This past Thursday, Kelly and I went line dancing at The Graduate! Above is a video I took while we were there.
It was a ton of fun. To get in, it’s $10 for 18-20 year olds, and $5 for 21+ (they assume you’ll buy drinks at the bar, inside too). But if you get there before 7pm, I have been told that it’s free of charge. Which is perfect, because lessons taught by Cal Poly’s very own line dancing club start at 8pm for all the newbies who haven’t line danced since the electric slide in freshman PE, like me…
Kelly and I got there at 10pm, and it was poppin.
There are both partner dances, and line dances, so get ready to get your feet moving. Turns out, there’s dance etiquette suggested by the Cal Poly Line Dancing Club.
A few of the basic rules:
- Wear closed toes shoes. They don’t have to be cowboy boots, but for the safety of your own feet your toes should be protected.
- Be cautious when entering the dance floor, advanced dancers are often on the outside with beginners in the middle. The more advanced dancers will go faster and can add more embellishment to their steps, give them room to do this, while “learning by doing,” as Cal Poly would say. This goes for both partner and line dancing.
- Ask someone to dance, and say yes if you’re asked! Chances are, you’ll either have someone more experienced teaching you how to do the steps, or you’ll get to teach someone how to do it which will feel just as good. Remember to thank them for the dance, at the end.
- Have a good time!
Even if you’re not a big “country music fan,” I would suggest giving line dancing a try at the Grad. It’s a true San Luis Obispo experience. At one point, they played “Red” by Taylor Swift which is debatably country, and “Uptown Funk” which is definitely not country.
While Thursday night was a mostly college aged crowd, (with the exception of an impressively quick stepped old man who was very talented at line dancing and was constantly partner dancing with all of the pretty young ladies) there is also line dancing at the Grad on Saturday nights as well.
Anyway, my favorite dance by far was “The Wobble,” which is danced along to “Wobble Baby” by V.I.C. The reason it’s my favorite might be because it’s ridiculously simple to learn, but also because it’s just so much fun to do. To be one of hundreds of people bernieing in sync is a pretty great thing to be a part of 😉
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