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Entering the World of Amateur Comps

The Chicago DanceSport Challenge

By Christina Kyllo

Halloween plans: check.

Halloween candy: check.

Halloween costume: uh, does ballroom dancer count?

Halloween weekend, my partner and I competed in the 2015 Chicago DanceSport Challenge, our first amateur competition. While practicing and preparing for the weekend, we agreed that it would, at the very least, be a great chance to warm up on the competition floor before Collegiate Nationals later in November, but we got much more out of the experience. To start off the weekend, six of us from the University of Minnesota competitive ballroom team packed up a minivan and journeyed to Chicago, where we met up with many more teammates at the competition. My partner and I competed in the smooth events on Saturday morning and got our first qualification for USA Dance Nationals. Not a bad start.

After our team finished our events early in the day on Saturday, some of us ventured to downtown Chicago to do some sightseeing. After all, if you didn't take a selfie at the Bean, did you really go to Chicago? I considered staying in costume in the spirit of Halloween—fake eyelashes, ballroom makeup, hair flower, and all—but decided to tone it down a bit for strolling Michigan Avenue. Rainy weather forced us to be creative with our group photos at the Bean, and we enjoyed ourselves despite the dreary weather. It was beneficial to get a change of scenery, and we came back to the competition venue with a renewed energy for our dancing.

That Saturday evening we got to watch some of our teammates compete in the open events. As the largest group of collegiate dancers at the competition, the University of Minnesota team cheered loudly and had a great time livening up the competition atmosphere well into the night. But wait—dancers scheduled to compete at 11:30 p.m.? I had no idea amateur competitions were scheduled that late. Since the heats were running ahead of schedule, our team stuck around to watch the championship standard events, and it was one of the best decisions of the weekend. We were fortunate to see some amazing dancers, and we had a great time cheering on our favorite couples. A few social dances ("Thriller" included) also made for a great Halloween night.

Sunday, my partner and I competed in our rhythm and standard events. Having eliminated some of the initial jitters the day before, our dancing improved throughout our events, and it showed in our placements in our dances. When our team's events concluded for the day, I felt that typical pang of disappointment that another competition had come to an end.

The intensified team camaraderie that follows a competition was present during the car ride home, and we arrived back at the University of Minnesota campus happily exhausted and satisfied with the many successes of the weekend. For many of us, those successes included several qualifications for Nationals, a new excitement for amateur competitions, and a whole new set of fun memories that come from being part of a group of talented, supportive, and enthusiastic dancers.

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