Ottertail man wins auctioneer championship
By Carol Stender
cstender@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 02/09/2012 3:43 PM
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MINNETONKA, Minn. — Minnesota has a new auctioneer champion.
Austin Bachmann of Ottertail won the honor last week at the Minnesota State Auctioneer Championship in Minnetonka.
A week prior he took first place in the North Dakota contest.
"I just don't know what to think," he said of the back-to-back wins. "A lot of goals and dreams came together."
It's an honor he shares with his father, Vince, who won the contest in 1997. This is the first time a father and son have won the honor, auction contest organizers said.
During the awards ceremony, Vince was called to the stage to deliver his auctioneer chant. It was a special moment, Bachmann said.
"We are a close family that has gotten closer with our work in the business," he said.
Bachmann is involved with all facets of the 30-year-old businesses, Bachmann Auctioneers and Bachmann-Carow Real Estate. The businesses were started by his parents, Vince and Jane. His older brother, Andrew, is an auctioneer and his grandfather, Clair, is a ringman.
He got his start in Bachmann Auctioneers in Frazee at an early age. At age seven he parked cars at auctions. Next he ran the clerking sheets from the auction truck to those recording the bids. He went on to call bids to his father, but always wanted to be an auctioneer. He got his chance at age 12.
"It was a church benefit and my dad called me up to the auctioneer's truck," Bachmann recalled. " He walked off the truck and told me to go for it. I remember I couldn't breath and I kept forgetting my numbers. It was the best thing he could've done for me."
After graduating from Frazee High School, he attended college one year at Central Lakes College in Brainerd and transferred to Minnesota State Community and Technical College in Moorhead where he graduated from its sales, marketing and business program.
He attended the World Wide College of Auctioneering in Mason City, Iowa, and moved to Ottertail.
Bachmann has competed in the state contest since 2007 when he won the rookie award. This year marked the third time he placed in the top five for the honor, he said.
"I got a lot of advice from other auctioneers and from my family," he said about preparing for the contests. "I've been told to pretend like its any other auction. It's tougher because you are auctioneering to your peers. But they all say to do it from the heart. They tell you to remember the small things that you normally do. They talk about scanning the crowd, making eye contact with the people and to hold your hand out as you accept the bid. Over time you just pick up more and more. Everyone is very helpful."
It takes practice, practice, practice, he said. Bachmann does just that as he drives his car or at his home.
He will be getting a lot of practice in as he prepares for the International Championship in Spokane, Wash., in July.