So this was it: the last stop on the Iron Dancer circuit for Labor Day 2008.

Don Primrose called his usual energetic dances for a crowded floor, then at the break, Lisa Sieverts handed out the awards. Someone was taking pictures, but not me, since I was called first. Hopefully I'll find some to add to this page, since it seems a little anticlimactic as it is :-)

There were three of us "first-timers", and then others, up to Bob Jervis, getting his seventh medal at the inspiring age of 71, and three guys who were hitting the top of the list at EIGHT. One of those hard-core folks is Dave Eisenstadter, whose blog about his trip is called All the Way Around, Contra Dancing Across America. You might enjoy reading it - I do! He's a much better writer than I am :-)

I am glad I got this one photo though, of the famous piano player and dance writer Bob McQuillen. I think the fiddler is Harvey Tolman, another well known and highly respected musician. What a treat. It captures a bit of what is special about Nelson: low-key, high-quality and just great to be there.