Ray Byers wins Western Pennsylvania’s SPEC MIX Bricklayer 500 Regional Competition!

Ray Byers claims “Western Pennsylvania’s Best Bricklayer” title.

 On September 26^th, 2024, at Highmark Stadum in Pittsburgh, PA mason Ray Byers and tender Adam Byers with Byers Masonry took first place at the SMBL500 Western Pennsylvania Regional event. Now they will move forward to compete in the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500® Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the World of Concrete Tradeshow! 

 Laying 514 bricks in 60 minutes, the brother duo topped the competition with an 80+ brick margin above the second-place competitors. This duo’s skills and speed won them the “Western Pennsylvania’s Best Bricklayer” award and secured their tickets to Vegas while winning in $1600 cold hard cash.

 The 2024 Regional Series includes 22 events throughout the United States and Canada. To qualify for the SMBL500 event in Las Vegas, teams will compete at one of the 22 individual regionals and battle for first place to secure their spot in the national competition. The teams consist of one mason and one tender; working on a 26-foot-wide wall, they have 60 minutes to lay as much brick as possible with the fewest craftsmanship errors. These teams are only allowed to compete once at one regional event throughout the year, and each duo that wins first place will advance to what is known as the “Superbowl of Masonry.” At the World Championship, they will compete to win part of $125,000 in cash in prizes, including a Chevrolet Silverado 4 x 4 Truck, Kubota RTV-X1130, an Essick Pro12 mixer, and of course, the title, “World’s Best Bricklayer.”

 The second-place winners were the duo of mason Randall Hart and tender Gabe Schoffler with Harris Masonry. laying a total of 426 bricks winning them $900 for the second-place finish. Third place went to mason Tyler Stewart and tender Jared Stewart with CS Masonry. With 406 bricks laid in the competition, the team won $800 for third place. The Top Craftsman award went to Lupe Ezparza and tender David Romero with Arch Masonry, laying 391 bricks, winning them $1600 for the award!

The Winner of the JR. Bricklayer event – apprentice group with 172 bricks laid was Anthony Stewart with BAC Local 9/Cost Company winning a prize of $150. The winner of the JR. Bricklayer event – high school group was mason Xavier Boring and tender Ethan Fyock with Admiral Peary A.V.T.S. with 115 bricks laid, winning the duo $150. The JR. Bricklayer event is for high school students and apprentices pursuing a career in masonry. The JR. SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500® competitions give masonry’s up and coming bricklayers a chance to showcase their drive and skills against their peers.

Disclosures:

In 2019, the SPEC MIX organization partnered with other masonry associations to create the JR. SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 Competition. In 2024, of the 22 Regional Series competitions, 20 will also hold a JR. BRICKLAYER 500 contest to allow high schoolers and masonry apprentices to compete for top honors and prizes. 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/.

2025 World Championship: If you are interested in becoming a fan, the 23rd annual SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 World Championship will take place in January 2025, at the World of Concrete tradeshow in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Las Vegas Convention Center Bronze Lot. At this competition, world-class masons lay it all on the line to claim their portion of the total purse valued at more than $125,000.

2024 SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500 WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA REGIONAL RESULTS