Kinky
leather folk headed south for the winter to attend South
Plains Leatherfest 2004 in Dallas, Texas, February
27-29. This weekend event is popular for all segments of the
BDSM community because of its diverse offerings. Two popular
contests, the regional South Plains Leather Contest and the
International Master and slave Contest were presented to standing
room only audiences.
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| group
(l-r) slave Nadine presenting 2004 slave emblem to slaveboy
tony; Master Z with Master emblem; slave kimmie, Mistress
Constance, Master Bert |
Leather
contests have roots in the gay community and have been held
for decades in America. In recent years, all segments of the
BDSM community have embraced the concept. Leather titleholders
tend to be role models in their community. The South Plains
contests were scored using Olympic Scoring System (high and
low scores tossed out in each category; then remaining scores
combined to make a composite
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| Mera
Harned, Ms. South Plains Leather, and Randall Kinnear, Mr.
South Plains Leather |
total).
The person with the most points over 70% of 400 points wins.
Competition includes individual interviews in front of a panel
of seven judges, timed public speeches, and on-stage pop-questions.
Contestants gather donations from their community to
assemble
"baskets," which are auctioned and the proceeds used as a travel
fund for the winner to attend conferences during the upcoming
year. Basket goodies range from dungeon equipment to kinky toys
to artwork and food. (For more information on leather contests
see The
Leather Journal.
At a crowded and smoky Dallas
Eagle on Friday night, Randall Kinnear and Mera
Harned
won the Mr. and Ms. South Plains Leather titles. Emcees Graylin
Thornton and Glenda
Rider kept the banter spirited and the action fast-paced.
Contestants appeared in leather dress clothes and club wear.
All contestants answered a pop-question on-stage and gave a
short speech on their platform topic to the audience.
Mera, from Oklahoma City,
has been in the lifestyle for about five years and is active
in NLA-OKC
(National Leather Association-Oklahoma City) and LAM
(Leather Archives and Museum). A vivacious, outgoing
woman, Mera was overwhelmed by the support she received. She
tearfully related, "I have been so blessed this weekend, I'm
amazed at the amount of love and support I've gotten. This has
been the most amazing journey. I've had the support of the Dallas
community, my poly family; the whole community from Oklahoma
City came this weekend, it touched me so much." Mera will compete
for Ms.
World Leather in August. Her platform will be leather
pride and historical archives.
Randall
Kinnear, winner of Mr. South Plains Leather, strives
to "give a better quality of
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|
slaveboy
tony and Master Z, International Master/slave 2004
|
life to people." To that
end, he has raised over $60,000 for AIDS and gay/lesbian/transgendered-related
charities. A former Gulf Coast Drummer, Randall believes "titleholders
should work for their community and not just look good in a
sash." Randall advises, "Don't take yourself too seriously.
I can laugh at myself." Randall will compete at IML,
International Mister Leather in Chicago at the end of
May.
The International Master
and slave Contest was held Saturday evening at the host hotel.IM/s
is an educational title, and the titleholders must "communicate
clearly and effectively what it means to them to live and identify
as Master and slave." Three couples from regional groups competed
for this honor. Contestants for IM/s come from four active feeder
contests (one region will hold its first title contest this
summer). Master Steve Sampson, a IM/s
judge, was "honored by the quality of the contestants
this year."
Each M/s couple presented prepared remarks. Winners Master
Z and slaveboy tony told the audience what a M/s relationship
means to them. Master Z, Ron Zimmerman from Arlington, Texas,
is co-chair of NLA-Dallas.
Master Z is proud to have been mentored by Master
Dean Walradt, who passed away December 2003. Master
Z believes that a M/s relationship must have "three elements:
respect, trust, love if a relationship has a prayer of making
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|
Master
Rickford and slave kimmie,
Southeast Master and slave 2004
|
it." slaveboy tony explained
that, for him, being a slave means "purity and simplicity in
service (to achieve) obedience and harmony in the household."
The obvious strength of their M/s relationship contributed to
Master Z and slaveboy tony being awarded the title of International
Master and slave Contest 2004. "Our strong point was one year
of preparation. We attended all the feeder contests and won
the 2004
Southwest regional M/s feeder contest," explained Master
Z. He wants to make the title truly international by representing
IM/s at feeder contests in England, Germany, Mexico, and Canada.
Other contestants, Mistress
Constance and slave drew from Louisville, Kentucky, spoke on
service as a calling. This Master/slave couple represented the
Great
Lakes Leather Alliance. Master Rickford and slave kimmie
presented on relationship communication. They are
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Miss
Constance and Drew of Louisville, Kentucky
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Southeast
Master and slave 2004.
IM/s 2003 Master Bert
and slave Nadine gave a heartfelt
farewell speech, handing over their title to Master Z and slaveboy
tony. SPLF had something for everyone. The leather/SM track
featured over a dozen sessions on creative scenes. The Master/slave
track covered philosophy and relationships. One could get boots
polished at the bootblack station, listen to Joseph
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|
Master
Bert and slave Nadine, M/s 2003
|
Bean at breakfast, cavort
with a mosh pit of human pups, bid on silent auction items, meet
a favorite kinky author, meditate in the morning, spend money
with the vendors, attend a reception, join other bois and girls,
and, of course, go to a dungeon!
Some of the more interesting classes covered such topics as Body
Punching and Bruising, Advanced Bloodsports, and Race Play. One
of the more lively discussions took place during the Panel led
by Mark
Frazier and Midori, titled "Beyond SSC: Consensual Non
Consent." Many people there voiced their objection to playing
in private using the SSC model, especially with experienced participants.
There was a general thought among many participants that SSC can
dilute BDSM for the experienced edge players.
Mark Frazier, Master
Jim Glass, and slave
marsha, are Owners and Producers of South
Plains Leatherfest.
