A few weeks ago, I was talking to a friend on the phone and he made the comment that he has a hard time believing that I was actually a dancer in my younger days. It made me laugh because honestly, he isn’t the first!
As I’m sure most of you have noticed in your own lives, people have a tendency to pigeonhole each other into small boxes without even realizing it. I know that I do it! And, let’s face it: when you read an individuals’s blog or tweets or Facebook status, you really only grasp who they are right now in life, as well as who they are choosing to present to the world, you know? The online world can be a tricky, tricky thing!
Having said that, I am obviously not a dancer anymore and I can understand why that is so baffling to those who meet me now. Typically, you don’t run into too many mountaineer/mountain biker/outdoor enthusiasts who were former ballerinas! (Granted, there are a few of us, but not too many!) So, I decided to offer up some proof in the form of pictures!
And, for the record, no mocking allowed. Stage makeup is a part of the package even though it makes you look hideous in person!! Just be glad I couldn’t find any pictures from my studio days…. those costumes would make you cringe!!
Phase #1: The High School Years. Yes, back in high school, I was captain of my dance team! We were actually pretty good and won the state championship my senior year. I will say that the memories I made from this team are by far my most favorite from my teenage years! We danced at football and basketball games and did the typical high school deal.
Remember my best friend Angel that I ran the half with on Sunday? She and I actually met back in middle school and have been friends forever… including on our high school dance team! Do we look young or what?!
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| I have no idea why I am as white as a ghost. Sigh. |
Phase #2: The College Years. When I originally started at the University of Colorado, I decided to quit dancing and focus on other stuff. Because of this, I took my freshman year off and started to learn to rock climb, mountaineer, and backpack (and so it began…!) However, I really missed the thrill of performing, so I tried out for CU’s competitive dance team and spent my sophomore and junior years as a member of the Buff Gold Dance Team. While we didn’t perform at school sporting games, we did travel to various competitions around the country. You can only imagine the chaos a group of 20-something girls got into when traveling to Las Vegas, Daytona Beach, Chicago, and Los Angeles…..yeah.
Let’s just say that those memories will stay locked away in my brain forever!
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| My sis and me after one of our team competitions in Chicago at the Navy Pier |
Please note the eyeshadow. Yes, that it shimmery AND blue! The lipstick and the blush were just added bonuses.
Phase #3: After College. During March of my senior year, there was news circulating the dance world that the Colorado Rapids, Denver’s MLS team, were auditioning for a new dance team. I was unsure as to whether I wanted to continue dancing after college, so I liked the idea of a less-stress team (when compared with either the Denver Nuggets or Broncos dance teams.) Practices were only once per week and the time commitment was significantly less than either Nuggets or Broncos. We got paid less, but it was a decent trade off 🙂 Because of this, I decided to audition just to see what the after-college, professional dancing world was about. I ended up making the team and spent one year as a Rapids dancer.
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| It’s a picture of a picture. Cut me some slack 🙂 |
With the Rapids, I got to do a lot of cool things. We performed at games, of course, but I also got to meet Bon Jovi! He used to own an arena football team that came to play the Denver team. We danced at the game and Bon Jovi watched us warming up before the game. He was a super nice guy and still could rock the tight jeans 🙂
I also got to fly in a Black Hawk helicopter with the National Guard as part of a drug-free campaign. They flew us to a bunch of mountain towns to perform for the kids, and I was totally captivated by the helicopter flight. Far and away my favorite experience from my year on the team!
So, what do you think? Is that enough evidence?!
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Do you have a certain aspect of your life that people always find surprising?
Would you like to learn my makeup tips?!
20 Comments
This is awesome and I totally wouldn’t have pegged you for a dancer (no offense!) I had a stint with cheerleading myself and grew up dancing (7 yrs of tap, jazz, gymnastics, and ballet) Absolutely loved it at miss it. Guess we’ll have to do some dancing while in Sedona 😉
We’ll start our own Columbia dance team 🙂
WTF!!!! i had no idea!! You were a legit dancer!!! hhahahaha. Great post.
Haha, I know! I’ve had a lot of people mention it recently so that’s why I did the post Friends that knew me back then have a hard time grasping who I am now, and obviously, vice versa. I’m like a big ol’ mass of interests! 🙂
Yes, that is LEGIT!!!!!!!
Look at all that eyeshadow 🙂
You look gorgeous in your photos, (as per usual)!
I think you should wear similar makeup at Boston next year… I assure you, it makes you run faster!
I love this and I can relate. The only thing I have left from my dancing days are a little bit of flexibility and muscular calves (which I hate). I remember flying to Disneyland with curlers in my hair…only another child dancer can relate to that…
Curlers in the ponytail were HUGE in high school! Luckily, I’ve retained a lot of my flexibility so yoga and stuff come naturally. I’m actually thinking of taking a dance class just for fun but we’ll see… I may get frustrated since I probably suck now 🙂
wow! i think this is beyond awesome! i used to be a cheerleader and a gymnast. neither is a bad thing…i just think that i am the most uncoordinated person ever. haha. obviously they didnt work out! although i tried so hard when i was little. it was probably comical. but amazing that you were SO dang good! my other thing is that i played softball my entire life and was a college pitcher. ahhh i miss it a lot but at the same time am just happy to have it as a memory. i hated running back then so its fun to be pursuing new and different goals now!
These pictures are awesome! I can totally relate, as I was a cheerleader in high school and college. When I mention that to people, everyone always seems so surprised bc I am extremely uncoordinated. There’s nothing like road-tripping to Daytona with a bunch of college cheerleaders 🙂
Heather you’re so pretty and is cheerleading dance?? I had no idea they were called dance teams. I know some people who cheer and I just love it !
Ha, nope, cheerleading and dancing are different but we all went under one name 🙂 The girls in the back of that pic that are standing on shoulders and stuff were the actual cheerleaders and the front row of girls + one guy were the dancers. I don’t have a gymnastic bone in my body!
Ah! I love it!! I didn’t know you were a rapids girl! Dang – the adventures of A Colorado Gal’s life should be a BOOK! Seriously – is there anything you haven’t done?
There’s like a million five hundred things! But yeah… I like to experiment 🙂
YES!!! I love this post, and love the Rapids pics. No one believes me when I tell them I am a dancer either, so I am with ya. Just did a show with Colorado ballet last weekend and one of the company dancers played my daughter. She is your stereo typical teeny tiny “ballerina” and only a couple years younger then me. I would have hated her, but she was so stinkin nice! I wish I would have branched out of ballet like you did. Just to get some more experience.
I just love all the stories of things you’ve done! And met Bon Jovi!? Luck you! :)Drool!
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Well I’m not surprised you were a dancer but I am insanely jealous that you met Bon Jovi! That is amazing!
That is like the coolest thing EVER!! I am very impressed!!
Awesome! I remember reading something about how you were a dancer 🙂
People are probably surprised to find out that I was a swimmer, a good one, since my blog’s focus in the beginning was running. Also people are probably surprised at my profession, sign language interpreter, since it isn’t very common!