"The sixth step should be placed slightly across the body. What exactly does that mean to you. It has to be of a predetermined length depending on step five. I was always told that to go for any kind of length on step six will kill the CBMP and will not allow me to drive on the next heel lead. Thus losing light and shade."

Indeed, the sixth step is placed slighlty across the body. However, on a fully skilled dancer, the body has never stopped moving and travels quite a bit during the sixth step, so placing the foot "slightly across the body" ends up meaning quite a bit of floor is covered - the little bit that is the distance across the body, plus the large amount that the body has moved during this step.

If you merely tried to place the leg into a large step across the body, then yes that would ruin your CBMP. But if most of the distance comes from the continued movement of the body, and only a minority of it from the placement of the leg across the body, then you can have a moderately large step in perfect CBMP. Beginners aren't ready to move the body like that, so they are taught to make it a small step.

Step five does determine the lenght of step six, but it determines it most by the amount of rise achieved - the higher you rise, the larger step six will be, because the greater the distance the body will cover during the course of lowering. If you tried to place step 6 short of where your body flight was taking you, you would fall past the step rather than through it, and you would stumble into the next figure rather than being able to do a nice drift+drive action. Remember that your weight must pass through the heel of that foot on step 6 - if it goes directly to the foot, your have over-run the foot placement and killed the elegance of your dancing. Chances are, you will crush your partner into the floor on the next step.

Good dancing requires the the rise and body travel be perfectly in proportion to each other - and these will entirely deteremine the placement of the free foot.

If you are thinking and placing your foot with intention, you are playing connect the dots and not yet dancing.

Remember that your weight must pass through the heel of that foot on step 6 - if it goes directly to the foot, your have over-run the foot placement and killed the elegance of your dancing. Chances are, you will crush your partner into the floor on the next step.

Should read "if it goes directly to the TOE"

Anonymous. The body does not need to travell on step six. The shoulders keeps moving to give us CBM and a right shoulder lead on the Three Step.

"Anonymous. The body does not need to travell on step six."

If you wish to dance the slow english foxtrot it does.

If you wish to be a beginner for the rest of your life, then maybe it doesn't.

Anonymous. If you can take a big step on six and still be facing the wall. Then be my guest. The lady is the one that takes the bigger step not the man.

"Anonymous. If you can take a big step on six and still be facing the wall. Then be my guest. The lady is the one that takes the bigger step not the man."

You should not take a "big step", you should sustain body movement. Done well this will result in a moderately large step. But if you just try to take a "big step" you will loose body position on your partner.

It's unlike to force you to chance alignment in the room though.

Anonymous, What is a moderately large step. If I am going into CBMP still facing the wall how large is it. Your thighs will cross. How far in front of your left foot does the right foot go. Open the shoulders,up which is wrong, will give a bigger step and the thighs will be completly open and be on the wrong alignment.

"Anonymous, What is a moderately large step. If I am going into CBMP still facing the wall how large is it. Your thighs will cross. How far in front of your left foot does the right foot go. Open the shoulders,up which is wrong, will give a bigger step and the thighs will be completly open and be on the wrong alignment. "

The key is in the crossing of the thighs.

Rotation does not figure into it.

You already have a direction of movement and a body orientation from the preceding action. During the drift, you merely continue with these with no need to change them. If the body's flight is substantial during this drift, a quite large step will result with no distrubance to its direction or the bodies orienation.

On the other hand, if you try to take a large step by poistioning your foot rather then sustaining the movement of your body, then the kinds of problems you are worried about will most certainly occur.

Anonymous. Thats right . There is no rotation of the body over the feet intill the sixth step is completed. So how can it be a big step.

"Anonymous. Thats right . There is no rotation of the body over the feet intill the sixth step is completed. So how can it be a big step."

Because step size is quite obviously not relate to body rotation!

Step size is determined to a small degree by leg swing, but primarily by body movement.

A properly big step will result from moving the body throught the entire duration of the step, while swinging the free leg simply across the body.

An impoperly big step would result from turning the body to swing the leg, or reaching the leg more than simply across the body. The size is in the continued body movement - if you don't have that, your step must be small to avoid loosing position. If you do have that, your step can safely be big.