An unspoken rule is that if you maintain prolonged eye contact with someone, you’re eager to see what else they’re equipped with. Liquor and smoking are prohibited, but other indulgences come with the territory. If you’re fucked up or tweaked out and don’t want to stay on the streets, you can do what you fancy.” But, William qualifies, “sex is not a requirement a lot of times you get voyeurs.” A 39-year-old who served in the Navy, he adds that “if you want to go in and get a quick fuck or a blowjob, it’s there. “It’s kind of anything you want to make it,” says Maryland resident William, who has frequented the Crew Club since the mid-90s and requested a pseudonym to speak candidly. It’s also allowed them to engage in some wish fulfillment, often of the kinky variety: Sex is a near-guarantee for those who desire it. Since 1995, the Crew Club has provided gay men a sanctuary to work out, relax, and converse, forming new relationships face-to-face. What these visitors all shared in common was that they were looking to blow off some steam, in more ways than one. Body types ranged from svelte to corpulent.
So did races: There was a clear white majority sprinkled with mostly younger black, Latino, and Asian men. Though most patrons appeared to be older than 40, ages ran the gamut. On a recent Tuesday night, when locker and room prices were half off, the gay men’s health spa teemed with butts and bears-the hairy, human kind.