Floors at venues

[JiveLad]

(Mods please move to other section as appropriate).

So last night at Hammersmith...........I have never experienced 2 more sticky floors (main room and Blue room). Everyone was talking about it - and it was causing physical pain/soreness etc - especially for the ladies. At first I though something was wrong with my shoes........then I realised it was the floor.

To me this is not acceptable: the operator should take responsibility for ensuring a minimum standard of acceptable flooring.

It really did detract from the enjoyment of the evening.

And not just Hammersmith - apparently last night at Rugby, my sources tell me that the floor was very sticky in places - although it had some slippy parts as well (a bit like ijig at the Forum last time).

What does it take for the operator to get a floor into an acceptable state?
What are the barriers to making this happen?
Do the operators care sufficiently about the floor?
What happens if dancers suffer injuries to knees as a result?

You'd think by now that established venues would have 'cracked it' - ie sorted out the basics of flooring/ventilation/sound system......

[Lory]

My good friend Colin went home after just 30mins, as he said the floor had made him pull a muscle in his neck!

I personally didn't stay till the end, as my shoes were covered in a sticky black tar, as were all my other friends and I could feel the strain on my knees and ankles, so I decided to call it a night early, rather than risk any serious damage.

I was praying to find a secret stash of talc hidden somewhere

[Andy Razzle]

Ive come across the black tar substance at a venue that used to run (closed now) I think it must be some sort of non slip application !?????? (health and safety????)

[Dance Demon]

Ive come across the black tar substance at a venue that used to run (closed now) I think it must be some sort of non slip application !?????? (health and safety????)

had this at a venue I used for Red Hot & Blue in Edinburgh. Irene used to spend the whole night dusting the floor with talc...Was a fab venue though...pity about the floor

[DavidY]

And not just Hammersmith - apparently last night at Rugby, my sources tell me that the floor was very sticky in places - although it had some slippy parts as well (a bit like ijig at the Forum last time).

I was at Rugby last night - I believe something had been done to the floor surface recently, and when I arrived it seemed pretty slippy in most places.

However a bit later in the night, those exact same places had got stickier.

I had a theory on this - it was a pretty humid night, and all those bodies generate moisture, and I reckon the combination makes the floor sticky as the night goes on.

If this is correct, it's difficult to see what organisers could do about it.

[Lost Leader]

.

And not just Hammersmith - apparently last night at Rugby, my sources tell me that the floor was very sticky in places - although it had some slippy parts as well (a bit like ijig at the Forum last time).

The floor at Rugby was sanded and re-polished last week. To be fair I think a very good job has been done. Inevitably there were a couple of small areas that were a bit slippy but overall the floor was pretty much as good as it always is. Floors have to be re varnished or polished from time to time and when they are it can take a little while for them to get back to their best. For Rugby to be as good as it was so soon is a sign of a very good job - I've known other floors that have been revarnished to be virtually undanceable for weeks. Hammersmith sounds like a totally different ball game.

[Prian]

Spent 7 years every Friday dancing on carpet at a Ceroc venue. NOT EASY!!!!!

It was not uncommon for girls to wear through soles in an evening.

Oddly though almost everyone that danced there regularly wishes they still could. Not for the floor though but for the crowd and the ambiance.

[Minnie M]

Spent 7 years every Friday dancing on carpet at a Ceroc venue.........

Where was that ???

On the reverse, our very beautiful and fabby Hove Town Hall, (BritRock venue) has the reverse - the floor is sooooooo fast, organisers have to 'wash' it to slow the floor down before dances. I love a fast floor, but without this added treatment you can slide from one side to the other

[Andy McGregor]

On the reverse, our very beautiful and fabby Hove Town Hall, (BritRock venue) has the reverse - the floor is sooooooo fast, organisers have to 'wash' it to slow the floor down before dances. I love a fast floor, but without this added treatment you can slide from one side to the other

As one of the organisers who has mopped this floor I can tell you that it's a very big floor! It's not really washing as the floor is usually clean and shiny. What we have to do is apply a fairly strong solution of wood floor cleaner and let it dry. However, if you get the strength wrong it makes the floor too slow.

In my experience the sticky black tar come from spilt drinks which haven't been properly mopped. The floor looks shiny, but it's still got a thin, sugary syrup coating - this gets worse as sweat or wet weather increases the humidity.

Getting the speed of dance floors right is a black art involving incantations, burning incence and an elixir made from the fermented toenail clippings of virgins - it's not for amateurs!

[Lory]

If I had to choose between a sticky floor and a slippery floor, I think I'd always opt for the latter!

A change of shoes can sometimes help to cope with a floor that's too slow but if you can't use talc, there not much that can be done on the night with a sticky floor

[David Bailey]

an elixir made from the fermented toenail clippings of virgins

That's probably the black tar-like substance.

