Marathons

Setting the first record

In 1966 RUUFDS decided to take part in the university Rag Week by staging a Folk Dance Marathon. We danced in the car park of the Odeon cinema at the back of the Co-op (now where the Reading Travelodge is). We ended up dancing on the back of a float in the Rag Procession and ended in Morgan Road for the last dance 36 hours and 20 minutes after we started.

The overnight slot - Malcolm Thomson, Ian Graham, Barbara Heatherington (in the sleeping bag), Rosemary ? (with her back to camera)

Dancing Morpeth Rant in the Odeon Car Park the next morning. Mary, Stuart, Celia - who has his back to the camera?

• Circle Waltz:

Stuart, Val, Jenny?, Steve, Who are the two in the foreground, Mary & Martin

During the Saturday morning Colin Robertson brought some of his Scottish dancers along -

• Scottish:

Gavin?, Mary, Colin, Malcolm, Joan - Joan is still living in the Reading area and teaches the Andrew's Scottish Dancers

• Saturday morning:

More Scottish with Mary & Trevor in the foreground - who is he dancing with?

• On the float:

The marathon had to end - not due to exhaustion - but because we danced in a float in the Rag Procession. Dancing on the back of a moving lorry is - different. We finished in Morgan Road. Got off, did one more dance and went home to recover.

• Mexican Hat Dance Rag Float - end of the marathon?:

How long would the record last?

The record stood for many years - one attempt to beat it failed - but in 1983 it was broken - see below under from English Dance & Song Volume 45 Number 2 Summer 1983 'Congratulations'.

Oh the bit above it just happens to have a relevance to the reunion too.

Sorry - I never can get magazines to sit exactly square in my scanner.

There's a letter from Nibs Matthews (Director of the EFDSS) congratulating RUUFDS on the achievement in the scrapbook.

-- BrianJones - 03 Jun 2004 & 21 Sep 2005

The 1983 marathon

Dancing Rapper in the Union Coffee Lounge: Andrew Findlay, Martyn Tinnion, Jane Curry, Andy Shaw (and probably Marianne Wood out of sight behind Andrew)