What is Expansion?

 

Expansion is a once-yearly weekend when guys who are into gaining, encouraging come together to forge new friendships, hang out, have fun and get their grub on. It’s a safe space where you can truly be you, without fear of what other people will think.

 

Think of it as gainer/encourager summer camp. In October.

 

Who comes to Expansion?

 

Attendees come from around the world and across the U.S. and include guys as young as 18 and old enough to qualify for Medicare. Expansionistas are skinny, average, muscular, bellied, chubby, fat, and very  fat… we’re a diverse bunch, you get the picture.

 

How many guys usually attend?

 

Last year we had over 80, but its never about quantity, its about quality.

 

So what exactly do you do at Expansion?

 

Expansion is pretty unstructured, which means, you get to do whatever you want to do—that might be socializing poolside, grabbing food at nearby restaurants or hitting up the local gay bars. You can also take part in some of the organized events throughout the weekend, such as game nights, city tours, bar visits, group discussions and a big end-of-weekend meal.

 

Ultimately, Expansion is what you make of it.

 

So are you saying it’s not a big orgy?

 

Right. Attendees are free to engage in whatever they want in the privacy of their rooms—and some do. But Expansion is first and foremost about camaraderie and community. Hookups are behind closed doors and play by the pool is kept to PG-rated belly rubbin.

 

Again, Expansion can be whatever you want it to be. Whether you want to make new friends or hookup, you’ll find good company at Expansion.

 

Isn’t it a little weird to have all these big guys at the hotel?

 

Not really. We tend to take over whichever hotel is hosting us, which means that the pool area tends to be ours. It becomes a sort of safe space throughout the weekend, where guys can chat freely about growing, bellies or whatever else they wanna talk about.

 

The guys that set-up the hotel try to ensure that the hotel is welcoming as well as safe, clean and a great fit for our needs.  Over the past three years, we’ve never encountered any problems with other hotel guests.

 

But what If I don’t know anyone before hand?

 

Each year, plenty of guys come to Expansion without knowing anyone else there—ask any of them and they’ll tell you that, while a little scary, the risk paid off. We create structured ways for new attendees to meet people, including ice-breaker activities and group outings.

 

To take some of the pressure off meeting for the first time, you can also connect with people online before the event through other sites and via a tool that we will have set-up soon.

 

If I go, am I gonna see a bunch of pictures of me at the event online afterwards?

 

Nope.  The Expansion team respects the privacy and discretion of our attendees. We allow all attendees to opt-out of picture taking—meaning that we won’t take photos with that person in them and intervene with other attendees that may have accidentally included anyone that does not want their photos posted.

 

My boyfriend isn’t into gaining/encouraging. Should I bring him?

 

In the past, several attendees have come with their “civilian” (our term for non-gainer/encourager types) boyfriends, in order to help them understand this kink and community better. All of them have left with a greater understanding of their partner’s desires.

 

As long as your boyfriend/partner is respectful toward other attendees, we welcome you to bring them along, and help them see more of what’s going on in your head.

 

So how much does it all cost?

 

It all depends on a few variables.  Most of which are personal to you. 

 

First. you should consider travel to the event city- in 2012, you would be traveling to New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.  If flying, check out www.Kayak.com

 

Next, the 2012 host hotel, is set-up with two types of rooms that will allow up to 4 people to share - with a event rate of  $125 per night.  You can take a look at the host hotel page for a description of rooms.  One way to say money is to room with another attendee.  We will try to help with that by having a roommate finder list.

 

Your registration costs will depend on how much you want to do and how early you register.  For example, there is Registration Only, Registration plus The Big EXP Meal, and in the past you could add tours, pizza parties, extra shirts and on and on.

 

Food is also case-specific. It depends how much you eat and where you choose to eat.

 

So do I have any reason not to go?

 

Honestly, if you are interested in gaining or encouraging - you don’t! Expansion is a great time for guys of any age, size or relationship status. It’s a fun weekend that doesn’t cost very much. And you can come out of it with new friends and memories that will last a lifetime.

 

For a lot of guys, making the jump from online to real life is scary. All we can promise is that our team and the other attendees do a stellar job of making it a lot less scary and lot more fun. If you doubt that, just ask any of the guys who attended last year.

Here is some information about the last Expansion!

First, a huge thanks to everyone that attended.  We sincerely hope that you had as much fun as we did.