Watch Look-alike Ernest Hemingway

On Thursday, May 12th, the eve of the dreaded Friday the Thirteenth, I went to a contest being held at one of my favorite bars, Hemingway's Tavern in Melbourne, Florida. I had seen the ad on FaceBook, and I let my friend Ken in on the fun.

FaceBook ad
Not sure how crowded it might be, I decided to get there about 4:15 and order some food. They were also having a special on draft beers, buy one of their 22 oz plastic mugs for $1, then you can drink any of the tap beers at the price of a pint. I was already drinking from a glass pint, but one of the owners said he would give me the mug with 6 oz added so I could catch up.
My new plastic Hemingway mug
I was drinking the Green Flash West Coast IPA. A very good IPA that was going down smooth. Preparation for meeting many Ernest Hemingway's had begun. I had a great seat at the bar (seat #1 to the bartenders) and I was able to get photos of some of the contestants as they came in to get there drinks. As the ad said "There will be drinking."

Before I share pictures of the contestants, I wanted to remind you what the man looked like. This is a photo of a photo that was hanging on the wall next to my bar seat.
Ernest Hemingway
Now, some of the entrants to the contest....
Steve - Contestant #1 talks to the MC
From my understanding after talking to one of the tavern's owners, that the contest would be more than who looks like Ernest. They were also looking for someone who acts like the great writer and manly man. Looks was worth 50% of the score but there was going to be Hemingway trivia, marksmanship, and arm wrestling.
The eventual winner enters the bar area
 Some of the contestants were from his days living in Spain...
Ernest Hemingway in Spain
Some of the contestants, like Dale, entered for the free stuff they were giving away. It made sense to me but maybe because I had just started my second beer.
Dale - Contestant #8
I missed the trivia section of the contest because I did not want to give up my great bar seat. But then I ordered my third and last beer, paid the tab, and went outside to get photographs of the marksmanship and arm wrestling. There was a small stage and some nice fishing boats were being displayed. I was able to get photos of all the contestants.
Nine of the lookalikes (Dale on left) and the guy in pink was in the contest
Five new contestants and five repeats from previous photo
Steve, #1, heading to the marksmanship round
The marksmanship round was not what people were expecting. They gave each contestant a straw and they had to make spitballs to shoot at at a target in the front window of the tavern. The scoring was like a dart board, and the score only counted if the wad stuck to the glass. I decided only one of my pictures needed to be shared. I usually limit my photos of bodily fluids including spittal.
Steve fires spitballs while the MC announces the scores 
It was kind of funny to see people almost walk into the spitters, not realizing the contestants were behind the pole. I think the highest score was 45 points; each player had four chances to spit a wad.
This contestant was looking for the running of the bulls.
The last contest was the arm wrestling. You could get five points for winning, but up to ten points for attitude and showmanship. Some of the contestants were more into it than others, but the whole arm wrestling was a success because they did it on stage in front of everyone. I am sharing a few photos here...
#1 vs #2

#3 vs #4

I like the beer to the mouth

The Spain Hemingway had a fish pole with a fish
One of the contestants, James, has competed in the official look-alike contest held at Sloppy Joes in Key West each year.  He has two medals showing that he had placed in previous years. He said he will go down every year for the rest of his life. I caught a picture of James with my new friend Dale and his wife.
James with medals from Key West, Dale and his wife
Although James did not win, he did get third place. I got his email so I could send him some of the pictures. He was a very nice man and I may have to go to Key West this year to see him compete.
James getting third place at Hemingway's Tavern
 The winner was contestant #3. Not only did he win this contest, but he gets $500 and a trip to Key West to compete at Sloppy Joes in July.
The top five finishers with two of the restaurant's owners.
I am glad I went. I met some of the contestants and I liked photographing something other than animals. Although, was not Ernest an animal?

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