From:
Date: Sat, 16 Feb 2002 11:23:11 EST
Subject: ratings
Hi guys,

Great website! I have just one comment that I think is very important to us single women who love to dance. Maybe it should be factored in to the rating formula.

As you know, some dances are known as dances which are frequented by couples, and those dances I would never go to as a single person, no matter what the rating!!

I think it'd be helpful if the rating chart reflects which dances are more prone to singles vs. couples. Imagine traveling a long distance to a dance which is highly rated, only to find no one to dance with.

And that is just my humble opinion.

See ya's at the dances.
Sue Robbiano

Hi Sue,

Thanks for your suggestion. I'd love to be able to accommodate your wish; unfortunately we don't have an objective measure for such a parameter. The rating system is based strictly on objective, measurable, parameters. It's hard enough trying to get average attendance figures from the sponsors, let alone asking them to break it down into singles and couples. I do try to indicate, in subjective text, when it is known, that dances are mostly couples. Most of the dance pages have an email link to the sponsor, and you can ask them what the percentage of singles are. You can ask me about individual dances too, but I have only been to a few of them with any regularity, so I may not be able to answer. The Pittsfield dances are mostly couples. USABDA and SOS have lots of singles. Jim & Meg's first Sunday dance also has a good percentage of singles. In my experience, dances that include a lesson in the admission price tend to attract more singles.

If you let me know your experiences at various dances, perhaps I can add some subjective qualifiers to the descriptions, but the descriptions are mostly provided by the dance sponsors.

I don't know which part of our area you hail from, so I can't be too specific. The fourth Sunday dance in Albany is sponsored by Singles Outreach Services - the largest singles organization in the country, and it has the highest percentage of singles. They also have a dance every Friday night - which is strictly for singles (alumni are allowed too), but it's not really "ballroom", although it generally has a good mix of "fast" and "slow" dances. At my one trip to the Friday night dance in Agawam there were a number of singles. The ballroom dances tend to have a regular following of people, many of which know each other and know about other dances. My advice is to go to a dance, talk to people there, and ask them about dances they know of with more singles.

I'm planning to add a new page to the site with the comments of visitors, and I'll put your suggestion. Shall I include your email address, or shall I omit it?

Thanks, and . . .
Keep on dancing!
Ralph & Lena.