Serious stirring and shaking is about to happen, thanks to the return of Speed Rack, the all-female speed-bartending competition that raises money for breast cancer. The fourth national tour kicks off this November in the United States and travels to eight cities – Washington D.C., New York, Dallas, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, Denver, and Chicago, before crowning a winner at the Speed Rack U.S. Finals in New York on June 7, 2015. The first-ever Canada Speed Rack takes place in March 2015 in Vancouver, followed by the Paris, France launch in June 2015, and the 2014-15 tour concludes in the U.K. in October 2015.
Equal parts spectator sport, cocktail bonanza and charity fundraiser, Speed Rack is the brainchild of two of the cocktail world’s leading ladies, Lynnette Marrero and Ivy Mix, who launched the first tour in 2011. To date, Speed Rack has raised more than $250,000 globally for breast cancer charities and elevated top female bartenders in America and abroad who go shaker-to-shaker competing for industry glory and a Speed Rack title.
“Speed Rack shines a spotlight on female mixologists thriving behind bars around the world,” says Marrero. “The idea was to create a cocktail competition for the ladies – one that celebrated women, was created by women and supported women, in and out of the spirits industry. And while we are at it, to raise money for breast cancer research, education, and prevention. We are humbled by the global support and interest from international cities for Speed Rack and look forward to continuing our efforts in the U.K. and expanding to Canada and France.”
The 2014-15 Speed Rack Tour schedule will be:
United States
Washington, D.C. – November 10, 2014
New York City – December 14, 2014
Dallas – January 14, 2015
Los Angeles – January 25, 2015
Seattle – February 8, 2015
San Francisco – March 15, 2015
Denver – April 12, 2015
Chicago – May 3, 2015
Speed Rack Finals, New York City – June 7, 2015
Canada
Vancouver, British Columbia – Spring 2015
U.K.
London, England– October 2015
Contestants will compete in timed heats to make rounds of cocktails, culled from a list of 50 accepted industry-standard classic recipes, in front of a panel of judges and a crowd of excited viewers. Judges rate each drink based on time and accuracy. The United States judging panel includes such cocktail world luminaries as Julie Reiner, Dale DeGroff, David Wondrich and Audrey Saunders, while the U.K. and Canada panels will feature global brand ambassadors and leading international cocktail authorities.
The founding partners of BAR (Beverage Alcohol Resource) will reward Miss Speed Rack USA, crowned at the Speed Rack U.S. Finals, a scholarship to its five-day program (http://www.beveragealcoholresource.com/). The grand prize for the U.K. and Canada Speed Rack winners will be announced at the event.
Charity beneficiaries to date have included SHARE cancer support, National Breast Cancer Foundation, Susan G Love, The Helen David Foundation and others.
For more information, visit Speed Rack at www.speed-rack.com, on Facebook www.facebook/speedrackinfo and on Twitter and Instagram @speed_rack. Check out the antics at last year’s regional heats by visiting: http://www.speed-rack.com/videos and http://bit.ly/1cIrwLH.
