First, some interesting statistics from the survey, which was taken by 118 people:
- 50% are first-time attendees; 30% have been to more than three Bound In Boston cons!
- 46% of attendees consider themselves "always or usually the top," 32% consider themselves "always or usually the bottom," and 22% consider themselves to be equally top- and bottom-oriented.
Overall, the comments about the con are very positive (*whew*!). The things that came up consistently in the survey were:
* Many people were disappointed that they couldn't come to the party because the tickets sold out. I intentionally kept the party attendance limited to keep the space from being overcrowded, and I think it worked well. The con itself sold out, too, and we had almost 300 people in attendance during the days. If only half of those people came to the party, that would have been way too many people. If anyone knows of a 2500+ sq. ft. kink-friendly space that's an easy drive from Norwood, I'm certainly open to suggestions. (For reference, the large con classroom spaces are 1700 sq. ft. each)
* Some people expressed disappointment that the suspension classes were demonstrations rather than hands-on classes. This is the first con that we've had any suspension classes, so it was a bit of an experiment. There's really no way we can have enough space, equipment, and riggers and TA's that we can hold a suspension class that'd accomodate 50 or more people, so if we're going to have more suspension workshops in the future, they'll probably be demonstrations.
* I was surprised to read more than a few survey responses that actually used the term "
separation anxiety" in reference to the fact that the use of cell phones is prohibited in the con space! That policy is in place to protect everyone's privacy.
* The single most common complaint was that the layout of the con rooms was confusing and it was hard to find the classrooms. I agree! I walked the con space dozens of times before and during the weekend, and I was still getting disoriented on Sunday afternoon because everything looked the same no matter what door you came out of. Next time, better signs in the hallways!
* You all expressed a desire to see more TA's in the classes. I'd love to see that, too. The trouble is that the people who'd be best qualified to be TA's want to be in classes, learning! I'm open to suggestions on this one.
Upcoming: our next con will be the weekend of March 24 and 25, 2012. Make sure you're on the Bound In Boston mailing list (
http://www.boundinboston.com/mailinglist_ymlp.aspx), the Bound In Boston FetLife group (
https://fetlife.com/groups/3133), and the Bound In Boston Twitter feed (
http://www.twitter.com/boundinboston) to find out when tickets go on sale.
Also upcoming: if you want to dive more into rope, here's a great event that's coming up in a couple of weeks. It's not at all affiliated with Bound In Boston, but I'll be there and I think it's going to be very excellent. Lew Rubens (amazingly creative world-class rigger) is putting on a two-day intensive hands-on event that takes participants from beginning rope bondage through intensive floor work and on to suspension. This is your opportunity to learn rope bondage from one of the best! It's happening the weekend of Oct 22, in Meriden, CT. More info is here:
https://fetlife.com/events/69999
So, that's the news from Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are blissfully unaware of what depraved perverts their parents are. As usual, stay tuned for update regarding future events!
Matthew