I have just heard that I have won some places in the Bondage Awards. Although it is seen by many as just a popularity contest rather than any great gauge of merit, I am honoured to have some recognition. Granted some categories had barely any entries, so getting Runner Up or Honourable Mention probably means there were so few applicants that it was inevitable. Of course, since many of the nominees were American, I assume the demographic of the nominators was also US. You can see this by the lack of world-class Japanese nawashi in the nominations. I was, however, pleased to see many western shibari riggers being listed. It is good to see the Awards turning from representing just western bondage to recognising shibari and I’m proud to be a part of it. There were a lot of worthy nominees that were conspicuous by their absence. I’m sure wider participation would make the Awards more representative of world opinion and that’s up to all of us.
I find the categories somewhat confusing and would like to see them clarified. Most Authentic Bondage, for example. Isn’t all bondage authentic? Surely, this needs to relate to a style, e.g. Most Authentic Japanese Bondage? Although, I can see this opening the old “What is shibari?” can of worms. What defines ‘authentic’ western or fusion bondage for that matter? What’s the difference between Best Company and Store? At least a definition of what fits might guide voters. For example, I see the Hitachi Magic Wand won Best Gear category in a previous year. No doubt one of the ‘most bang for your buck’ toy out there and loved by millions but it has sod all to do with bondage per se. Surely, only bondage products should be allowed? Frames, suspension rings and given that rope isn’t the only bondage, steel or leather restraints, that sort of stuff.
I also find the voting process a little strange. According to a description of previous years methods, it does not appear to be a simple tally as, after the initial count, the judges “place their votes, they will be weighted again the votes the public placed to decide the winners in each category”. We aren’t told how much weight the judges vote carry. I assume it must be more than one vote or the judging would be somewhat pointless. I am also unsure why they allow not only a vote every day but for nominees to vote for themselves.
“The public voting stage of the Bondage Awards is now officially over. Over the next week I will be compiling all of the votes (over 40,000!). A top 20 list will be compiled for each category and given to the judges. Once they place their votes, they will be weighted again the votes the public placed to decide the winners in each category. I expect this process to take two weeks. I know many of you are excited to see the results, so thank you in advance for being patient.
Regarding the judging, we have around 40 judges representing almost every category. They are models, riggers, webmaster/mistresses, photographers and business owners from the bondage industry and around the world. With such a large cross-section of people I know we will get fair and accurate results.”
Anyway, this isn’t sour grapes as I can’t complain about my awards. Although, I suspect there might be some curious results. I haven’t seen the whole list yet and all I had by email was my results. It will be telling if Yukimura and Kinoko aren’t at the top of the pile in their categories as there are no nominees worthy of beating them.
Here were my results:
| Bondage How To |  |
| Most Authentic Bondage |  |
| Rope Bondage, Bondage Gear & Water Bondage |  |
| Bondage Pay-site, Movie, Suspension & Store |  |
I am also grateful for the large percentage of my site’s traffic that has been a direct result of the Bondage Awards.