When is the right time to lead pivots and boleos?
- Should pivots be lead early or on time?
- And boleos lead late? (As a “surprise” or often-repeated “ocho-interruption”?
Even more important how do we lead the more intricate versions of each? (Such as over-turned ochos or super fast boleos.)
The best timing so far has been to lead either (ocho or boleo) when the follower has both feet on the ground.
It’s the only way to guarantee the lead. You need to learn her early so she knows what to expect. This allows her to hit the move on time and also be ready for the next move.
If you wait until she’s on one leg, you risk either:
- She becomes a “passive follower” and waits for you to manually crank her through ochos.
- She follows your ocho as a spontaneous reaction and might not react at the right time for the boleo or the move the after it.
So do this, when she’s got 2 legs on the ground:
- Lead boleos from there as if she’s gonna do them later. Don’t manhandle, just give the signal and expected a delayed response. Should work fine.
- Lead ochos
- For overturned ochos (e.g. follower’s overturned back ocho into back sacada), lead it with the delayed boleo mechanic but turn your upper body so she knows which direction to go towards.
What else am I not saying?
There are way more details like upper body movements, using the arms/hands, weight change and what not. But I’ll save that for another guide.