Salsa Tip: Try not to overwax the dance floor...

Now, we all love salsa nightclubs and events where they actually have a really nice wooden dance floor to dance on. Don't get me wrong - I give the club owners a lot of credit of giving us that pleasure. However, I went to a club last night, and they had one of those rented wooden dance floor. However, it was overly waxed.

It was very waxed to the point where it was hard to get a grip on the floor. So, I started thinking whether I would rather liked and unwaxed/sticky floor compared to an overly waxed floor. I came to the conclusion that even though I would like neither, I would prefer a unwaxed/sticky floor. The reason for this is as follows: a unwaxed floor, I'll feel like I have less chance to slip - even though I would have to do extra work - but as it goes, on a unwaxed floor - I can always relieve pressure on my shoes to make my feet lighter. In addition, I usually come with nice shoes to the dance floor that are already a bit slippery, which with a not so good floor, will make every dance just right. However, on a overly waxed floor, with really slick shoes (or with leather/suede on the bottom) is a mess. Its hard to artificially add the elements of 'friction' - and hence harder to make an waxed floor, less smooth (unless you spill some drinks) for just that night.On a overly smooth floor, it requires people to compensate for the lack of friction - which causes a lot of people to miss timing, or screw up combos. It kind of like doing a turn on ICE, when you've always been turning on tile. I think the main thing is that I always worry someone is going to slip (even me) and someone can get injured… but its just a thought.