AirmaxUK

I've been to a few CumUnion events in the UK in the last couple of years. I haven't been to Torquay, but I did do Sheffield and Northwich. Neither did anything special to promote it or make any effort with the venue - it was just a regular evening at the sauna - if you hadn't seen it on the CumUnion website you wouldn't have known. I hope Torquay will be different - would be interesting to hear how it goes. I really miss the CumUnion event in London which was amazing.

I went along to this for the first time. I haven't been to the LC before and things seemed to align - a cheap hotel room nearby (Zedwell) - and a party that people have recommended. If you've not been to the LC then it's a similar deal to Bunker or Underground Club, but larger, cleaner and better maintained. There's a bar and bathrooms on the ground floor, and stairs down to the basement - which looked to be to be about 2.5x bigger. The basement has an outdoor smoking patio and lot of dark corners to play in - a couple of well set up slings and other bits of equipment. Rawhide is a dress code event - black leather black rubber and boots. I was worried it might be full of twinky guys in puppy masks but it wasn't and the crowd reminded me of Backstreet, but with a much friendlier atmosphere. It has a really nice vibe to it. Plenty of fun to be had - I started out in the darker area to build some confidence and tried to get some group fun going by playing with one guy and then as others draw close involving them in the fun too. It was dark so I didn't really pay much attention to who or count how many - just got lost in the moment, I guess. Highlight was one of the younger guys in leather harness who cornered me. I hadn't paid him much attention because I usually end up playing with older and more bearish guys. I'd seen him getting fucked earlier on by a couple of leather guys, so assumed he was a bottom. But no... after some initial exploration he said the magic words - "Get in the sling, I wanna fuck you". I didn't need to be told twice! I hopped in and I was wearing a butt plug to keep my hole a bit stretched and keep any loads inside. He pulls it out - and then makes a show of licking it and then sucking on it. Looks like he's my kind of pig! After he's done I proffer to hold it so he has his hands free, but he has other ideas, and pops it in his own hole for safekeeping. Next he gets up to speed with fucking and he's not gentle at all. I'm encouraging him to dig harder and deeper. The scaffold supporting the sling is shaking and creaking with our momentum. He doesn't take long to nut - and when he does he stays inside a moment. When we regain our breath and composure he extracts my plug from his hole and uses it to plug mine and seal his cum inside - as he pushes it in, I can feel it's slick with whatever cum and juices it picked up from his hole. So lots of cock, but only one load - although I like to think sharing that plug meant I got more than a few second hand ones 😉

If the Chiltern Rail trains are running I may well be going to SOP that weekend. Always up for meets.

Agree, and I'd add that playing sober means both will remember the experience and all its little details and nuances. You always remember your first. If he's inexperienced then take some time to explore each other's bodies. You mentioned rimming already which is an awesome way to get a hole hungry... It wasn't until a good while after my first time that I discovered how sensitive my nipples are, and giving them a twist or pinch also works wonders in unlocking the back door. Not sure if we are allowed to mention poppers in this part of the forum, but if not, then moderators please remove this part: they are useful in moderation in these situations but I'd only suggest as a last resort if things aren't opening up and relaxing enough.

It's a parasitic infection of the intestine. Can take a long while to clear without treatment. I believe some guys can carry it unknowingly without symptoms. You generally are mostly at risk from rimming and sucking a cock that has been inside someone's hole. If you're really unlucky you can have ongoing symptoms long after the parasite has cleared. When I caught it in Laboratory, I ended up being prescribed Metronidazole (had to go private, as NHS couldn't help) to nuke my gut biome. That worked but it was a long time before I was anywhere near normal and could 'trust my gut'.

Sauna or Club/Backroom for sure. Often get better quality (eg more actual loads) on quieter times.

Near miss for my bucket list the other day: waiting room of the sexual health clinic in a provincial area of the UK, several guys waiting. Everyone was terribly British and staring at their phones trying not to notice one another. I played the Grindr notification noise loud on my phone to see what the reaction of the others would be, but it happened just as the nurse walked through - she stopped in her tracks and said "I know that noise and this it isn't appropriate behaviour for here". The guy opposite blushed and said 'Oh, sorry' and shot me a cheeky glance. I got called in then, and when I came out he'd gone. Almost but not quite... Anyone done it in a sexual health clinic?

Many thanks - now I can get my jock repaired! (Don't ask...)

Just noticed that Rubberbob's website is down: [think before following links] https://www.bobsrubberwear.co.uk Anyone know if this is temporary or permanent and what's going on? Thx

Yes - if you went, do give us a report.

