Past president Karl Herman said five couples from the club attended the senior Rock‘n’Roll Dance Nationals in Christchurch during Labour Weekend and they successfully came home with five first placings.
The competition involved clubs from across the country.
"I didn’t expect it, because we all go up there to have a bit of fun and wherever I get is wherever I get — so it was just a good surprise.
"It was just a great weekend for everyone involved."
Not only were the achievements a good surprise but they also set a record for the club, he said.
Herman and Carla Polaschek were first in dancing and best-dressed in the open restricted category, O’Leah Peterson and Sebastian Fabre placed second in best-dressed and third in dancing in the same category and Izaak Sanders and Nikita Rogers were third in best-dressed.
The Invercargill club also claimed first place in the novelty category and Herman, Nikita Rogers and Susan Rogers placed first place in dancing and best-dressed.
"Some sections that were won have never been won by any Invercargill couple [before] and sections that haven’t had any awards from Invercargill in the last 36 years — ending a 36-year-drought."
Mr Herman said usually all the first place awards went to clubs in the North Island as there was a bigger number of members there and they were more active, helping each other due to the closeness of the regions.
"So it’s a huge challenge for us being away from other clubs and so bringing the awards down South kind of opens the eyes to all the other members and future dancers that, you know, even the Southlanders can do this — so it’s a really good feeling."
He said the club had 180 members and he hoped those victories would bring even more people to the rock‘n’roll dance floor.
"We’ve just started our lessons and ... that was just met with a huge amount of people wanting to start learning, which is just great. So the momentum is still there.
"People are still wanting to be part of it, after 70 years of rock‘n’roll."
