but when you string three of those together it's something special."

Each of the events is based on speed and strength. It starts with the underhand chop, an event that simulates the work of a lumberjack once a tree has been cut, and its length has to be reduced to get it out of the woods. The lumberjack stands on the log and cuts the log by swinging up and down, striking the ax blade between his feet. Once the log is cut, the competitors move to the standing block event, which simulates the cutting down of the tree. Competitors hit the block of wood with an axe on two sides, cutting it in two. And the final leg is the cross cut saw, where the lumberjack uses a 6-feet, 3-inch hand saw to cut from top to bottom.

The first man through the course wins.

"The key thing to all of this is it doesn't matter what the guy next to you is doing," Hughes said. "But Lane was too concerned with the other guy getting to the single buck stand before he did. When he didn't get there first he gave up. Those of us watching were just astounded."

Since that time, Lane has had a lot of time to adjust and to prepare mentally for the event.

"I've talked with him several times since then," Hughes said. "And I believe he's done his homework."

The heart of pea has grown to one that fits the massive lumberjack.

And in Hughes' words "That doesn't bode well for the rest of the competitors."