There are plenty of events that are more friendly and welcoming to all. They tend to be the smaller events and venues that have a following. Bigger more commercial events tend to be the ones that are less welcoming. For them it's all about creating a perception or image that attracts the masses. That's commercial marketing for you... Smaller events and venues have a more loyal following and are defined more by the people that go there and survive on recommendation and word of mouth. While most events at central station fall into this category, horse fair is an exception as it is run by the people behind SBN/NBN. I would cast your net wider and try some of the smaller events at places like CS Underground, Bunker and Lord Clyde. The smaller saunas are also a lot more friendly and accepting than the big city centre ones. When I'm in Berlin, For much the same reason and logic, I'll always look for smaller events and avoid things like BLF, Folsom, Hustlaball and Snax.

That sucks. As a community, we are our own worst enemies when it comes to acceptance and inclusion. the people running these events are no saints in this regard. I was also put off the London Horse Fair, because on the website, I saw that you had to contact the organiser first if you hadn't attended before to be vetted as they only want 'hot' guys to attend. I remember going to a sportskit party at The Hoist in its last days where they had wrestling in pools filled with gunge. They were asking for volunteers, so I stepped up, only to be told - by the guy holding the microphone - thanks but we'll let the hot guys go first and you might get a go if there's time at the end. I left and never went back. The guy on the entrance of the Sauna in Waterloo that looked me up and down and said "save yer money, love, nobody in here will touch you." These experiences are hurtful and cutting at the time - play to our anxieties - and I certainly wont' forget them. Over time though, it does make me more determined to overcome these prejudices. Confidence is sexy, and if you can pull that off, you can have as much fun as you want. It just takes a while to get there.

Sweaty but if there's a stink it's gotta be a 'fresh' stink from recent exertion, not stale. Definitely no deodorant or aftershave!

+1 for sock swapping, and I'll add sneakers too, but they gotta be worn/used and not new looking. Beaters are perfect and guys usually don't mind letting them go. I have a buddy who's also into motorcycles and gear. We occasionally go for a long ride and make regular stops in secluded spots to swap an item of gear - gloves, helmet, socks, boots, leathers, jacket, and then lastly, we swap bikes so eventually it's a complete swap of everything. In the summer the gear gets very sweaty and it's deeply impregnated with pheromones. eBay, Vinted and the like can be good sources of worn used gear, but you have to be very lucky not to get something that smells of Febreeze or the generic 'charity shop' smell. It has to be fairly fresh to be good.

A couple of guys I follow on here have recently been commenting on large number of images - often just things like "Wow" "Yeah" etc... Can I turn off notifications to comments left on images, while retaining notifications of posts and replies to posts? I don't want to unfollow the individuals, but equally logging into 100+ notifications and only three or four are useful is somewhat annoying. Thanks A

I had that problem earlier this year - tons of engineering works and no Sunday trains, so I kinda got out of the routine. That's all over now, though.

Anyone planning to be at SOP this weekend? I haven't been in a while and a visit is overdue. Always great to meet guys from BZ in person.

Reminds me of a lifetime ago in the 90's I used to go to a gay pub in Ealing that was next to a graveyard - It was common for guys to have a few to drink in the pub and head next door for some cruising - that was until someone's body was found there - beaten and stabbed, if I recall. After that - not so much. There's lots of little things that make me think gay life peaked and we're headed back to where we were. I've experienced three physical incidents since Covid - and that's not counting any of verbal stuff or even everyday passive-aggressive resistance which seems to be on the rise.

In the past, I always felt safe at Tiergarten - had loads of fun there and never any trouble. There's usually a decent number of guys there - so safety in numbers... until someone scares everyone away and they can pick on individuals. Got me thinking back to the 90's - didn't we have 'Pink Angels' or something to help with this sort of thing?

Initially it was quite busy - I was hopeful - then when the noise started it got quiet real quick. Like me, I guessed people left the area to go home or try again later. When I circled back a bit later it was very quiet - which in hindsight should have been a red flag.

A few days have passed. Lots of G&T have been consumed. And a good night at Bull tonight. I'm getting back to normal...

