GLENDALE : Dancers Put Themselves on the Line

Joshua Beeler was determined to pay his girlfriend back for the new boots he got--no ands, ifs or buts about it.

Well, maybe one butt.

Beeler put his you-know-what on the line one recent night in the weekly tush push competition at In Cahoots, a country-Western club in Glendale.

He swung his hips. He grabbed his hat. He did pushups.

And the bottom line . . . ? He pocketed the $100 first prize and a free ticket to next month’s finals of the Ultimate Line Dance Contest II at the Fairplex in Pomona. It will be part of the Academy of Country Music’s FANFEST ’95.

“I told her I was going to bust my butt for the tush push,” said Beeler, 24, of Granada Hills. “I told her I was going to pay her back by the end of the night.”

He owes the end result to the crowd. After two female judges narrowed the group down from about a dozen male contestants to the final three, Beeler was the overwhelming choice of the fans assembled in a circle around the dance floor.

With every body gesture, they hollered, especially the women. The tush push, and few will deny it, is about more than just dancing skills.

To be fair, though, the female winner, Lisa Villalobos, 22, of North Hollywood, is a good dancer.

And what will Villalobos, who hopes to be a dance instructor someday, do with her $100 winnings?

“I’m going to give it to my mom,” she said. “I owe her money.”

Besides In Cahoots, Crest Country in Reseda and Calico Saloon in Lancaster are among the dozens of California nightclubs participating in the contest. Each club selects several male and female winners per week.