Nick Offerman crowns a winner of the Ultimate Popsicle Stick Throwdown

Over the summer, Studio 360 teamed up with comedian and actor Nick Offerman — who played Ron Swanson on Parks and Recreation and, like his character, is a real-life master woodworker — for Nick Offerman’s Ultimate Popsicle Stick Throwdown.

Offerman asked listeners to construct a popsicle stick creation based on some of his favorite things: bratwurst, fishing, the Hoover Dam, puzzles, Wilco, masonry, and/or America.

The show received many inventive entries from all around the country. “I knew I would be bowled over by the creativity, but there were some real stand-outs,” Offerman says.

But for Offerman, the clear champion of the throwdown is an entrant named Nick Morton.

“He made an entire woodworker-man figure, from the belly button up. He's holding up a glass of scotch with a little too much ice in it — that would be one small point against Nick. But it's a beautiful glass of Scotch held up like the torch of liberty,” Offerman says.

“And it's a lamp — it lights up, so that's the cherry on the cake. Or is it? Because then the whole thing spins around on its axis. And inside is a secret, lit up, vault cave that houses a bottle of scotch and some tumbler glasses. We asked for an item and he made a museum.”

Morton worked three solid weeks, typically about 11 hours a day, and used about 2500 popsicle sticks to make his tribute to Offerman.

“I'm a woodworker, so I build furniture, and normally it's easy to answer the question, ‘Hey, what are you working on?’ But when you're building a four-foot tall statue out of popsicle sticks, you kind of hedge a little. You're like, 'Oh, you know, I'm just doing this thing,’” Morton says.

Runners Up

Offerman: “An incredible diorama from a fellow named Nathan with a huge American flag and a stick doll of me fishing at the Hoover Dam — and I have a bratwurst on my fishing line. That was very inspirational.”

Offerman: “Marlowe made a beautiful portrait of a bratwurst in a frame made of popsicle sticks, and it looks like he had to cut some rabbet joints in the back of that frame, which is always enjoyable.”

Offerman: “Jeffrey made a really terrific portrait of Ron Swanson, with fish and bratwurst and American flags and brick walls."

Offerman: “An entrant named Stephen made a beautiful bald eagle carrying a bratwurst in his talons. I was quite inspired. I jumped to my feet and lit off some fireworks when I saw that.”

Offerman: “I’m always a sucker for a pun. He made a really nice looking fish with popsicle sticks and his caption simply says ‘Fish made to scale.’”

You can view images of all of the other entries at #MadeForNick