Dakota Bezemer Takes First Place at the Ontario SMBL500 Regional Competition!

Bezemer Claims Ontario’s “Best Bricklayer” title!

Hamilton, ON – Mason Dakota Bezemer alongside his mason tender Nate Chipps with Cedar Springs Landscape worked quickly and effectively to put up their 489-brick wall. With 60-minutes on the clock and a 26-foot-wide wall, the Bezemer-Chipps team worked together to build the greatest wall amongst the rest of the teams to claim the “Best Bricklayer” title. Bezemer is no stranger to the bricklaying field, he won the MCAA’s Fastest Trowel on the Block Competition in 2018. For winning the first-place position at the Ontario Regional event, this team won a total of $3,000, a 4-foot Stabila level, and two plane tickets to battle at the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500® World Championship, taking place in Las Vegas at the World of Concrete Tradeshow January 18th, 2023. 

To qualify for the World Championship, hundreds of teams from across North America will battle to win one of 22 individual regional series events. They must prove they have what it takes to contend at what is known as the Super Bowl of Masonry. Each team consists of one mason and one mason tender and has 60-minutes to build the tallest 26-foot-long brick wall with the fewest craftsmanship errors possible. From each regional event, one team will win and advance to Las Vegas. At nationals, they will compete for over $125,000 in cash and prizes, such as a new Ford F-250 4×4 Truck, Kubota RTV-X1140, Essick Pro12 mortar mixer, and the title, “World’s Best Bricklayer.”

Second-place winner at the Ontario event was mason Filipe Orfao and mason tender Jose Orfao with Res Group. This team laid 452 bricks in 60 minutes and took the “Top Craftsman” award. This team had the perfect brick wall with no deductions, winning them a combined total of $1,900, a 2-foot Stabila Level. This is the 13th time the Orfao team has competed at the regional competition and has won multiple times before. Third place went to mason Peter Prymak and mason tender Nick Koehler with G&B Masonry. This team won a total of $800 and a 2-foot Stabila Level. This was the seventh time this team has competed in regional events.

During the Ontario Bricklayer 500 Regional Event, the JR. BL500 competition took place. In this battle, masonry apprentices and students display their ability in a shortened rendition of the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500, where they have the chance to win cash prizes and the “JR. BRICKLAYER 500 CHAMPION” title. 

The first-place winner of the JR. BL500 was students Baha Abhary and Lori Martin with Conestoga College. Their brick count was 91, winning them $200, a Marshalltown etched trowel, and a 4-foot Stabila Level. The mason tender Abhary is an international student from Jordan. The second-place winner was apprentice Cole Murray and Meryle Martin with Sheppard Masonry. This team had a brick count of 86, and for their efforts, they won $200, and a 2-foot Stabila Level. Lastly, in third place was student Jamie Tomlinson and Cameron Baden with Conestoga College. This team did 49 bricks in 20 minutes and won $200 and a 2-foot Stabila Level. 

Disclosures:
In 2019, the SPEC MIX organization partnered with other masonry associations to create the Junior SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 Competition. This year of the 22 Regional Series competitions, 12 will also hold Junior BRICKLAYER 500 contests that give high school and masonry apprentices the chance to compete for their state title. The program has proven remarkably successful and highly supported by the Mason Contractors Association of America, school administrators and numerous masonry supply manufacturers and dealers. To learn more, visit https://www.specmix.com/jr-spec-mix-bricklayer-500/.

If you are interested in becoming a fan, the 21st annual SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 World Championship will take place on January 18th, 2023, at the World of Concrete tradeshow in Las Vegas; the Las Vegas Convention Center Bronze Lot. At this competition, you will see 26 world-class masons lay it all on the line to claim their portion of the total purse valued at more than $125,000. Prizes include: a new Ford F-250 4×4 Super Duty truck, Kubota RTV-X1140, Multiquip Pro 12 Mortar Mixer, and other prizes from Hilti, IQ Power Tools, Stabila, Marshalltown, STIHL, Blaklader Workwear, and Belden Brick.

If you have any questions, or would like to set up an interview with any of the competitors, please contact Brian Carney at 612-859-4505 or by email at Brian.Carney@specmix.com

SPEC MIX is your North American source for high quality, factory produced cement-based building materials that are preblended for the construction industry. SPEC MIX products are precisely engineered to meet ASTM and building code requirements. Projects designed for the installation of brick, CMU, stone, stucco or building repair and restoration, SPEC MIX offers a full line of products packaged in 80 & 3,000-pound bags produced with state-of-the-art batching equipment to ensure quality and consistency from start to finish. For optimal jobsite efficiency, safety, and productivity, we provide contractors with numerous silo material mixing systems that maximize a contractor’s cost savings, safety and profitability. For more information, visit www.specmix.com.

2022 SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 ONTARIO REGIONAL RESULTS

2022 SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 ONTARIO REGIONAL RESULTS