Cast and crutches anyone?
Posted March 18th, 2008 by jesssoul
Sunday night was fantastic. Absolutely entertaining, great energy, wonderful dancers and just plain old amazing as always. Unfortunately, I had to leave. I got a substantial stomp to the left foot and received a hairline crack of the 4th metatarsal. My foot looks like an eggplant. My heart is sad that I won't be dancing for a few weeks.
My question is, because the darn social is sooooo packed, could we consider moving to a larger venue perhaps??
Just a thought. One that might prevent the numerous injuries suffered by a handful of ladies that night. i was not the only one.
Jess
Guys, protect your ladies!
I am sorry that happen to you Jessica. Unfortunately this is not a uncommon story. What can be done?
Well we could look for a bigger place, but that would not stop people from dancing too wildly. Actually it would probably end up giving people license to be even more careless while on the dance floor. I think things like this happen more because of carelessness and less because of space. That means... Guys, protect your ladies! Guys, our job is more then just spinning and dipping her and looking cool. Us guys also need to pay attention to the people dancing near us steer her away from the hazardous dancers that may be near you. Actually I remember going to a workshop in Chicago where the instructor used the end of the class to demonstrate the way a leader can do all his favorite patterns and protect his partner at the same time.
As far as moving... Nah, I am not in favor of moving. Not yet anyway. Mainly because the size and quality of the dance floor, the location of the hall, and the price for using it has yet to be matched. But if anyone knows of a better deal, please feel free to share it.
Ouch
Sorry to hear about your injury, Jess. I'm sending healing energy your way.Ladies may ask their partners to move them as I did on Sunday when in too close range of wild dancers. From my experience, injuries can happen when only a few dancers are on the floor. I am happy to say most of my partners are very protective of our dance space. Thanks Guys!
Sharon
It's not the venue...
I don't really think it's very crowded. Its just that there's a lot of beginners who haven't yet learn to dance in their own space yet. Sorry about your foot though it sounds painful!
in agreement with Jess
I have been contemplating this myself as well. Especially having had my foot stomped on two socials in a row. Besides,REALLY hurting my foot , my pocket was in trouble,as well, as I rely on my feet to make a living. Somethi,ng needs to be done . Also, as I look around,I see lilttle ones joining us more and more. Which is very nice, but if us adults are getting hurt, how safe is it for the children and what would happen if ,God forbid one of these children got injured while attending a social ? Not to say That I'm unappreciative of the space but maybe we could work on some sort of solution.
You are right - something does need to be done!
While I don't think the floor is too small, I completely agree that we need to do something and not just let our fellow salseros get hurt. The difficulty with all of this is that the people who are doing the mis-stepping or leading the mis-stepping don't think they are -- and most of us would find it uncomfortable to mention it to them. One thing to note here is that it is not just a "beginners" problem.
At a minimum we probably need to put on a bit of an awareness campaign do a bit of talking on the site and at the socials. We also need to focus on getting instructors to bring this up too and teaching their students not just how to knock out turn patterns but also just dance in a small area and have fun.
Could we also encourage people to wear practice sneakers to the socials? High heels look great, but they are the overwhelming culprit when it comes to foot injuries.
Thoughts?
Geo-
A dance safety acronymn?
S - Safety first - do you have enough place to dance, if you think you will get knocked when you junp in, you probably will unless you are extra careful.
A - Aware - at any given time you should know how many are dancing around you and how safely they are dancing.
L - Look before you separate (cross body moves and similar vairations). Would this cross body result in a direct hit? If so I think it is OK to not finish the move and hold your partner for that split second.
S - Short Steps (on crowded floors, especially back steps)
A - Always be Polite
I came up with this acronymn after reading this thread. I have to admit, I am a beginner when it comes to dance safety. As in, do as I say, dont do as I do. HaHa.
It is hard to be a lead, think of the next moves, think of styling, maintain eye contact etc etc AND watch who is around you etc. So I stick to corners and edges of the dance floors when I think the dance floor is too crowded for me.
My 2 cents
Prabal
I like the sneaker and awareness campaign ideas
I think it wouldn't hurt to ask dance sole to put out a few flat shoe/sneaker options in their display when they come to further support that notion either.
If the injuries of others does nothing but promote safety and awareness about appropriate dancing for the situation, then I'll take it. Nothing better than getting a conversation started.
Sorry Jess
I think a bigger place is needed. It WAS REALLY REALLY crowded sunday. Sorry to hear that u were injured thta badly,Jess. It stinks to be injured !!!!
I'm an out-of-towner who
I'm an out-of-towner who came in for the las social. I have to admit I that I was SO nervous on the dance floor because it seemed like so many dancers just weren't aware of their space as they were dancing. There were so many colision, dangers dips, spikes...it was crazy! The whole time I danced I was looking around like a crazy person trying to dance safely and it was overwhelming.