Irish dancing, lawn-chair drill teams march to their own beat at Wor…

Legend has it that years ago at the old J.J. McCabe’s bar on Walnut Street and 10th Street, a group of patrons decided to march to 9th Street and back to the bar. That march was dubbed the “World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade” and, thus, a Boulder tradition was created.

The World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade was held Sunday along 16th Street between Pearl Street and Spruce Street. Although the parade was only a block long, more than 200 people stood along the street to watch the parade go by.

Although the parade was short, it was noticeable. The street was filled with people wearing green, a bagpipe quartet, Irish Wolfhounds, Irish dancing, bicycle cruisers and an appearance by Gov. Jared Polis.

The Avoca Irish Dance Academy and McTeggart Irish Dancers both performed at the parade. The dancers stood tall with rigid upper bodies, but they also had quick and precise movements on their feet.

Alyssa Windholz, a part of the Avoca academy, said that dancing at the parade is always a fun time. Windholz, 16,has been Irish dancing since she was 10. She said that dance was always an escape for her and when she “felt the most free.”

“It’s like, when I dance, nothing else matters anymore. You get out of the world,” Windholz said Sunday.

She described Irish dance as incredibly technical, where having a stiff, still upper body is just as important as the fast-paced leg movement.

Janet Green, who is also part of Avoca, said that she started to Irish dance when she was 30 years old and has now been dancing for 13 years. Green said that she always thought Irish dance was an interesting style she wanted to learn so she jumped right in.

“I just started and I fell in love, so I’ve been doing it ever since,” Green said.

The Paddy O’Furniture Drill Team made its way along the block with its lawn chairs in hand. The drill team played a familiar Queen melody, tapping its lawn chairs against the street twice and then snapping the chairs shut as they began to sing “We Will Sham-Rock You.”

Matt Cutter is the leader of Paddy O’Furniture. Cutter said that he noticed a lawn chair drill team missing from the parade, so he might as well make one himself. He said that the drill team was a staple of the parade and “it has to be there.” He said that after a few phone calls to friends and scrounging up lawn chairs, the drill team was born.

“Let’s keep the tradition alive. We’ve lost a lot of things in Boulder that kept it weird, kept it unique and those things are more important than ever today,” Cutter said.

The parade was hosted by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Boulder Lodge No. 9, a Boulder-based nonprofit. But the parade was only a prelude to the party that continued at the IOOF lodge. For a $20 donation, the fun continued with Irish food, drinks, and even more Irish dancing.

Christi Russell, part of the International Association of Rebekah’s Assemblies, said that the Rebekahs work alongside the IOOF. Both organizations support the Boulder community, from scholarships, fundraising and other charitable events.

“We work to fortify and nurse the community as needed,” Russell said.