Los Angeles was the target of the 5th gathering of the rubber tribe for West Coast Rubber during the North American Labour Day long weekend. By proclamation of the organizers and the veterans, this year’s event marathon was the best one yet with non-stop gear action from Friday to Monday.
Friday night we headed to the LA Eagle for the first night of the West Coast Rubber competition weekend. The bar was busy with a good turnout of rubbermen. Weekend package pickup was available, there was a gear swap, and the guys from RubberZone were doing a collectible-card swap game based on user profiles for which there were draws and prizes. We had the opportunity to meet many new guys, visit with some old friends, and meet the 3 competitors for the Mr. West Coast Rubber title.
Saturday afternoon we headed to the Syren/Stockroom WCR Reception at their store on Sunset Blvd. We got to peruse through the store, tour the manufacturing facilities and warehouse, and enjoyed beverages and food in their reception room while watching vac-bed demos. Our hosts were very gracious; they seemed happy to have us for the early afternoon.
After that we all immediately moved over to the Eagle again for the Slime Pit and BBQ. Fun was had by all, with another great turnout of guys. I was able to do shameless promotion for the Rubbout 19 Event taking place in Vancouver in April 2010…the devil ducks and beachballs were a big hit!
Our crew headed back to Culver City to prepare for the Play Party which started at 9pm at a dungeon space in Burbank. Once rubberized, we set off to an aupicious address somewhere deep in North Hollywood. As soon as we checked in and walked into the playspace, we knew this was going to be a great event; lots of sexy rubbermen, sexy electronic dungeon music and lots of great energy!
The night just seemed to fly by; there were lots of hard-core activities going on in the theme rooms, a complimentary bar and social space, and lots of hot guys cruising each other! More antics ensued, and all too soon it was time to wrap things up and head home.
Sunday morning, we only had a few hours to prep as the Mr. West Coast Rubber competition started at Oilcan Harry’s at noon. The event proceeded with a nice pace, lots of light humour and quick competition rounds, a great fantasy round performed by the competitors, and a very savvy and experienced judging panel comprising of three previous Mr. WCRs, Mr. International Rubber, and Mr. American Leather. L8xdad did a fantastic job as Master of Ceremonies.
As stated on the West Coast Rubber website, props go out to Rubberboi and Rubrluvr, the 2nd and 1st runners up. These guys were awesome in their gear! Congratulations to Jeffrey Moline, the judges pick for Mr West Coast Rubber 2009 and the gear guy who will go on to represent the West Coast at MIR in November.
After the competition we headed to the Victory Dinner at a restaurant near the LA Eagle on Santa Monica Blvd. It was a great way to end the day as we had the entire courtyard part of the restaurant to ourselves where we could all relax and have some great food and conversation.
On Monday, remnants of the tribe descended upon a theater in Silverlake to watch the eerily-appropriate Inglorious Basterds in gear. In the evening, there was a Labour Day Get Your Gear On BBQ and Bust at the Bullet Bar.
A huge shout-out must go out to L8xDad and L8xBoy for putting on another amazing event. You know from talking to these two amazing guys that this is a labour of love for them. From what I heard from all the vets, this was the best-run and best-attended WCR weekend event since its inception, so we’re riding the crest of a Pacific wave to an even better time next year!
Super review! Looks like you had a good time!
Oh, to have been a fly on the wall!