Week 25.

Yes, yes I know, I missed weeks 24 get over it. Unfortunately one of the side effects of dancing is that it improves your social life and geeks like me don't have the time to sit around a computer.

Guedo took this week's class. One of the new steps we are learning this term is called Bolero, a Cuban dance. I like Bolero as it suits my style - which is very stiff and upright with no hip movement. It is danced to a one-two beat; the music has a stronger accent on the one beat.

The guy leads with his left (as always) and steps forward onto the toe (his toe, not his partners). The follower mirrors this by stepping back on the right. This is the one step. The leader then takes a step back, again on the left foot and the follower steps froward on the right - this is the two count. The leader then steps back on the Right foot for the one count and forward on the right for the two count.

At first we danced this movement back and forward - but this week we learned to step to the side. Guedo described it as being on train tracks. The forward and back motion is on one set of the tracks and as the Guy steps back on the one count onto the right foot the left foot sweeps across onto a set of parallel tracks before the right foot comes forward on the two count. It is important that the shoulders of the partners remain facing each other. The dancers then end up dancing almost side on rather than face to face. As Guedo says - "its a piece of cake".

After class I had chance to drop into the coffee joint on the corner where DJ Marcus was spinning a few Latin numbers. I meet up with some of the Rueda students and we practiced the moves we had learned on Saturday. Paula was there and helped me master a new Salsa turn we had learned.

Steve