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For Country Music Lovers, Dancing Is A Matter Of Pride

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 7, 2008

Updated: 01/06/2008 04:33 pm

Cutline: Photo from Tampa Bay Wranglers

The Tampa Bay Wranglers, a gay and lesbian country dance team, practice on Monday nights in Ybor City.

TAMPA - It's 7 p.m. Monday at 7@14 Lounge in Ybor City. A group of men and women decked out in cowboy boots and hats makes its way to the dance floor. A country song begins to play. On cue, the cowboys and cowgirls move their feet in choreographed unison.

The Tampa Bay Wranglers, an award-winning gay and lesbian country-western dance team, rehearse Monday nights in Ybor and, when necessary, any place else they can find.

Practice makes perfect, team members say.

"We've rehearsed everywhere from rooftops to parking lots," member Lynn Crosby, 37, says. "The camaraderie on this team is amazing. We're like a family."

The Wranglers were founded a year ago by longtime country music fan Roger Bell, who performed on a line-dancing team in Virginia. When he moved to Tampa, he couldn't find anything similar, so he gathered his buddies and started to groove.

There are now 13 Wranglers ages 23 to 53. They've entertained crowds from Florida to Las Vegas, and in May, they placed second in the line division at The International Association for Gay and Lesbian Country Western Dance Clubs' annual competition in Atlanta. They won the Judy Garland Award at the Jacksonville Gay Pride Parade.

"When we dance, we're taking pride in who we are," choreographer Chris Kilburn says. "Country music is often thought of as very straight oriented. ... But it is for everybody. The songs tell a story. You don't have to be a certain type to love country."
Kilburn picks up steps from area clubs and dance videos, then puts his own spin on the movements. He isn't shy about making his dancers work hard. Rehearsals are high-energy.

"Let's do it again," he says, again and again.

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