Zone championships (part 2)

At 9 am the team events began. Thick white tape drew eight crosses on the floor. The taped makers were in a configuration of 3 - 2 - 3 (front, middle, back). I'm not sure if the arrangement can be changed to 4 - 4 or if there were different markers that I was oblivious to.

When it was time to dance, direct and peripheral vision - affectionately known as 'team eyes' - set in. Unlike my club's hall, this venue had lined floors which amplified the problem of spacing if we weren't in line with our teammates in front, side or diagonally. Luckily, our team eyes allowed for quick, subtle adjustments to set us back in clean, straight lines.  

From my limited team experience, I've concluded that the first 32 counts of warm-up must include travelling steps so team members can move from a starting formation to the set configuration.

Throughout the routines, I felt that time slowed down. Perhaps this was the result of having an impressive venue, sound took longer to reverberate from the walls.

The get-on and get-off allows for creative choreography usually set by the teacher (I've heard that these components are not judged). My novice ladies' team had a comparatively straightforward get-off. Other teams had fancy, cabaret-esque, theatrical moves with half the members in alternating positions, for example, four with hands up and four with hands down. Mexican waves were also popular among well-rehearsed teams.