A lot of prancin' going on at air guitar championship

By J. Pinkley

Last update: June 2, 2006 - 11:51 AM

There was a lot of prancing going on Thursday night for the regional US Air Guitar Championships at Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis.

Contestants competed in one, 60-second round to a song of their choice and finalists performed to a compulsory song in the second, deciding round.

Dressed in black and white stripes with matching stockings for her performance, air guitarist Lindsey Peterson described her desire to participate, "You gotta feel it in your soul, you gotta rock and roll. If you don't really play the guitar, air guitar is where you do it."

Contestant Rob Nechanickn said performing in front of a crowd was like, "The nervousness of your first kiss."

In the spirit of the event local representative Kristi Martin, Midwest Air Guitar Championships, predicted that Minneapolis will one day be the epicenter for air guitar, "So many people still keep this in their bedrooms, we have to get it out onto the stage."

The night's winner, Jonathan Maki, performing in a shredded, yellow t-shirt said air guitar is "all about showmanship, having humor."

The regional winners head next to New York City on June 22 for a chance to compete internationally at the end of August.