Monday Night Plus Class

The Plus class last night went rather well, all things considered.

There were at least three of the new Plus dancers missing due to previously scheduled engagements. As well, since the schedule conflicts with justetthon's fortnightly C1 dance, we were missing a few of our regular angels. Still, we had three squares on the floor.

The sound in the room is more than just a little dead: treble gets absorbed by the carpeting and there's an echo from the back wall. Last night, we tried using an extra monitor speaker in the back of the hall with some success; I'll try that again at this Thursday's club night.

After the warm-up and review, the larger portion of the evening was spent on "Load the Boat," running through enough combinations so that everyone had a chance to dance each part.

"Fan the top" was a breeze: they picked it up nearly instantly and adjusted automatically for left-handed waves. Ditto for "(anything) and spread" for all three forms.

"Track 2" was a little tricky as the general shape change isn't intuitive or obvious, but Tim Marriner & otterpop58's 2003 teaching tips document continues to provide good advice.

My bigger worry about the class is that some self-conscious folks are making a point of hiding in the back square of the hall. Next Monday, I'm going to discretely plant those folks in the front of the hall before calling the class to square up, guaranteeing they stay in front where we can give them the most assistance.

Monday Night Plus Class

The Plus class last night went rather well, all things considered.

There were at least three of the new Plus dancers missing due to previously scheduled engagements. As well, since the schedule conflicts with justetthon's fortnightly C1 dance, we were missing a few of our regular angels. Still, we had three squares on the floor.

The sound in the room is more than just a little dead: treble gets absorbed by the carpeting and there's an echo from the back wall. Last night, we tried using an extra monitor speaker in the back of the hall with some success; I'll try that again at this Thursday's club night.

After the warm-up and review, the larger portion of the evening was spent on "Load the Boat," running through enough combinations so that everyone had a chance to dance each part.

"Fan the top" was a breeze: they picked it up nearly instantly and adjusted automatically for left-handed waves. Ditto for "(anything) and spread" for all three forms.

"Track 2" was a little tricky as the general shape change isn't intuitive or obvious, but Tim Marriner & otterpop58's 2003 teaching tips document continues to provide good advice.

My bigger worry about the class is that some self-conscious folks are making a point of hiding in the back square of the hall. Next Monday, I'm going to discretely plant those folks in the front of the hall before calling the class to square up, guaranteeing they stay in front where we can give them the most assistance.

From the weather desk...

The temperature is supposed to reach 98 degrees F this afternoon. With the humidity, it will feel closer to 105F.

Excuse me... my owner's manual and design specifications clearly state that I'm supposed to be kept in an environment ranging from -20F to 75F.

Bleh.

From the weather desk...

The temperature is supposed to reach 98 degrees F this afternoon. With the humidity, it will feel closer to 105F.

Excuse me... my owner's manual and design specifications clearly state that I'm supposed to be kept in an environment ranging from -20F to 75F.

Bleh.