Local competition to showcase bartenders

November 14, 2005 —

Bartenders from California, Arizona, and across Michigan will showcase their unique skills Tuesday, Nov. 15 during "The Midwest Showdown," a flair bartending competition being held at Shooters of Saginaw. The event, being presented by Flair-Tec, a competitive bartending company, will begin at 8 p.m. and is scheduled to last two hours.

For this competition, the 13 bartenders will be executing five- to six-minute routines, choreographed to music, in which they must complete three specific drinks while performing juggling tricks with liquor bottles and other props. Several participating bartenders have national experience competing in such events.

Competitors will be judged on the difficulty of their tricks and the originality and variety of their stunts. There are point reductions for dropping bottles while juggling, breaking glasses, and missing one of the required drinks.

The first-place winner will receive $500, and the second and third-place finishers will get $250 and $150, respectively. There will also be a separate $100 prize for the contestant that comes up with the most creative "stall," or flipping a bottle and resting it somewhere on the body. The cash prizes will be provided by the events' sponsors, which include Skyy Vodka, Malibu Rum, Red Bull, and Finest Call.

Radio station 102.5 WIOG will be doing a live broadcast from the event.

Flair-Tec is owned by Ryan Stokes of Saginaw, who has previously participated in similar local competitions. The marketing student at SVSU says he is trying to shed Saginaw's bland and boring image.

"I frequently hear complaints that there is nothing to do in Saginaw, especially from young people," he said. "This is an event that should be highly entertaining and a great alternative for those people who aren't headed to deer camp."

For more information on the event, visit Flair-Tec's Web site at www.flair-tec.com.