Swing Dance

I had never seen  Swing Dance exhibitions until several years ago when we visited New Orleans.  Flew into New Orleans  late in the evening and searched for a restaurant near the hotel before retiring for the night.  We were staying at the Pontchartrain Hotel and directly across the street was The Red Room (if memory serves . . . and memory doesn’t always cooperate  – but I think it was called the Red Room – and after Hurricane Katrina, I believe it is called the Cricket Room).  We decided to grab a bite to eat at this restaurant  before retiring and getting ready for A Big Day in New Orleans the next morning.

To our surprise, there was a group of young and enthusiastic swing dancers – and they were great!  It was a marvelous way to begin a two-day visit to New Orleans.

Don Welch, a good friend of mine (of over 50 years) competes in Swing Dance (he was a great dancer in high school . . . and is most certainly an accomplished dancer in 2009).  He and his partner Peggy Allen recently won a Master’s competition in Boogie by the Bay (October 2009)– in his age division — which is MY age division — although I don’t compete in anything . . . except keepin’ on keepin’ on.

The above video is from a 2007 swing dance competition of Don and his partner Peggy Allen (they were winners then also).

He is soooo smoooth . . . and he and Peggy are such a delight to watch as they effortlessly glide around the dance floor.

Trivia note:  when several of us ‘old’  friends were in Dallas a few years ago, we went to a dance club and every woman in the place was coming up, asking Don to dance – after seeing him dance with some of us.  He was in great demand!

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