Do you have what it takes to serve your community as Northwest Master & slave 2012?

It's never too early to plan to enter the contest!

Please include contestant bios along with applications. Contestant bios should be approximately 150 words or less in length for EACH bio.

Contestant Bios will be published in the NWLC printed program booklet in the order that applications are received.

The contest will be LIMITED to no more than FOUR (4) contestant pairs so do not delay in submitting your contestant application! (UPDATE: Two (2) contestant pair applications have already been recieved as of December 2011.)

Contestant applications must be postmarked NO LATER THAN one month prior to the event.

Contact info@northwestleathercelebration.com for the NWM/s contestant info packet. Your contestant fee of $50 per contestant pair serves as your registration fee for NWLC.

(More info below.)

Northwest Master & slave

Serving the community as a very special pair of ambassadors!

The Northwest regional Master/slave contest takes place at Northwest Leather Celebration.

This contest celebrates the Master/slave dynamic by providing positive outreach to the community at large. The purpose is education - promotion of healthy leather relationships.

To qualify, contestants must have been part of their current self-identified Master/slave relationship for at least one full year. The contest is for pairs who identify as Master/slave regardless of race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.

The title holders will be expected to honor the title by helping educate the leather community as a whole about the Master/slave lifestyle. It is also expected that title holders will actively pursue fundraising for the charity of their choice as a way of giving back to the community.

The Northwest Master and slave titles are not about a particular "look," dress, body type, gender or sexual orientation. There is no required set of protocols that the winners are expected to follow. Contestants are not required to have a formal "platform." However, questions from the judges regarding any specific plans or goals the contestants might have should they win the titles are appropriate.

The Northwest Master/slave contest is one of the feeder contests to the International Master/slave contest held at South Plains Leatherfest in Dallas, Texas each February. Winners of the NWM/s contest will be expected to enter the International contest and represent the Northwest region at the South Plains Leatherfest.

The IM/s contest is organized into five regions:

A. Great Lakes
B. Northeast
C. Southeast
D. Southwest
E. Northwest (the newest region)

Contestants are Judged in Five Areas:

1) an interview with the judging panel
2) a two-minute speech (by each Master and each slave) given to a live audience
3) a brief (10 minute) educational presentation/synopsis of a seminar pertaining to M/s
4) answers to randomly selected questions given to each Master and slave on stage during the contest
5) the "M/s dynamic" observed by the judges throughout the contest weekend. (This is a subjective measure of the degree to which each competing couple models an identifiable M/s dynamic.)

Possible Points are Awarded as Follows:
- Interview with Judges (up to 150 points)
- Speech (up to 100 points)
- Presentation (up to 100 points)
- On-stage ("Pop") Question (up to 75 points)
- Master/slave Dynamic (up to 75 points)

A minimum of 70% of the possible points available are required to win, regardless of the number of contestant pairs competing.

There are seven judges. The "Olympic" scoring system is used.

The winning pair is required to post quarterly activity reports to the contest "owner" - smOdyssey, Inc., the entity which is responsible for travel fund disbursement to the title holders throughout their title year. The travel fund is disbursed quarterly. smOdyssey guarantees a minimum $3,000 annual travel fund for each year's winning pair, but because the travel fund is disbursed in quarterly increments, titleholders who serve less than a full year will not receive the entire year's travel fund.

In addition to promoting the Master/slave lifestyle and representing the Northwest region at the International Mater/slave contest, the winning pair is expected to promote Northwest Leather Celebration the hosting event for the NW Master/slave contest.

Questions? Email us at info@northwestleathercelebration.com.

Contestant applications must be postmarked NO LATER THAN one month prior to the event.

Please include contestant bios along with applications. Contestant bios should be approximately 150 words or less in length for EACH bio.

Contestant Bios will be published in the NWLC printed program booklet in the order that applications are received.

The contest will be limited to no more than four contestant PAIRS so do not delay in submitting your contestant application!

Contact info@northwestleathercelebration.com for the NWM/s contestant info packet.

FUNDRAISER FOR THE NORTHWEST Master/slave Titleholder Travel Fund

SPEED ROUND LIVE AUCTION – Sunday at NWLC in the keynote ballroom

"All Pay/Mad Scamble/Fire Drill" for the NWM/s Contestant Baskets --

This sort of auction moves quickly!  The intent is to make it possible for more people to participate and contribute to the NWM/s travel fund while getting the best possible revenue from each contestant basket. Please bring cash if at all possible.

HOW IT WORKS:

- Each auction is timed, but the participants do not know the exact timeframe (typically just 1 to 3 minutes maximum).  An impartial third party sets the timer and does not let anyone see it including the auctioneer.

- Auctioneer will solicit a bid, then solicit a "matching bid."

- The opening bid can be any amount, but a reasonably modest starting bid (such as $5) is a good way to get things moving.

- Money is collected from EACH bidder DURING the auction action. (Participants are asked to bring CASH rather than I.O.U.s, please.) Everyone who bids, pays.

- A team of bid collectors run around the room collecting money as bids are placed.

- After each matching bid, the auctioneer randomly decides the amount of the next bid to be solicited (until the timer goes off). The amount can be LOWER or higher. In fact, lower bids allow more people to contribute to the auction.

- When the timer ends the round, the person who made/matched/paid the most recent bid wins the item.

- If nobody is willing to offer a match, the unchallenged (unmatched) bidder wins the item (before the timer goes off).