It’s that time of year again. MAL aka Mid Atlantic Leather weekend is this weekend. This will be my 12th MAL. I’ve been asked many times which event is my favorite. I always say “Whichever one is next” because each Kink Event I’ve been to (IML, MAL, MIR, CLAW, Folsom, Dore… what am I forgetting?) offers something a bit different than the others.
Some of the words I would use to describe MAL would be…. social, outgoing, playful, very little or no “high school clicks”, BDSM/Fetish Oriented and Enlightening.
Enlightening because this is The PERFECT First Kink Event for a “Newbie”. It’s a smaller event with a less people than say IML or Folsom so it’s not as overwhelming for guys just getting into the scene. MAL brings out men who are primarily there for Fetish and BDSM experiences …. unlike some other events where the local gay boys have put on a piece of leather for the day and infiltrate the Kink Event to gawk at the men in fetish gear. They hope find out where the sex is happening at. While, they might find the vanilla orgy they came for, they’re more likely to unknowingly walk into a hotel room to find a guy getting flogged, zapped, sleepsack’d or layered in rubber … and then run screaming (clutching their pearls) to the local bathhouse.
The ones that don’t go running from those experiences are the first ones to ask “When’s the next Kink Event???”. Those are they guys whose worlds have opened up. They realize that it truly is okay to have these interests and that they are NOT alone. Not one bit.
Anyways, I hope to see many of you there. We’re driving out from Chicago tomorrow morning. Safe travels to all.
-Ruff