Hammerlocks are kinda OP

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Over 20 figures you can do in the 8 counts right after hammerlocking the follower.

In dance, a follower hammerlock involves both hands being held, with one arm of the follower crossing behind her back and coming out the other side. The hammerlocking vuelta/vacilala is the first two-handed casino figure you learn as a beginner. This figure is the start of an entire family of figures that are variations on the famous setenta (70), which is surprisingly large. This hints at the observation that hammerlocks are a fantastic branching point for adding variety to the dance. Here is a list of all the things you can do with them.

  1. After an enchufla
  2. Playing with the hammerlock
  3. Conclusion

After an enchufla

First, let’s see the typical application of a (cis) hammerlock: you create the hammerlock by rotating her clockwise within one phrase, and then you do an enchufla in the first bar, walking into caC+0 in the second bar. You can do basically anything in this second bar to create a variety of figures.

  1. Sencilla arriba: walk under your left arm and let go with right.
  2. Santiago: walk under your left arm and hammerlock yourself with right (hammerlocking enchufate arriba).
  3. Setenta / 70: walk under your right arm and let go with left.
  4. Setenta romantica: walk under your right arm and hold left.
  5. Disco: put your left hand in your neck and your right hand in her neck. To end, either uncrown both hands at the same time to create C, or uncrown only yourself and let her vuelta under the arm behind her neck (see this) or let go and start a rodeo (see this).
  6. Gancho, then let go (setenta y uno / 71): make your right wrist trace a clockwise circle while your palm faces to the ceiling and while you move it behind your ear, such that your elbow can wrap over hers. Then let go of the fingertip connection and land on her shoulder blade for a DQN.
  7. Gancho, then ungancho: same as above, except you undo the gancho in the first bar of the DQN and do it with two hands moving in a horizontal plane.
  8. Gancho, then ungancho, then throw (71 al reves): same as above, except rather than keeping the arms in a plane, you throw your right hand over her head (see this).
  9. Double gancho, then let go: same as 71 except you also do it with your left arm.
  10. Double gancho, then hold it (setenta y dos / 72): same as above except you don’t let go of the ganchos and you walk around in an adios (see this).
  11. Gancha1 (definitely not the actual name): turn the fingers of your right hand such that they point down and the back of your hand faces you. Now press her fingers onto her shoulder and push your elbow inward. She will naturally put her elbow over your elbow pit. You now have a gancho done by the follower. If you follow this up with an exhibela, lay this connection behind her neck for as long as possible.
  12. Coronala: drape your right hand over her head, ending on her right shoulder.
  13. Coronate: drape your right hand over your head, ending on your left shoulder.
  14. Rodeo two-handed front: same as coronate, except you lead her past your right side, and then move your left hand from your right shoulder to your left shoulder.
  15. Rodeo two-handed back: lead her past your right side, move your left hand to your left shoulder, and only then your right hand from your right shoulder to your left shoulder (under her left arm).
  16. Nudo pa’mi1: do an enchufate atras LLRH, then lead her around you in a rodeo where you hold your right hand to your neck, stretch your left arm from hammerlock and pass it over your head to the front, over your elbow. Then do this.
  17. Yoandy coronala1: do an enchufate atras LLRH, then put your right hand on her right shoulder, then duck – without any turning – under her right arm, do an enchufla, and then walk into caída. You end up with a regular coronala (see this).
  18. Do nothing: you’ll end in caC+0 from which you can e.g. do a DQN or an exhibela. From the exhibela, you end in caC+2, which can be followed by a DQN, a coronate, or a rodeo where you kneel (I use rodeo rodillas1 for this).

Playing with the hammerlock

Enchufla is not the only figure that can follow a hammerlock. Here are some more options for when you are about to end in one:

  1. Setenta (70) complicado: on 7, you pass under the non-hammerlocked arm.
  2. Setenta (70) pal piso: on 7, when she is finishing her turn, you make your right forearm point straight down to the ground (you can lean your body left for this), pushing your elbow into her right elbow pit. Then, staying close to her, you lock your arms and move the window you have created with your right arm over her head (see this). This puts you into a hammerlock with C-2 stacked on top of it, inhibiting enchufla. The only way to get rid of this C-2 is to sit on your knees and make her rodeo around you (another rodeo rodillas).
  3. Rodeo: on 7, you step forwards so that her right arm get trapped under your right armpit, and you start a rodeo. You can do counterclockwise turns while she walks around you.
  4. Bamboleo: after hammerlocking, use the palm of your right hand to press on her hip bone, so she is blocked from rotating out. At the same time, start Bamboleo steps, in the hope that she mirrors you.
    • 8: left foot back.
    • 1: right foot taps.
    • 2: right foot down.
    • 3: left foot forward.
    • 4: right foot backward.
    • 5: left foot taps.
    • 6: left foot down.
    • 7: right foot forward.
    • Repeat until you get out with an enchufla.
  5. Enchufla abajo: after hammerlocking, do the downwards enchufla that starts a Cubanita (or this or this). Note that because you have a C hold and not a T hold, her arms are now crossed behind her back. To end this cis Cubanita, you will have to use your right hand in the second bar to make her turn clockwise while you put her arm over her head. The best execution I’ve seen of this figure is in this video by Kevin Cano.
  6. Excavadora1: after hammerlocking, you pull her into you so that her right armpit sits between your neck and your right shoulder. Then, using your right arm, you scoop up the hammerlocked arm by stretching it and then turning her elbow the other way, so that you can put it over your head. In my experience, this is very difficult and requires compatible body proportions. Here are some examples of videos where it happens:

Conclusion

This entire article describes ways to fill a mere 8 counts in the dance, right after a hammerlock. Imagine how many possible sequences you could now create across an entire song.

  1. This is an unofficial name I made up just to have a label to use when referring to this movement. If you know what this is called elsewhere, contact me. ↩︎ ↩︎2 ↩︎3 ↩︎4 ↩︎5