Memorial Day - Pensacola

It was our best contest yet! We had a blast! THANKS to everyone who made the night such a great success.

The weekend started with a Teddy Bear night at B-Bob's on Friday night. Members and friends were asked to bring a teddy bear to help decorate the bar for the big night on Saturday. There was no cover charge to get in if you brought a bear. We had great success and the place looked great for the contest!

Saturday afternoon we held the annual Judges Reception at Jerry's place in Mobile. He has a lovely home and he's one of the most hospitable people on the planet. The reception gives members, judges, and prospective contestants a chance to get to know each other in a casual social setting before the contest begins. Check out the link below to see pictures from the reception.

	Our MC's for the night were Wade from Tampa (in black) and Buddy from Mobile. Their sharp wit and lashing tongue kept the crowd whipped up. They were truly loads of fun. We'd like to extend a hearty THANKS for all their hard work to make the night so enjoyable!
	The judges hard at work. From left to right, Roger, Kerry, Joey, Mark, Perry and Jim. THANKS for all you efforts in picking Mr. GCB 99!
	Hey baby, can I pull your string?
	Contestant #4 gets in the tub during the interview portion of the contest.
	GCB Member Tim acted as drink slave to the judges. He worked his butt off to keep the judges content.
	Local bears enjoying the view.
	Jason is so cute in his Gulf Coast Bears T-shirt. All the staff at B-Bob's worked hard to make the bears feel welcome. Jason is friendlier than most :)
	I'd say something cute and clever about Gena but she'd kick my ass. Let me just say she's one helluva bartender and she looks good doing it.
	At this moment, quite possibly the gayest man in Mobile. Jerry is the owner of B-Bob's and the club VP. He worked hard all week long getting the details ironed out. THANKS JER!
	David (aka Big GURL) worked the door to collect the door $. 100% of the door cover went to Mobile AIDS Support Services (MASS).
	Leroy is the DJ at B-Bob's. He did a fantastic job picking just the right tunes to go with the various portions of the contest. During the frozen underwear part, it was Madonna's frozen, and just as we announced Kelvin was the winner, the song of choice was "I'm Beautiful, I'm Beautiful Damn It". Leroy always keeps the crowd moving and is one of the best DJ's on the coast.
	Bears compare notes about the contestants (and likely each other).
	Two of the judges on the left, yours truly (Ed, GCB President for 1999) and the winner Kelvin get a cuddle in a booth big enough for bears.
	Contestant #5 got out there and danced his ass off with one of his many fans of the night.
	Chef Rick cooked all the food, played the role of MeeMaw during the contest, as well as assisted keeping the paperwork and scoring straight.
	The back room of the bar (used as a dressing room and interview room) was hot all night long. There were tons of bear hugs in the back and out on the floor.
	Kelvin steps up to accept his prize.
	The judges had the best view in the house.
	Kevin (Mr. GCB 98) hands certificates of appreciation to the judges.
	SURPRISE APPEARANCE by the ORIGINAL Mr. GCB '96! Patrick came back to town to enjoy the festivities!
	Perry was one of the judges. Most of us think he would make one hell of a contestant :)
	The primary goal of the evening was to have fun ... and the secondary goal was to raise some $ for MASS (Mobile AIDS Support Services). All of the $260 door cover went to MASS and we split the $735 raffle money with them as well. All of the bears used to decorate the bar will be donated to area childrens charities after the contest.
	Frozen underwear - first on = 20 bonus points. Kelvin won.
	They get to work unfolding ... it was harder than it looks.
	What a bunch of HUNKS!
	MeeMaw sat along side bags of toys. Each contestant had to come out - pick a bag - open it and describe to MeeMaw how they'd use that item with their lover in terms that wouldn't shock anyone's grandmother. Some contestants got confused and described how they'd use the toys on MeeMaw. We nearly had to sedate her.



Contestant #1 is Grady.

Contestant #2 is Aaron.

Contestant #3 is Kelvin.

Contestant #4 is Todd.

Contestant #5 is Brian.

Contestant #6 is Gene.

Contestant #7 is James.

	Moments before the big announcement. Kelvin looks very confident.
	The proud winner!
	Group shot. All the contestants. Kelvin won a prize basket that contained several t-shirts, the trophy, $50 bar tab from The RoundUp in Pensacola, Books, Magazines, and $100 off Bears in the Keys IV 2000 in Key West next August. He was a very gracious winner and all the other contestants were quick to offer congratulations!
	Kelvin and the 1st runner up - James.
	Kelvin got tons of hugs after the contest. Here he is with Chef Rick.

	Some of us met Kelvin at Bears in the Keys V. This picture was taken by Lynn Ludwig in Key West. Kelvin is very photographic and is a nice guy to boot.