The International Leather Sir/boy contest and the International Community BootBlack contest weekend was held in Dallas, Texas, on August 30-31. Yep, they're crazy. And a few hundred crazy people packed their formal leathers and joined them in the air conditioning inside and the 109 degree heat outside. I love all these crazy people - they're my family.
We flew in on Friday and (eventually) made it to the hotel. Yep, I screwed up on setting up a ride, but it was an honest and well-intentioned screw up. Luckey and I shared a room with our friends Tank and Lizzie, the current Mr and Ms Atlanta Eagle titleholders. Luckey, Tank, and I arrived about the same time at the hotel and got everything squared away at the front desk, got our keys, and headed up. Lizzie arrived the night before and had the whole night in the room to herself. I suspect it was her favorite night, lol. Then Daddy and two puppies arrived. The kitty had carefully unpacked and stacked her luggage before we arrived. Then the puppies rolled in and ESPLODED in the room. I was lucky to get a drawer and a place to stash my suitcase. So yes, we determined that puppies ESPLODE all over a hotel room. Two puppies do not double the esplosion - it goes up exponentially. Ask anybody who rooms with one. And as word got out which room we were in, puppies began arriving to bark out a HELLO. Unfortunately, we were right next to a conference/class room, and all the barking disturbed the Sirs & boys Roundtable discussion - Sorry about that, Sir John!
The contest started on Friday night with a blessing from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence that was tailored to the occasion - very well done. Then it got down to business. The producers introduced a new format to keep things lively - they mixed hotwear, fantasy, and speeches into a constant stream instead of grouping them together. It was new and fun, and kept the pace moving. Afterwards, most people headed for the shuttle to the Dallas Eagle, but I knew it was going to be a long weekend, so it was early bedtime for me.
Saturday was MOSH day, sponsored by the DFW Pups & Trainers. After a good breakfast, I set out to visit the Vendor Market and get ready for the mosh. What a fun time! We had quiet pups and rowdy pups, gentle pups and rumble pups, leather pups and rubber pups, male and female bodied pups, and WE HAD FUN! Well done, DFW Pups & Trainers! You secured a safe area for the pups to play and set it up well. We did have a few runaway pups scurrying through the vendor mart and under tables, but fortunately nothing was broken or upended. We had a great deal of visibility as well, and a couple of friendly kitties stopped by to say Meow. Afterwards, I helped Rylee and Loki with the tear down and mat transport out to their vehicle - they were tired pups! It was great to get the time to visit with these fine young men who are heading up the DFW Pups & Trainers organization. After dinner at Joe's Crab Shack, it was time to get dressed up again for the second half of the contest. It was 109 degrees Fahrenheit outside, and unfortunately, the air conditioning was too overburdened to keep up on Saturday night in the ballroom. It was one hot night. The producers kept the same routine going and we heard speeches from the bootblacks and also from the hotwear/fantasy routines from the night before. Those who gave speeches the night before were in hotwear and fantasy routines tonight. Once again, it kept the audience on their toes. We were also blessed to hear Sir Jack, Boy Bamm-Bamm, and Ruin deliver their step-aside speeches. Made me cry... And, it ran long, as contests are wont to do. I met many of the contestants through the weekend, and I can honestly say I did not envy the judges their work. A strong field of men and women stood up and represented their communities well. In the end, Sir George took home the title of International LeatherSir 2013, Gattor went forward as the International Leatherboy 2013, and Paul proudly carried the International Community Bootblack 2013 title back to Seattle! Congratulations to everyone who represented their communities, and best wishes to the new titleholders! Off to the shuttle and the Eagle to celebrate! When that was done, I introduced Dominic, the Eastern Canada Leatherboy to a true delicacy - tamales - purchased from the nice lady outside the bar. These were exquisitely tasty, light, flavorful without being too spicy, and damn good at 1:30 am. I think they'd be good at 9am, noon, and 4pm as well. I tried to explain how to make them to Dom, but he just looked at me blankly. "Eastern Canada!" he says. "Just eat!" was my reply. He did, and we were happy. Bedtime came late that night after long conversations. Sleepytime!
Sunday - oh, Sunday. How early you arrive. How bright your sunshine and how miserably hot you are. 109 again. There was an entire day of activities at the Dallas Eagle once again, and shuttles to get you there. I haven't sweated so much since I lived in Oklahoma. Bleagh. But the people were great and the drinks were strong - so we had a fun time. Dinner came at a place called Hunky's in the gayborhood, and we stopped to pay homage at JRs in our leather afterwards. A long night of fun lay ahead, but I could not bring myself to get dressed again. The heat and humidity cooked me - I do not do well in heat. My leather title vest was heavy and wet with sweat. eeew. So I stayed in, napped, and visited with Lizzie. She's an amazing woman, and I learned so much from her this weekend. I promise there will be at least one post that comes along later to address some of our discussion. Thank you, Lizzie, for sharing your life and your weekend with us!
Monday was an easy, lazy day. Tank and Lizzie left for the airport about 11, and Luckey arranged for our transport (so I couldn't screw it up). We spend the day with Lawna Jocqui and had a really fun time. Lunch at Hunky's again (yum!) and a trip to a HUGE underwear store in the gayborhood, followed by dessert at the Black Eyed Pea with some of his family. Good times! Then it was airport time, so he dropped us off at DFW. Thank you Lawna!
Waiting on the plane, my thoughts turned to IPTC 2013 and our return to Dallas in one short month. Luckey and I will sit on the judging panel and we will get to speak our last time as the current International Puppy and Trainer before we pass the titles along to our successors. This has been an amazing year, and we're so thankful to everyone we've met along the way.
Great Job to all the good people who poured their time and their money and their sanity into moving this event to Dallas and making it a great time for everyone! I know it was hard work, and it paid off. Congratulations ILSb/ICBB team!
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