LAS VEGAS, NV (1/24/24) –Wisconsin mason Michael Schlund made history at the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500® World Championship by becoming the first back-to-back winner since its inception in 2003. Schlund, along with the help of his mason tender, Aaron Kowalski, laid 752 bricks in one hour to claim the title, “World’s Best Bricklayer.” In addition to retaining his bragging rights, he’s also now the proud owner of a new Chevy Silverado Super Crew 4x4 truck, an Essick Pro12 Mixer, and more than $15,000 in added cash and prizes.

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Marking the event’s 22nd anniversary, SPEC MIX®, LLC, hosted the world’s largest and most prestigious masonry competition, the SPEC MIX BRICKLAYER 500®. Renowned as the “Super Bowl of Masonry,” this action-packed bricklaying battle took place in front of thousands of spectators on Wednesday, January 24th, 2024, at the World of Concrete expo in Las Vegas, NV.

 

For sixty-minutes, Schlund and Kowalski battled against 25 other world-class masons from across North America to lay as many bricks as they could with as few craftsmanship errors as possible. The champion team, working together like a finely tuned machine, proved the competition is a true test of human skill, speed and stamina designed to determine the best craftsman in the masonry industry.

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This was Schlund’s fifth time he competed in the Championship round by winning the Wisconsin Regional Series qualifier competition. In 2023, Schlund and Kowalski teamed up to put down 759 bricks to claim their first victory and World Champion title. This year the two reunited to take on what was arguably the most skilled field of competitors in event history including 3-time Champion Fred Campbell from Tennessee. And, for the second year in a row, Schlund left Las Vegas with the keys to a new pickup truck, a payload of cash and prizes, and the heavyweight belt declaring him the reigning World’s Best Bricklayer!