QUALITY COUNTS

SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN®
The 2015 SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN® Award, arguably the most coveted prize, was given to mason Garrett Hood of Huntley Brothers Company in Monroe, North Carolina. Judged as the “Most Sellable” wall, Garrett’s adjusted brick count combined with his high quality workmanship earned him $5,000 in cash, an Essick Pro12 Mixer, sponsor prizes from Stabila, STIHL, Marshalltown, iQ Power Tools and Gatorback Mortarboards.

Quality Counts

Building a tall sellable wall requires skill and planning.

While speed, skill, and stamina are the deciding traits of the winner of SPECMIX BRICKLAYER 500® World Championship, pursuit of quality plays an equally key role. Recognizing this importance, the sponsors established an award focused on quality—the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN® Award. It’s the event’s second highest award purse, and many consider it the most coveted prize.

The SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN is awarded to the mason who builds what judges determine to be the “most sellable” wall. The judges first narrow the field down to competitors who have laid at least 500 brick and have not had any quality standard deductions. If there are no competitors who have laid at least 500 brick with no deductions, the total count is dropped to 400 with no deductions to determine the craftsmanship winner. If there are no competitors with at least 400 brick and have no deductions, then the eligible contestants are those who have laid 500 brick with one quality standard deduction. If there are no competitors with a minimum of 500 brick and only one quality standard deduction, the count is dropped to 400 and one quality standard deduction to determine the eligible craftsmanship award contestants.

Strategy is key. First, the mason must establish his pace to be sure he meets the 500 brick minimum. Then, the mason must decide is if he is trying for first place by brick count or for the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN award. This decision often determines the mason’s approach. Ray Robinson, first place winner in the 2011 SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 World Championships, explains the consequence of the decision. His original plan for the 2011 national event was to lay as many brick as possible during the 60 minutes, with a goal of more than 1000 brick. But before the contest started, he changed his strategy. “I set a goal of 900 to 950 brick to avoid the chance of workmanship deductions. Thankfully, the plan worked and I won the right to drive home that Ford F-250,” said Robinson.

While the mason may opt not to try for the main prize, there is still the need to place as many bricks as he can. All walls are measured and inspected to determine if the contestants followed the detailed rules they received prior to the competition. Then, a majority of the judges subjectively come to agreement on the wall they feel is the most sellable through visual inspection. If the judges determine that more than one wall is equal in quality, the wall with the higher brick count is awarded the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN Award.

At this level of competition it is difficult, for a mason to place in the top three of total count and win the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN award. But it has happened four times. Bill Morrisette, of Rock Spring, Ga., first accomplished this achievement in 2007. In 2011, Dave Moyle, of Wadena, Iowa, won third place and the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN award. In 2015, Garrett Hood, of Monroe, NC, won second place and the SPEC MIX TOP CRAFTSMAN. But most impressively, Jerry Goodman, of Blythewood, SC, took home a double win of Champion and Craftsman in 2014. This is a subjective award, and the judges’ decision in determining the winner is final, and is not disputable by the competitors or their representatives.