The deadline is looming for contestants to register for the Columbia Forklift Challenge in Portland, with entries closing on February 8.

The 2013 challenge occurs on 5 March at the Oregon Convention Center as part of the Oregon governor's biennial occupational safety and health conference. Twenty entrants participated during the state's inaugural forklift challenge in March 2011.

The event will allow operators to "show the world how skilled and safe (they) are operating these fantastic machines", says Craig Hamelund, education specialist with the Oregon occupational safety and health division. The division is part of the Oregon department of consumer and business services and operates under a state-plan agreement with the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration.