Off to Reno...again

I'll be missing the dance on Saturday with Big Joe and the Dynaflows. For the 16th year in a row, I'll be in Reno, NV on business travel. If you're not into gambling or drinking, nothing happens in Reno the second week in January. Believe me I've tried.

I travel quite a bit for business and I try to check out the local dance scene wherever I go. The first year I traveled to Reno I checked the local paper to find out where there might be dancing. Some coworkers and I stepped into a 50's bar and I walked smack into the only other person in the bar -- a guy that I knew from dancing at Mannie's. What a small world! I danced and danced -- and couldn't figure out why I was so winded and had a whopper of a headache. Then someone reminded me that we were a mile above sea level.

The 50's bar had closed the second year I traveled to Reno. The third year, I called Craig Hutchinson for the phone number of the local swing dance club (this was before the plethora of information on the web). Turned out it was a very small west coast group. The last couple of years I've stayed at our hotel bar and listened to primarily local musicians. Most are pretty bad cover bands, with two exceptions in all of these years. Little Charlie and the Nightcats were there a few years ago. That was a hot night. The usually empty bar was packed.

The second exception was a small jazz/swing combo. During the break I told the singer that I was a dancer from DC. I asked her to let me know if she sees any dancers among the crowd. Small world again. She actually graduated from my high school (five years later than I) and her parents currently live in Mohican Hills, across the street from Glen Echo!

Last year the band featured a wannabe Gwen Stephani. They seemed to have a pretty loyal group of hooker fans...

We'll see what this year holds in store. The casino has been sold again and is undergoing a transformation. They're building a water park in the casino area and turning the upper floors into high-rent condos. I hear that the bar that hosted music is now closed. It may be a VERY LONG WEEK.