I'm planning to send the following to be published in the Dance News of the Pacific Website. Sure everyone is sick of hearing about the Heritage event by now, but a few funny additions...
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I
am writing this report on the plane returning back home to warm Hawaii. The
event was held at the Grove Park Inn, site of the Heritage Classic in
Asheville, North Carolina. Even though it was not that cold for most of our
stay in Asheville, a fine cover of delicate snow graced the ground on the last
two days of the event, which was a special treat for all of us.
By
now, those interested in the details of the competition probably have looked them up on
the website. They will find Divino
Ritmo student distinctions displayed in the Winners Circle. Both Marie Laderta and I won top solo female
and male awards and we were in the top twenty overall dancesport series -student
category. Edward Nishimura was the
third student who attended the competition, only his second outing to the world
of mainland dance competitions and did very well. Lastly, Divino Ritmo Dance Studio also received a beautiful
appreciation plaque by the organizer of the Heritage Classic.
Besides
competing, Edward was fascinated by various tales of ghosts that inhabited the
Grove Park Inn. He was also
enamored with the beauty and majesty of the Biltmore Estate, a short drive from
the Grove Park Inn. Asheville is
an eclectic town filled with artists, musicians, artisans of varying sorts, and
a list of sumptuous restaurants that is clearly out of proportion to the
population base of the city. Green
and beautiful open landscapes and forests surround the city. This was incentive enough for it being
the site of filming of the movie, “The Hunger Games”.
The
Grove Park Inn is special for me, the reason that I have attended this
competition three years in a row.
It reminds me of my previous life in the South. It reminds me of my wife of 25 years
who was born in North Carolina. It
reminds me of the person that I was, and the young family I had. It also
reminds me of the person that I no longer resemble.
The
Heritage Classic offers packages to purchase for the competition. What is included is transportation from
the airport to the hotel, two meals a day served buffet style, a reception at
the beginning and another one at the end each with two complimentary drinks, a
few goodies here and there, and an outpouring of southern hospitality that is
unmatched anywhere in the country.
At
the buffet, I particularly loved the southern style green beans, while cloaked
with the illusion of healthiness, it was simmered in bacon, butter and probably
other fatty sauces as well..yummmm.
I liked equally well a cheesy cauliflower casserole, reminding me of one
that my wife cooked for our family decades ago. An assortment of meats,
chicken, fish, and little houses of desserts rounded out the menu, all of
decent quality.
We
all had fun during the competition.
Medium sized plus by mainland standards, there was enough competition,
but the ballroom was not cluttered to the hilt with ballroom dancers waiting to
take the stage and perform their routines. There was ample time to talk, make new friends and enjoy the
moment. Of course, Marie,
extroverted as she is, made the most new friends. By the end of the week, she knew everyone on a first name
basis. I was even introducing
myself around and having a grand time, sharing stories with other dancers of
roughly in the same age category, unlikely as this might sound.
Marie
was beaming on the dance floor, and did very well with lots of competition that
she managed well. Clearly the B1 Woman’s
Division is the most competitively contested. Edward’s moment came when he was doing his solo routine with Yanna, which I liked very much.
I
had my moments as well. Unfortunately, while I arrived in Asheville happy and
healthy, I overdid my stretching warm up on the first day pulling a groin
muscle. The muscle got tighter and
tighter, and finally showed it ugly face with stabbing pain during my only
international Viennese Waltz. To be sure, I had to scratch the next scheduled
Viennese Waltz to avoid aggravating it further.
The
muscle pull definitely affected my ability to perform but I won’t make excuses
for myself. For the most part, I
had to suck it up. I thought about
getting a massage to reduce the tightness but I later recanted considering the
location of my injury, and the growing embarrassment that I would feel.
Yanna
never knows what to expect when she competes with me. Actually, I never know what to expect myself. I had a lot of
new routines to contend with, most notably in American Smooth. This was the first time that I ventured
into the world of silver and it was exciting and rewarding. But I also experienced a few missteps
along the way.
For
some reason, on more than one occasion, starting the dance heat posed the most difficulty. Standing there like a statue, Yanna
tried to get me to budge forward as I fought back her back lead. When the tug-of-war finally resolved, I
was able to complete the routine without further difficulty. I was relieved
that I was able to put this bad start behind me. Happily, with few exceptions, I remembered all of my
routines.
The
last evening, after completing all of my dance heats minus the one Viennese
Waltz, I was constrained by the persistent stabbing groin pain. It felt like I was walking around with
a knife stuck deep in my groin, threatening to sap the joy of the remainder of
the last evening. I decided on a plan to salvage it. Filling up with enough wine to numb the pain, I donned my
dance shoes, went to the buffet dinner dance, had more wine, braved up enough
energy to dance a bunch of social dances, drank more wine, laughed and
blustered naughtily, and somehow made it through the evening festivities
without passing out and embarrassing the rest of the Divino Ritmo
contingency. It was well worth the
effort. The professional show and
competition was excellent.
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