27 October 2023 , 00:40
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A die-hard floridan plans to host the first-ever Florida Man Games, which will feature activities that derive from stereotypical shenanigans of the sunshine state - including wrestling and evading the police.
Organiser, Pete Melfi, owner of The 904 Now, a media outlet covering St. Johns County, described the olympic-like competition as one of the most intense showdowns on Earth, which will put the most athletic challengers to the ultimate test.
“We thought, ‘How can we really play on these Florida Man headlines that we hear so much about?’ Someone gave me the idea to make it into an athletic competition,” Pete said. “It’s going to be a wild day of mud games and Florida-style obstacle courses. It’s going to really be an opportunity to live that Florida Man life for a day.”
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Pete Melfi, who owns the media outlet The 904 Now, is organizing the event (Pete Melfi/Facebook)Obviously, the games are referring to all the unusual stories that come out of Florida. This is why the games will feature events revolving around guns, drugs, booze and reptiles. There will most likely be some overlap of the four.
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The games will move forward next February in St. Augustine Florida, the organizers said. One event they are excited for is the Evading Arrest Obstacle Course, which will have contestants jump over fences and race through yards while being chased by real officers.
Others include the Category 5 Cash Grab in which participants try to grab as much money while in a wind-blowing booth and the beer-belly wrestling, which doesn't need an explanation.
Beer belly wrestling will be an event in the competition (thefloridamangames.com)
The games are referring to all the unusual news stories that come out of Florida (thefloridamangames.com)“This isn’t just a competition; it’s a one-of-a-kind Floridian spectacle!” organizers said on the games’ website. The idea for such a competition stemmed from a popular X, formerly known as Twitter, account called _FloridaMan. Under the tagline "real life stories of the world's worst superhero," the account posts headlines such as "Florida Man Fire Bombs Garage That Impounded His Car, Hits His Own Vehicle" and "Florida Man Tried to Pay for McDonald's With Weed."
General admission tickets will set you back $45(£37.11). The games seem to be highly anticipated as two former stars of the 1990's TV show "American Gladiators" have agreed to serve as referees. The games have garnered a ton of buzz from local media to intrigued social media users.
“If you had a fever and you really had Florida on your mind when you went to sleep, this would be your fever dream," the Orlando Sentinel wrote. "The Florida man meme rises to new heights," wrote the Palm Beach Post. Radios station WDHA FM said: “Who needs the olympics? We have The Florida Man Games”