Fall. Some people anticipate the changing of the leaves, or the cruch of fallen acorns, or the smell of a wood fire. This year I discovered a whole new reason to celebrate the change of seasons, the 26th Annual 17th Street High Heel Race.

Evelyn, Erin and I decided to go in drag to show our solidarity with the racing queens. Our good friends Sharlene and Dawn also joined in the fun. 

My very good friend Benny met us there and according to him the race began in 1986 when a bunch of queens were forced to race from one bar to another. 

Prior to the race, participants warm up by parading up and down the race route and taking the occasional photograph with adoring fans. One leather clad nun stopped because I looked “naughty” and tried to spank me. 

Sharlene made some friends of her own.

One of the crowd favorites was (obviously) the cast of The View.

I have no idea who actually won the race, and it hardly matters. The best part of the evening was watching the incredibly creative (and amazingly balanced) racers put on their show!