Well 2017 turned out to be quite a year for the WFA, we saw another Roadhouse champion crowned, a new Grand Slam World Champion as well as two new Grand Slams which entered the fray in the shape of Flairsupply in Hungary and the Cambridge Cocktail Weekend in the UK. 2018 is looking just as good, if not better. We have another two new competition formats to introduce in the Roadhouse Heats, as well as the return of the Cambridge Cocktail Weekend and more:
Multiple Object & Tandem Flair
Two new heats are coming to the Roadhouse in 2018. In January we are introducing the Multiple Object competition where competitors will have to use a minimum of three objects or more. This should be great fun encouraging the competitors to focus on the big moves that get a scream and a ‘wow’ when landed. Everyone loves watching flair bartenders go for the big, unbelievable moves. This competition is all about nurturing that, go big or go home. Bear in mind though that alongside high difficulty, big moves can come a fair few drops!
In July we are bringing back a style of competition we haven’t seen at the Roadhouse or anywhere else for many years. Two man shows have been hugely successful over recent years, being employed for a whole manner of events and more. After testing the waters on social media we found there was a huge desire to see Tandem competitions return, so we did just that! The July heat at the Roadhouse will be Tandem Flair, the top 3 pairs will make it through to the Roadhouse Tandem Grand Finals in November where £1000 will be up for grabs for the winning tandem.
As will all Roadhouse Flair heats, winners of these heats will get places in the Grand Finals in November as well as their share of £1000. More great Roadhouse Flair Heats such as Chicks with Flicks and the Battle Competition will also be returning for 2018.
First Grand Slam of the Year
January also reopens the Grand Slam Competition with the first of the year, Flairmania in Latvia. The first Grand Slam of the year is always a great opportunity to see who is going to challenge for those top spots in the year ahead. Will we see some new names amongst the old favourites in the flair bartending world?
The registration for the first Grand Slam of the year was so popular that the WFA website crashed briefly during the sign up process, with all places going in less than 2 minutes! Deniss Trifanovs took the Flairmania title in his home country of Latvia in 2017, he will be defending his title this year against a top roster of flair bartenders including an in form and newly crowned World Champion in the shape of Marek Posluszny.
Now in its 8th year Flairmania is always a great event where you get a good idea of what exhibition flair will hold for the year ahead, the Big Ass Move mini competition is particularly good fun. With points at Flairmania for originality and choreography more so than difficulty and relevance, expect to see a great all round show.
The Cambridge Cocktail Weekend Returns
The Cambridge Cocktail Weekend will be returning as a UK WFA Grand Slam after a hugely successful inaugural event. Expect it to be bigger and better with lots of exciting things on the horizon. Take a look at our video below with Marek after 2017’s competition find out his thoughts on the first edition of the Cambridge Cocktail Weekend WFA Grand Slam: