On the chance the fellow who submitted a very handy and lengthy update to the Sex Listings for The Ramble in Central Park checks in here, I wanted to say I did receive it and it will be posted.

It's a handy FAQ and either Keith or I will post it on our blogs in addition to approving it as a comment in the Sex Listings. The issue I'm having with putting it in the Listings is that our programming doesn't allow for line/paragraph breaks and since it's a Q&A, I need to figure out how to make it a manageable read as it was intended and not look like a big run-on.

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks so much for this FAQ/comment and it's not been forgotten.

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Heh, thanks for the good news. That was my submission. I was wondering if y'all would appreciate it and am glad to hear it'll get posted
in some form or another once you sort out how to create a line break in your listings comments.

As a matter of fact, I'm off to the park right now..it's mostly clear tonight, meaning it's darker than usual, especally since the moon is setting tonight before midnight as well as being only a half-moon at this time.

Here's a teaser (plus I'm curious if your board format looks better with my FAQ style.)

The Ramble FAQ:

Q: Where is this "Ramble" where guys meet up & have sex?
A: The Ramble is a very, very large area of the park
bound by the East and West Drives, the 79/81 streets transverse,
and "The Boat Lake" to the south.

Q: When's a good time to go for cruising?
A: guys are cruising almost anytime the park is open,
but during the daytime there is basically no place
that's secluded enough to play without being seen by non-cruisers,
families, children, etc.
There are only 3 public restrooms within The Ramble,
and they are heavily patrolled by park employees,
and/or not laid-out very safely for playing.

OK, not bad, though I formated it with line-breaks to match my own terminal window on OS 10.

Gotta run now before it gets too late and, believe it or not, too cold!
(It's been a relatively mild summer with cool nights lately).

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Sorry for the delay in responding...I took a few days off for a change.

Glad you caught my post here. I've asked our programmer about implementing line/paragraph breaks in the Listings comments. There may be a good reason we didn't do this years ago when we converted from static html pages to a database...and I've forgotten.

We'll get it posted in some way soon. I think Keith (the Cruisemaster) may even be planning a blog post about your FAQ since you mentioned it.

Thanks again for the info and the time you took to write it out!

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Well, it may be a little time before I know if our programming can be easily altered to make this appear in the Sex Listings nice and neat. So, I'll post the FAQ here for the time being rather than have cut69freak's time and effort go to waste.

The Ramble FAQ

Q: Where is this ‘Ramble’ where guys meet up & have sex?
A: The Ramble is a very, very large area of the park bounded by the East and West Drives, the 79th/81st Streets transverse, and "The Boat Lake" to the south.

Q: When's a good time to go for cruising?
A: Guys are cruising almost anytime the park is open, but during the daytime there is basically no place that's secluded enough to play without being seen by non-cruisers, families, children, etc. There are only three public restrooms within The Ramble, and they are heavily patrolled by park employees, and/or not laid-out very safely for playing.

Q: When is the best time for sexual activity, then?
A: Anytime after the sun goes down and before the 1 am park-closing curfew begins.

Q: What kind of guys go there?
A: All kinds, types, ages and races. There are a lot of Hispanics and blacks, but plenty of other skin-colors and types, including college age hotties, older veteran sex-hounds, hustlers, drunken horny yuppies, clueless gay tourists, sometimes walking around butt-naked, and almost anything else, including the occasional straggling chick-with-dick.

Q: How safe is it?
A: There is always the risk of getting stopped, questioned, searched, ticketed, arrested, robbed, assaulted, or pick-pocketed.

Q: How often do busts occur and why?
A: The NYPD periodically and unpredictably cracks down on public sex in the park, usually as a result of robbery/assault incidents, or complaints from straights (or bitter, fun-hating homos) who have witnessed public sex taking place.

Q: Tell me more.
A: Police crackdowns are cyclical. When the police presence is low, the muggers and pickpockets get bolder.
When there are too many robberies, or public-sex complaints, the police start patrolling in their scooters more often, and/or doing undercover patrolling. This can scare away the muggers for a while, and scare away the cruisers too. Eventually, the police shift their manpower to other priorities, and the sex-play resumes, and eventually the muggers and pickpockets get bold again, and the cycle repeats all over after a few robberies/complaints.

Q: What can I do to avoid getting arrested or ticketed?
A: Do your playing when the sky is less cloudy, since the clouds reflect the bright city lighting and make it much brighter at night, and harder to play discreetly. Also, be aware of your surroundings, check out the behavior and body-language of the guys around you, and know that the NYPD uses undercover detectives working in teams to look for guys getting it on or breaking other park regulations, like drinking alcohol or doing drugs, or urinating.

Q: So where does the action take place?
A: Most of the heavy cruising takes place near ‘The Boathouse’, or on ‘The Peninsula’, and in various sections further west, including the area around ‘The Pit’.

Q: Our fearless Cruisemaster says ‘The Pit’ is heaven-on-earth...is that correct?
A: With all due respect to the Cruisemaster, losing touch with your surroundings and not paying close attention to the comings and goings around you (i.e. letting your guard down) is a great way to get busted for public indecency or at least disorderly conduct. If you're going to play in ‘The Pit’, do so when it's a dark cloudless night, and pause whenever one or more new guys comes into the immediate area. Most undercover cops work in pairs with extras lurking nearby for backup, so you need to keep and eye on other guys' actions and body-language and follow your instincts. Better to be safe than sorry.

Q: Exactly where is ‘The Pit’?
A: There are several (four to five) different active locations that meet the Cruisemaster's description, but he's probably talking about the location in the very heart of The Ramble at the center of a very large rock outcropping, and the entrance is near that small stream and brook with the short wooden bridge. The other entrance is north of said rocks, on higher elevation.

Q: Is ‘The Pit’ all that?
A: Any group activity poses the highest risk for getting caught, but ironically, due to strength-in-numbers, the lowest risk for getting robbed. Of course, getting your wallet lifted can happen at any time, so bring the barest minimum of government-issue picture ID, and enough money to make a mugger or hustler happy.

Q: How do guys connect other than in the group scenes?
A: Guys sit on benches, walk around, follow each-other, make eye contact, similar to cruising at any indoor sex party or business, minus the cubicles and stalls of course.

Q: What about the mosquitoes and raccoons?
A: Use mosquito repellent in the summer or you'll get eaten alive. The raccoons are plentiful and not afraid of humans, but they will boldly go after any food, and it's not a good idea to feed them unless you want to risk getting some nasty scratches...they have incredibly sharp claws and teeth.

Q: Any other areas near The Ramble where action takes place?
A: A lot of cruising and activity takes place just west of The Ramble, in the area between the 81st Street transverse and Central Park West.

Q: What else do I need to know?
A: Ever since Rudy Giuliani was mayor, the Parks Department, Central Park Conservancy, and the NYPD have been slowly and inexorably cracking down on sex and cruising in this great park. More and more hetero couples, groups and families are staying later and later in The Ramble, and this summer I have never seen so many straight couples boldly walking through The Ramble at night. Park employees have been doing a lot of landscaping, with the advice of the NYPD (and those pesky, omnipresent, self-hating, anti-sex homos), and making it harder and harder to carry on, by removing shrubbery and pruning trees. Leaving trash, like used condoms, wrappers, tissues, etc., only makes it worse for all of us cruisers, so please clean up after yourself and take trash to a proper receptacle. Show some respect for this amazingly beautiful park and please don’t litter!

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