Vancouver, BC –- Now that my boy Chris is back in the fold, I figured it was time to head up to Vancouver and check out the scene. It had been several years since I was last back in this beautiful city and I've been reminded of how much I enjoy my time here. Chris is an amazing boy and finds a surprising amount of joy in making me feel comfortable and relaxed. And the leather/Sm community here, while not as large or cohesive as the one I experienced in Toronto, is just as friendly and welcoming.
Chris is also quite an activist and organizer, although he prefers to work well behind the scenes and rarely takes the stage. While chatting with folks in the area he discovered there was some interest in having me perform a demo during my visit. Because he knows how much pleasure I get from sharing my passion rope bondage with people, Chris worked to pull together an event to make it happen. He worked with the guys at the Pumpjack Pub, Vancouver's local leather/Levi bar, to secure the venue and we were rolling. We contacted our friends at Priape and they agreed to add a $50 gift certificate and a bunch of jockstraps to the GayVN nominated DVDs (Home Invasion and Folsom Undercover) I brought up to auction off, and we had a fundraiser last night.
We did the demo in two sets. For the first set, I pulled three boys from the audience (including my own) and performed some floor rigging. We did the quick arm binder that I'm so fond of, the fast upper body harness and a straight arm binder. I love fast rope work. It helps remove the stigma rope bondage has of being slow, tedious and too complicated. It also gives me a great opportunity to talk about safety and risk mitigation. The second set included a partial/full suspension scene with one of the exceptionally sexy bartenders at the Pumpjack. Glenn was a good sport and tremendous fun to play with on stage and off. There was a wonderful exchange of energy between us the entire night. He had never been in suspension before, so I rigged a partial suspension scene with him for the audience of patrons.
Side Bar: Glenn has one of those body types that I just lust over; masculine, fit and athletic but not overly ripped. You could tell he takes care of himself more like the guys I would hang with in the Corps than the circuit queens all strung out on drugs. He is simply beautiful.
The partial suspension was created using an upper body harness with support line and simple ankle cuff from a single point. Glenn responded to the rigging in exactly the way that demonstrates why I love this minimal introduction to suspension scenes. He tested himself in the rope, then kicked up his leg and crossed his free foot over the one bond in the rigging creating a full suspension... just like I did the first time I was introduced to suspension as a bottom. You can always identify potential in a rope bondage bottom if this is their reaction.
After the second set, we auctioned off the DVDs and Priape Gift Certificate. All of the proceeds went to benefit the GLBT Centre Vancouver's Bute Street Clinic. My personal thanks go out to Titan Media for providing the DVDs and to the folks at Priape for stepping up.
Throughout the evening I got the chance to connect with old friends, meet new friends into rigging and make contacts that might lead to some teaching opportunities in the future. Thanks for making all that happen, boy. I had a blast.
In closing, I want to thank the Pumpjack. The space was excellent and the staff, especially Chad the Assistant Manager who made the night run so smoothly, was great. If you guys ever want to do something similar, just ask and I'm on board.