Yes, I know, ewww. Thank you, that is indeed my coat.

[Prian]

Where was that ???

It was a private Ceroc venue run by the Cronins, where the proceeds went to charity. It was actually in a church. South Kensington. Not sure anyone here remembers it.

[David Bailey]

It was a private Ceroc venue run by the Cronins, where the proceeds went to charity. It was actually in a church. South Kensington. Not sure anyone here remembers it.

Yes, I went there a few times.

Yes, OK, it was carpet, but it was actually pretty smooth carpet.

[Maxine]

So last night at Hammersmith...........I have never experienced 2 more sticky floors (main room and Blue room). Everyone was talking about it - and it was causing physical pain/soreness etc - especially for the ladies. At first I though something was wrong with my shoes........then I realised it was the floor.

To me this is not acceptable: the operator should take responsibility for ensuring a minimum standard of acceptable flooring.

It really did detract from the enjoyment of the evening.

You will be pleased to know that your protests were heard and the floor was actually quite slippery last night but what an improvement on last time.

Or it may just have been that it was nowhere near as humid yesterday

[Lory]

You will be pleased to know that your protests were heard

That's good to know and appreciated! (even though I couldn't make it in the end )

[Maxine]

The floor in the blues room at Chiswick last night was the worst I've ever known. When I arrived I noticed my sandals were sticking to the floor, where I was about to change my shoes, so I thought someone had spilt a drink. Unfortunately it was not just that area but the whole room. This really spoilt the evening for me as it made it impossible to dance properly and in fact at one time I could not release my foot from the floor and when I eventually did it made a squelching sound.

I did speak to one of the guys that run the venue and he said he'd have a word with the management, who hire out the venue. I really think Ceroc London need to do more though, such as bring along equipment to clean the floor, should they find it in an unsatisfactory state.

It was a shame as there were some lovely dancers there and the DJ played a great set but in the end I was forced to dance in the main room where the sound system is terrible

[LilyB]

The floor in the blues room at Chiswick last night was the worst I've ever known. When I arrived I noticed my sandals were sticking to the floor, where I was about to change my shoes, so I thought someone had spilt a drink. Unfortunately it was not just that area but the whole room. This really spoilt the evening for me as it made it impossible to dance properly and in fact at one time I could not release my foot from the floor and when I eventually did it made a squelching sound.

- snip -

It was a shame as there were some lovely dancers there and the DJ played a great set but in the end I was forced to dance in the main room where the sound system is terrible

I haven't been to Chiswick for 2 years now and last night just reinforced why. However, we made an exception as it was to celebrate a certain friend's success in the CTA exams that day .

I did speak to one of the guys that run the venue and he said he'd have a word with the management, who hire out the venue. I really think Ceroc London need to do more though, such as bring along equipment to clean the floor, should they find it in an unsatisfactory state.

Absolutely! The punters pay a lot of money to dance at the venue and they are entitled to expect a floor(s) where they can dance properly. It is of little consolation to them for the Ceroc staff to "have a word" with the venue management after the event

[DavidB]

The floor at Chiswick ended my night early after twisting my knee in the blues room. It was a particularly nasty surface to dance on.

[David Bailey]

The floor in the blues room at Chiswick last night was the worst I've ever known. When I arrived I noticed my sandals were sticking to the floor, where I was about to change my shoes, so I thought someone had spilt a drink. Unfortunately it was not just that area but the whole room. This really spoilt the evening for me as it made it impossible to dance properly and in fact at one time I could not release my foot from the floor and when I eventually did it made a squelching sound.

Chiswick's always been dodgy. The Blues Room floor was (is?) uneven and sticky.

It seems to be vulnerable to both heat and previous events.

I did speak to one of the guys that run the venue and he said he'd have a word with the management, who hire out the venue.

Well that's no flippin' good, is it? Especially considering the Hammersmith thing a few weeks back.

I know that sometimes these things happen - you turn up in the afternoon to set up and discover that someone's had a wedding party the night before, or some numpty's decided to varnish the surface or something similar.

But if the floor's that bad, you need to do something about it, immediately - either by informing the punters, by trying to fix the problem, or in extremis by cancelling the event / giving the punters their money back.

I really think Ceroc London need to do more though, such as bring along equipment to clean the floor, should they find it in an unsatisfactory state.

Yes, it's unfortunate that this has happened twice in succession with Ceroc London venues.

It was a shame as there were some lovely dancers there and the DJ played a great set but in the end I was forced to dance in the main room where the sound system is terrible

Maybe we should start a movement to ask for our money back if the floor's bad?

[Gav]

Maybe we should start a movement to ask for our money back if the floor's bad?

Or just ask for your money back?