Winter Party Beach Party 2011 at Lummus Park in South Beach, March 6

See the 25-photo Winter Party Beach Party slideshow.

Winter Party Beach Party
With DJ Charlmix and DJ Alyson Calagna
Lummus Park, South Beach
Sunday, March 6, 2011

Better Than: A #4 combo meal from Chick-Fil-A.

The Winter Party Beach Party on 12th Street in South Beach was what you have come to expect from all large-scale gay parties. The DJs strictly played remixes of pop hits and some lesser known house and techno, there were plenty of hard-bodied, sweaty men without shirts, and colorful decorations (lots of purple) permeated the environment.

The Beach Party is considered the marquee event of Winter Party — which is saying a lot since Winter Party is almost a week’s worth of events. But once you’re there, on the sand, surrounded by thousands of LGBT people, you start to understand why. This is the gayest event under the sun. No one is hiding underground, in the dark confines of a nightclub in the middle of the night. The gay community is out and proud and reveling in its gayness for all to see.

And see they did. The weather was friendly for Miamians who wanted to go to the beach, and there were plenty of people on 12th Street who were there just to enjoy the ocean. But as they passed by the party pavilion, they couldn’t help but slow down, trying to catch a glimpse of the festivities just beyond their line of vision.

Critic’s Notebook

The Crowd: After about 2 p.m., the party got hot. And by hot, we mean that there were thousands of half-naked and sweaty bodies congregating to music. Although the party was great, the fact that the male-female ratio was 1000 to 1, needs to be improved. We literally saw about twenty females in a party so congested that we had to squeeze ourselves through walls of chiseled chests as we were leaving. On the other hand, unlike most LGBT parties, there were actually some female go-go dancers.

Overheard in the Crowd: “He says he’s 19.” “You gotta feel it.” “I look like a beached whale.” “Check your ball sack.” “It was under my cup.” “You have Molly?” “Oh my God…you can see it!” “I’ll send you the bill, you bitch.” “Oh, I’m gonna have such a reputation.”Random Details: There was only one booth serving food and it was barely visited by partygoers. The portable toilets were surprisingly clean. Giant bean bags served as popular seating in the VIP areas. Although most of the go-go dancers’ outfits seemed to be completely arbitrary, there were about a half-dozen dancers inexplicably dressed as Egyptians. There was a plethora of exposed nipple piercings. Drag queens were mostly absent from the event. The crowd was surprisingly demure when the DJ played “Born this Way” by The Gaga.Follow Crossfade on Facebook and Twitter @Crossfade_SFL.