New king bear to be crowned
The Mr Harbour City Bear contest is on this Saturday night, with a slight venue change proving no problem to event organisers.
“We’ve had to change the venue slightly because the Exchange Hotel is undergoing some refurbishments, so they’ve moved us upstairs one floor to the Vegas Lounge,” HCB volunteer coordinator Marcus Pastorelli said.
“We’re still in the same building, just upstairs. Not a dramatic change by any means.”
The competition is open to any HCB member. Members can nominate themselves or be nominated by a friend. Applications close on May 19, two days before the event.
“We’ve got a nice range of competitors so far. They’re quite diverse, so it’ll make judging an interesting process,” Pastorelli said.
Hosted by Joyce Maynge, this year’s judges include Star Observer CEO Scott Abrahams and Matt Akersten from SameSame. They’ll be taking their roles very seriously, as the winning Bear will be awarded a cash prize and a return airfare to Melbourne to compete for the title of Mr Australasia Bear on June 18.
“It’s quite a competitive contest. It’s a lot of fun, but there’s a serious side because the winner goes on to compete in Melbourne, and the winner of that competition has further opportunities to compete,” Pastorelli said.
“Our most successful winner, Jason Lee in 2009, went on to win the Great British Bear Bash in Manchester. There’s a lot to be won, and there’s a lot at stake for the winner.”
Lee and last year’s winner Justin Hyde will be in attendance on the night, but all eyes will be on the fresh batch of Bears on stage.
The contestants will compete in three separate heats, each with a different costumed theme: Beach Bear Wear comes first because, as Pastorelli noted, “the people who come along want to see a bit of flesh”. The second heat is Bear Wear, where contestants are free to make their own interpretation of the term and explain their chosen outfits to the audience.
Finally, Bears will don their preferred fetish wear and field a final round of questions from the judging panel before Mr Harbour City Bear 2011 is crowned.
info: Mr Harbour City Bear is at Vegas Lounge Exchange Hotel, Oxford St, 9pm, Saturday, May 21. $5 entry HCB members/$10 non-members. Visit www.harbourcitybears.com.au
