I ALWAYS give references as soon as I see that I got a PM, IM, or Email for them. I am very good about it and do my very best to give as many details as possible so that the other Lady feels safe and is informed (He likes this____he doesn't like when_____he likes a shower as soon as he shows up, he had a glass of red wine with me, he was ticklish...) so that their date goes as well as possible and both parties enjoy themselves.
Lately I have been getting reference requests from Gents that I haven't see in 8 months-2 years. I understand that some Gents don't hobby as much as others but that is a long time.
My new policy is not to give a reference if I haven't seen someone in more than 8 months. 8 months is a long time, I can't remember as many details at that point and I don't know first hand if someone is still an ideal Gent. All of us Ladies know that a lot can change in weeks let alone months. For all I know he could have turned into a complete jerk that rips girls off and I would be blindly giving other Ladies the okay to spend time with him because he was great with me a year and a half ago. I can't risk doing that to another Lady.
Today was the last reference that I will give out from longer than 8 months ago. Hell, I was perfectly clear with that Lady that I haven't seen him in almost 2 years. I explained that he made a date with me months after he saw me and canceled then showed interest on a trip months after that but never set anything up and then I had a family emergency emerge when he last showed interest in possibly making a date with me but he didn't set anything up and I had to cancel my trip anyway. I explained that when I saw him he was safe and sweet and that was all I remembered after so long. I feel like a jerk that I didn't have more information for her and it made me feel like I was a somewhat unreliable reference which makes me feel crappy because I want to help as much as possible.
Sorry Gents, but, I feel that my new policy is best for us Ladies and that it isn't unreasonable.