Berlin is often seen as a paradise because of the culture, clubs, bars, and big events like BLF, Folsom, CSD, and Hustlaball this last weekend. It has a dark side too... Last Monday I was at a loose end in the evening and since there was nothing interesting on at the clubs and bars, I decided to go cruise the park at Tiergarten and had just arrived there when I heard loud voices from over near the ping pong tables. I didn't understand what was being said but you could tell it really wasn't friendly. I figured it was maybe some drunks or something and circled away from the area for a bit. After 15-20 minutes I cautiously headed back toward the cruising area, listening carefully, and could hear no more shouting. Then, suddenly, someone turned on a bright torch and was shining it at me and shouted 'hey hey'. I decided to exit to the nearest road and walked up a path to Altonauer Strasse. As I did, I was aware someone was behind me and closing in which made me really uncomfortable. I side stepped and stopped suddenly ready to confront him, but the guy hurriedly carried on past me up the path to the street. I figured he too was making a quick exit. I left a distance and walked up to the street, where he was stood still, playing with his phone. I walked past him trying to keep a distance to avoid him but he spoke to me and said something which again I didn't understand. I walked off feeling safer being on a brightly lit street. I must've only got a few steps away when a car pulled up sharp just ahead of me and two guys got out - obviously very angry. There was a confrontation - one held me so I couldn't get away. When they realized I don't speak German they switched to broken English - "I will kill you for what you did. I have a gun and I will shoot you dead right now. Admit what you did to him." He was pointing at the guy with the phone I passed moments before. Over and over with shouting, pushing, shoving and hitting. I got an opportunity to break free and ran into the road - figuring maybe someone would stop and help - or at least see what was happening. As luck would have it, the traffic lights had changed - so there was no traffic! The guys came for me again and this time he hit me hard at my temple. I went down and one of them - maybe it was the phone guy - was shouting leave him, leave him, go, go so they got back into their car and left me stumbling in the road toward siegesaule. I was in shock and my mind was all over the place. Somehow it then occurred to me to grab my phone and dial 112 - which I started to do -- but being in shock I struggled and fumbled around with it. Their car sped past me and then they must've seen the phone in my hand as it stopped abruptly and the door opened and they guy was screaming something about 'take a fucking picture'. At this point the traffic lights must've changed and the general traffic caught up to us - the car sped off again. Shaking, I walked in the bus lane and was waving at passing taxi's to try and get one to stop. None did. I spotted a bus stop where there was some people stood and I headed that way. I sat in the shelter and the people there were trying their best to ignore me. A bus came and I rode a few stops to get some distance between me and Tiergarten. No permanent physical damage - bruising, swelling, and a jaw that hurts to open wide. Mentally, it may take a time for me to be as comfortable as I was walking alone at night in the city. I went to Maneo/Man-o-meter today to report the incident as they encourage reports on this kind of thing. The guys there were sympathetic but said this kind of thing is happening more and more frequently. Reflecting on it, my initial reaction was 'I am being robbed' but they guys made no attempt to take anything. Honestly they could have beaten me a lot worse. I think this was done to scare and intimidate. I think it was a team with 'phone guy' marking me and tipping them off. I'm not here to say 'Don't go cruising in Tiergarten, it's too dangerous' - that way they are the ones who win. It does seem everyone I talked to who cruises has an 'I was attacked at Tiergarten' story. I think I'd become too comfortable with Berlin and my guard was down too far. Just be aware that this sort of thing is on the increase. Don't go alone. And if it seems a bit suspect or someone's behaviors is a bit off - err on the side of caution. I realize I am no longer young enough to outrun trouble - so risk has to be managed accordingly. There are plenty of safe places to cruise in Berlin, like Lab, Scheune, Bull, Woof, New Action to name a few. Sorry this is long and rambling but it has been somewhat therapeutic to write it down and get it out of my head. I just hope someone is more careful as a result of reading it and avoids trouble themselves.

Anyone up for pre-party drinks? Staying at the Riu.

Yes. People who're wasted cause problems for the venue staff and spoil the vibe for everyone else.

I believe that in the UK connecting anything like a douche to the water supply is against the water regulations. This is because if the water supply fails, then water could be drawn from the douche into the water supply contaminating it. For similar reasons a shower head on a hose shouldn't be able to reach the bath because in a fault condition bathwater could be drawn back into it causing contamination. Standard non-return valves are only for up to category 3 use and a douche (or ablutionary shower) is category 5 due to the nature of contamination. Of course, in many private households this may not be the case, as householder will make changes unaware of the regulations, but with businesses that deal with the public - their insurers are all over this stuff to limit liability. [think before following links] https://www.waterregsuk.co.uk/news/newsletter/categories/installer_news/dont_be_a_douche_about_hand_showers/