Cindy and JP Blount at the Reno festival
Kay White
My husband and I recently thought it would be nice to have a change of pace from our busy SaddleBrooke schedule, so we decided to take advantage of now knowing how to square dance, thanks to lessons we had in the MountainView ballroom, and take a square dance trip.
For the past two years I had been attracted to a dance held in Reno, Nevada, and so we figured now was the time to get into the car and go. Our destination was the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, and the tantalizing dance venue was the 70th Silver State Square and Round Dance Festival.
We left SaddleBrooke on Wednesday, May 10, 2017, and headed to Las Vegas, Nevada to spend the night and enjoy family. The next morning we were traveling north on US 95 through towns with names like Beatty, Tonopah, Yerington and finally onto Interstate 80 and into Reno.
The first dance offered on the Silver State program was called Trails End. This was a Thursday night dance to kick off the weekend. It was also a chance to look around for square dance friends that we have been making since we started dancing. Imagine our delight when we spotted another couple from SaddleBrooke and also a couple from Robson’s Quail Creek. We also were able to reacquaint ourselves with couples that we have met at other festivals. This is definitely one of the side benefits of square dancing, friends from around the west and the country getting together once or twice a year at festivals to dance and socialize.
Friday morning we put on our dancing shoes and began a couple of days of fantastic dancing. Our schedule for Friday included workshops with an easy mainstream dance that lasted until 4:00 p.m. It started back up again at 7:00 p.m. and ran until 10:30 p.m. Three callers put us through our paces. We danced with folks from California, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and yes, even our friends from SaddleBrooke. It could only be called “having a good time.” Just when we thought that we had topped off the day we were treated to an ice cream social.
Saturday dancing started at 9:00 a.m. and ran through the day with an assortment of student callers and local callers trying out their routines and singing voices on eager dancers. These dances are called workshops and are good training and reviewing grounds for both callers and dancers. The evening is the grand dance with a welcome ceremony including a presentation of the American flag by a Military Color Guard.
Festivals are a wonderful experience. Dancing all day and part of the night helps relax the body, mind and soul. Ice cream socials to close out the day are the cherry on the sundae. Thanks to our lessons and experience back home in the MountainView ballroom and learning all about square dancing opened up this whole new chapter in our lives.
Interested in more information? Check our website at www.saddlebrookesquares.com or give Kay or Bob a call at 818-9482. Lessons start October 8; dancing continues Thursday night in the MountainView ballroom 7:00 p.m.