They did the Hokey Pokey and they turned themselves around.

The fancy footwork took place at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie on Monday, in preparation for an attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the world's longest line of people doing a dance.

The effort will culminate Saturday, when thousands are expected to perform the dance on the Walkway Over the Hudson.

The aim is to gather at least 3,000 people together for a Hokey Pokey hoedown that, if successful, will go down in history.

"We need about 400 more people to break the Guinness World record," said Elizabeth Waldstein-Hart, executive director of the nonprofit Walkway Over the Hudson.

At the Civic Center on Monday, the focus was on safety.

"Remember, we're relying on you to get this done and to get it done as safely as possible," said Geoff Travagline, Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park public safety ranger, speaking to a crowd of about 75 volunteers who practiced the dance.

The training session addressed emergencies, communication and crowd control.

Organizers are hoping the group jig will break the existing record set in 2008 by 2,354 Estonians performing a folk dance known as the Toe Dance.

"The Hokey Pokey is a dance that all Americans seem to know," Walkway spokesman Steve Densmore said. "The wonderful thing about the Hokey Pokey is that the lyrics tell you exactly what to do and when."

Densmore said the event is expected to raise about $40,000, with proceeds going to benefit various Walkway projects, including a 21-story elevator linking the bridge and the Poughkeepsie waterfront.

Densmore said that if enough people come out to the event, the dancers would form a line more than a mile long.

And that's what's it all about.

By: Shantal Parris Riley
Poughkeepsie Journal
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