D.C. to Trade Frigid Weather for Tight Leather

Warmer weather and lots of chaps are on their way to the nation's capital, with the Mid-Atlantic Leather Weekend touching down January 17.

The four-day event actually begins with a bar night at the D.C. Eagle on Thursday night, January 16. The next day the party really starts with nonstop parties — including a dungeon blow-out and a "puppy mosh" — BDSM demonstrations, and the Mr. Mid-Atlantic Leather contest. Judges for the contest include Bryce Caine, last year's winner, Mr. International Leather 2013 Andy Cross, and Joan Norry, American Leatherwoman 2008.

The origins of the event began in New York in 1976 when Glenn Pitcher of the Links Motorcycle Club threw an intimate party for friends at the Waldorf-Astoria and all the attendees showed up in leather. There was some snafu with body jewelry (read the MAL's history page for more info) and honoring that painful party foul became a tradition as the event migrated to other cities on the East Coast, like Philadelphia and D.C.