LaGrange, GA, USA, 5 May 2006 - The Mexican celebration of Cinco de Mayo was not solely a day of mirth for American partygoers but for finger jousters as well. On this holiday in 2006, the World Finger Jousting Federation, the global governing body for the sport of finger jousting, held its first official event. The event was chosen to be for leisure jousting and socialization between professional finger jousters, amateur finger jousters, and non-finger jousters alike.

It was decided early on that the event needed to be held in a large, outdoor space near a public education facility to attract scholarly finger jousters. The first choice was the football field at LaGrange High School. After the WFJF was informed that the LHS gridiron was being used by the football team, the next best place was chosen: the nearby playground.

The event started out with the welcoming of attendees by Julian Gluck, president of the WFJF, who was presiding over the event. After a significant number of persons showed and the time was right, the event started with a tear jerking and powerful speech by Gluck who is no stranger to oratorical undertakings.

After the speech, the main proceedings took place which consisted of publicity shootings and leisure jousting matches. The location was ideal for spaciousness and hilarity, but the weather was erratic with varying periods of sunshine and rain. Though the forecast was bleak, it proved no problem for the willing finger jousters present. After the event was all said and done, the attendees went back to their normal lives and Gluck closed shop.

The event proved to be a success, but the Lord of the Joust (Julian Gluck) was unsatisfied with the turnout of attendees. "The Informal Cinco de Mayo Leisure Jousting Social Event proved to be a testament to the appeal of finger jousting especially in the West Georgia area, but I was hoping for a larger number of participants and spectators. The weather might have been a factor [in the low turnout], but the event . . . still gave us the opportunity for some great photographs and awesome memories."

A few of the more notable official members who were present were Josh Kinder (Darth Bob), Ben North (Top Gun), Tyler Davis, and Avery Livingston. Kinder thought that "it was a great day in WFJF history that will probably help to bring out more members." North heavily enjoyed the event, and told us that "the sport is fun and can even be a little extreme when you get flipped or pushed to the ground, but I loved every minute of it . . . My right arm was a little sore after the matches." Davis was surprised at the level of skill at this event and jokingly said, "the world's greatest jousters have never assembled together in such close proximity." Livingston, a female official member, recounted that "there were a lot of guys with tight clothing there. It was a lot of fun."

Some of the more notable leisure point play matches were the following:
Ben "Top Gun" North vs Josh "Darth Bob" Kinder - 6 to 4
Julian "Lord of the Joust" Gluck vs Tyler Davis - 6 (including a chest shot) to 0
Julian "Lord of the Joust" Gluck vs Ben "Top Gun" North - 6 (including a final chest shot) to 2
Julian "Lord of the Joust" Gluck vs Josh "Darth Bob" Kinder - 6 (including a chest shot) to 2

The event, though elusive to mainstream media appeal, provided some great coverage and PR for the WFJF. Gluck said that he hopes to have official WFJF events at least every three months. His ultimate goal is to have major tournaments, but his plan is to start with small informal events such as this one and move on to endorsed and then sanctioned tournaments. Overall, everyone enjoyed the experience, and this Cinco de Mayo will go down in infamy.

Below are fifteen of the most memorable photos taken at the event; you can click on the thumbnails to bring up larger versions of the photos:

Further information from:
WFJF Media Department
media(at)fingerjoust.com