Fish will fly across state line all weekend

Fish will fly across state line all weekend

By Fran Thompson

Flora-Bama’s April 24-26 Mullet Toss weekend, which has rightfully been billed as the Gulf Coast’s Greatest Beach Party, returns to the beautiful quartz crystal beach behind that famed roadhouse for the 42nd time beginning with the kids’ toss at 10 a.m. each day. Adult tossers start at noon, and the $20 per toss fee includes a t-shirt (Proceeds go to local charities).
Cover charge to Flora-Bama begins at 9 a.m. each day from Friday through Sunday. Entry is $10 per day for 21 and up and $20 for 18-20 year olds, with 17 & under admitted free. The party is open to all ages until 6 p.m., at which point the event is for those 21 and up.
Membership cards are good for entry and are available online or at the door.
It is cash only for bar sales on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, with plenty of ATM’s available.
Tens of thousands of folks from throughout the nation & all walks of life will descend upon the Al-Fl state line for the three day frenzy of food, fun and frivolity, as the event has grown into one of the busiest weekends on the Alabama-Florida Gulf Coast.
It also generates well over $40,000 for local charities, including local school education and prevention programs from the Community Drug & Alcohol Council, Inc. (CDAC), every year on both sides of the state line. The Pirates of the Lost Treasure will raise funds for its secret Santa campaign by selling its famous fish sandwich and other goodies behind the main tent
The toss rules are simple. Competitors will toss a mullet, a mystical fish possessing a gizzard, out of a 10-foot circle, from Perdido Key, Florida into Orange Beach, Alabama.
The party and the location are why so many people take a road trip to what some (including Playboy magazine) say is the best beach bar in the world the last weekend of April every year.
In addition to bragging rights, winners earn trophies, and gift certificates to local establishments and bar tabs. Trophies are awarded 3-deep in 19 total age categories, male & female, for each day.
The rules: Contestants must select a mullet from the water bucket themselves. No gloves, no sand coating and no loading up a mullet with ballast before flinging allowed. All competitors must retrieve their own fish and return it to the water bucket. Stepping out of the circle before tossing or tossing the fish out of bounds are both no-nos.