[infopop]

As I was editing and publishing reviews for the Sex Listings there was one I published last week that I want to share with y'all here. I think it's a good jumping off point for discussion.

This is from a review of action, or the lack of it, at George Mason University in Northern Virginia. The original post is from Cloud9, a recently-joined CFS member, and my response is in italics:

Campus public ground is not safe for action. There are cameras everywhere and the police force is increasing. It is safe if you contact first then go to their dorm but that's not cruising anymore.

IMHO, cruising is any way you meet unplanned in a public or semi-public place and then have sex. Picking someone up in a bar might not be exactly the same, but it would still be a cruise bar.

When I lived in the DC area many years ago I remember meeting guys on the Metro, walking around a neighborhood, even in the Safeway. There was also "P Street Beach" and many other parks and toilets, not to mention sexclubs or backrooms or whatever.

Of course they were strangers and of course in many situations you had to take it somewhere else. You couldn't fuck someone in the Produce Department, after all. It all happened in the moment with that "knowing look" or the guy who turned around and looked back at you when you also turned around and looked at him.

Perhaps definitions are changing in this Age of Apps, but any sort of non-virtual unplanned sexual thing that starts person to person in some specific place is a cruisy place to me. ~ Editor

So what do you think? What's your opinion? Please share your thoughts about "What Is Cruising?" and how it may have evolved here. Any reviews of GMU should go on that page.

Thanks! ~ Bob

[KewlDewd66]

Cruising FOR sex is just what the word says: Cruising FOR it - not necessarily having it right there and right now.

Some cruising spots are well-suited for a quick romp in the hay with the like-minded guy. There is a reasonable expectation of privacy there if not absolute or maybe even legal terms but pretty much so in practical terms. Privacy in cruising for sex does not mean that you and your mate will always be alone. It simply means that the other dudes who may show up are looking for the same/similar piece of action. Sometimes, they'll just watch. Sometimes, they'll join in, and at other times, they'll just move on, hoping to score with someone else sooner rather than later.

We survive and thrive because we adapt ourselves to the given circumstances. Nope, you are not going to expect that a dude will go on his knees before you at the Safeway Fresh Produce at Market@Chrch in SF. But, sure, you can hook up, and attend to the business at hand at your place, at his place or any other place that offers a reasonable expectation of privacy in practical terms.

It is true that we live in the times of instant gratification. We all want it here and now, but we all know that this is not always an option. This does not invalidate the idea that you ARE cruising for sex at public places.

My str8 buddies hit the bars, hoping to meet an available and willing girl for some fun between the sheets. They, too, are cruising for sex. It is not that much different with the gay guys.

Things have been always changing. Even at those cruising grounds where the guys used to have no problems with engaging in full anal sex, a few guys choose not to go this far. Dudes check the vibe, view the goods, and agree to go and get the room somewhere for a longer, more complex action than just your daily, quick BJ. You want to have some basic comfort. You may want to shower together, and some dudes may also want to be undisturbed by the presence of other, usually gawking cruisers.

It is only both fair and smart to point out to the fellow cruisers that specific cruising grounds are NOT suited for any action on the spot. No one really wants any trouble with the law. And frankly, a quick romp with a dude you have just bumped into may not be worth taking any serious risk of further complications that involve police, authorities, etc.

KD

[infopop]

Agreed. And for the Sex Listings, we absolutely want to know about places that are unsafe, or where one might be arrested or harassed by police whether for having sex or simply for being there, or places that are closed, or are simply undesirable for the reviewer, or are totally devoid of any possibilities of cruising.

In this particular case, my opinion remains that GMU could be cruisy, just as many college campuses are. Young men, straight or gay or whatever, are interested in and looking for sex.

[Mojavebottom]

Agreed. The idea of cruising focused on making contact with intent. As to the actual execution of the deed that is up to circumstances. I cruise a lot and have a low intensity gaydar beacon on to draw the guys who are looking to connect. The key is not to get cornered in to a situation where cross signals equal a violent reaction. There are, and always have been places where guys know why guys are loitering with intent. The word gets out and more sophisticated cruisers both straight and gay can sniff out a honey pot of potential action. Once signals match the action can happen anywhere if mutually agreed.