A beach bar on the Florida-Alabama border reclaims its Mullet Toss -- masks optional

[Zorro]

Flora-Bama’s decision to hold its popular fish-throwing contest reflects the dilemma confronting small businesses during the pandemic: balancing economic survival with a desire for normalcy and the preservation of traditions that distinguish their communities, despite the health risks.

PERDIDO KEY, Fla. — Nothing was going to stop the dead fish from flying.

Not the governor next door. Not the leftover hurricane damage. And definitely not the pandemic.

Cameron Price grabbed the mic with one hand and scooped a ray-finned mullet out of a cooler with the other. He turned to the 1,000 or so revelers crowding the shoreline behind the famed beach bar that literally straddles the Florida-Alabama state line.

“The Flora-Bama is the last bastion of freedom in America,” he said to cheers on a recent Saturday. “It is so awesome to see all of you guys out there without masks, enjoying yourselves in the sunshine, in the salt air, and just having such an awesome time out here.”

Flora-Bama’s Interstate Mullet Toss has been a springtime tradition for nearly 35 years: People wait in line for hours to test how far they can throw a dead fish across the state line. It’s the bar’s biggest weekend, attracting upward of 30,000 people over its typical three-day run and generating millions for the local economy. Beachfront rentals and hotels from Gulf Shores, Ala., to Pensacola, Fla., are booked up months in advance.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/road-to-recovery/2020/11/03/florabama-fish-toss-pandemic/

[SergeStorms]

1. I've been to the Flora-Bama.

Never for the mullet toss, but I made a trip there once just to check it out. A very rustic place, to be sure. Very eclectic, and you're as likely to run into a billionaire there as you are your usual bar flies.

[RussellCattle]

2. Looked up fucking Cameron Price. He and a partner bought the "iconic" bar a few years ago. So he....

....is most interested in his own bottom line when he celebrates the lack of masks on the crowd of 1000 dummies.

[Pantagruel]

3. Freedom to fling a fish

Not "freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear".

The current generation aims very low.

[SergeStorms]

4. This origins of this "event" goes back over 3 decades....

so we can't lay this at the feet of the young ones.

[Willto]

5. I'm From South Alabama

So I am well acquainted with the Florabama. It's just a local dive of a place but you never know who will be in it on a given night. Courney Cox (whose parents have a house on Ono Island) was in there one night.

[nolabear]

6. I've spent some time at the Flora-Bama. It's different now.

Not screaming different but it really was a fun dive back in the day. The most cobbled together place you could imagine. And it kicked ass.

The mullet toss is a thing. I wish they’d mask dammit.