The Fred Astaire Dance Studios' 22nd Tri-Star Championships

Approximately 200 students competed in both Ballroom (waltz, Viennese waltz, foxtrot and tango) and Rhythm (swing, rumba, cha cha, mambo, salsa, bolero and samba) dances. The dancers were judged from the beginner to the advanced levels. The participants came from all over New England representing the Fred Astaire Dance Studios from Belmont, Boston, Springfield and Worcester, Massachusetts and Canton, Glastonbury, Hamden, Norwalk, South Windsor, Trumbull and West Hartford, Connecticut. Amber and I competed in 12 heats, four each of Foxtrot, Tango, and Waltz.

• Heat 35 (American Tango): The first time we danced on the larger ballroom dance floor. The music ended before we finished with our routine. Tango's slower than the other dances, so that's probably why. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place. PICTURE | PICTURE
• Heat 38 (American Foxtrot): Not our strongest dance. They split the floors, which confused the heck out of me as to where I should stand to start the line of dance. It didn't help that I was still on the dance floor from the first dance and didn't know what to do next. Or that Foxtrot and Tango are exact opposites of each other, so it's a bit like writing with your weak hand in mid-sentence. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place. PICTURE
• Heat 39 (American Waltz): Better this time. Waltz is at least very different from Tango and Foxtrot. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 40 (American Tango): By now the nervousness has worn off and we had already done one Tango. So this was our best Tango yet. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 41 (American Foxtrot): See above. Not as strong as we would have liked. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 42 (American Waltz): Oddly enough, Waltz was never a problem. We did get to experience the dreaded "interruptitis" where the music stops every few minutes because someone is on the wrong dance floor. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 88 (American Tango): After a breather and some food, we were ready. We were also actually competing against another couple this time. Tango's our dance...we crushed them: First Place. PICTURE
• Heat 89 (American Foxtrot): Given that Foxtrot is our weakest dance, we were ready. And we executed our moves just right against another couple: First Place.
• Heat 91 (American Foxtrot): A lot better, but we had just done Foxtrot. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 95 (American Waltz): Waltz was fine. Except for the potential collisions, which are a lot more likely when you're doing Waltz. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place.
• Heat 97 (American Waltz): This time, WE were accused of being on the wrong dance floor. My instructor and one of the judges backed us up on this once and confirmed we were in the right place, but it utterly ruined our concentration. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place. PICTURE | PICTURE | PICTURE
• Heat 98 (American Tango): Probably the weakest of our Tangos. We started very close to the entrance, which means a lot of people stream around you. At this point, people start getting relaxed and decorum breaks down. There were no other amateur couples competing against us: First Place. PICTURE | PICTURE | PICTURE