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Sugar Tuck › History › Revision 2

Revision 2

archivist · Jul 13, 2026, 7:08 PM · Add cited teaching points from pro instructional videos (Ramirez, Royston, McKeever, WCS Online)

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Changes from revision 1

Tags: push family, spins & turns, 6-count → push family, 6-count, spins & turns

A sugar push where the compression is redirected into an outside (clockwise) turn for the follower.
 
## The shape
 
Danced like a sugar push through counts 1–2, but on **3&4** the leader rotates the follower slightly toward them ("the tuck") and releases into a free outside turn on **4–5**, finishing with an anchor on **5&6**.
 
## Common notes
 
- The tuck is a rotation of the follower's frame, not an arm pull; the free turn comes from the follower unwinding the stored rotation.
- Often the first pattern where followers practice **spotting** and controlled free spins.
- Frequently danced with one hand, two hands, or with a hand change behind the leader's back as a styling variation.
+- Because the leader's hand finishes over the top of the grip, the tuck is commonly followed by an underarm turn (right side pass) to fix the handhold — Brian B calls this fix "magic, and for no extra charge."[^1]
+- Raising the lead hand does double duty: Brian B teaches that the raise itself closes the distance between the partners as the tuck sets up.[^2]
+- Robert Royston points out the tuck's leverage as a variation factory: led with the left hand up, right hand up, both hands, or no hands (a free spin), "once you learn the sugar tuck you immediately have four more moves."[^3]
+ 
+[^1]: Brian B & Megan, West Coast Swing Online, ["West Coast Swing Basic Steps // Beginner WCS"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKcamMuk3sA&t=598s) at 9:58.
+[^2]: Brian B & Megan, West Coast Swing Online, ["West Coast Swing Basic Steps // Beginner WCS"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKcamMuk3sA&t=575s) at 9:35.
+[^3]: Robert Royston, ["How to Do the Sugar Tuck | Swing Dance"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzV0eeolJ20&t=68s) (Howcast) at 1:08.
Page as of this revision

Sugar Tuck

beginner

also known as: Tuck Turn · Push Tuck

A sugar push where the compression is redirected into an outside (clockwise) turn for the follower.

The shape

Danced like a sugar push through counts 1–2, but on 3&4 the leader rotates the follower slightly toward them ("the tuck") and releases into a free outside turn on 4–5, finishing with an anchor on 5&6.

Common notes

  • The tuck is a rotation of the follower's frame, not an arm pull; the free turn comes from the follower unwinding the stored rotation.
  • Often the first pattern where followers practice spotting and controlled free spins.
  • Frequently danced with one hand, two hands, or with a hand change behind the leader's back as a styling variation.
  • Because the leader's hand finishes over the top of the grip, the tuck is commonly followed by an underarm turn (right side pass) to fix the handhold — Brian B calls this fix "magic, and for no extra charge."1
  • Raising the lead hand does double duty: Brian B teaches that the raise itself closes the distance between the partners as the tuck sets up.2
  • Robert Royston points out the tuck's leverage as a variation factory: led with the left hand up, right hand up, both hands, or no hands (a free spin), "once you learn the sugar tuck you immediately have four more moves."3

Footnotes

  1. Brian B & Megan, West Coast Swing Online, "West Coast Swing Basic Steps // Beginner WCS" at 9:58. ↩

  2. Brian B & Megan, West Coast Swing Online, "West Coast Swing Basic Steps // Beginner WCS" at 9:35. ↩

  3. Robert Royston, "How to Do the Sugar Tuck | Swing Dance" (Howcast) at 1:08. ↩