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John Bkila Sub-Editor jbkila@oakvillebeaver.com Artscene For a guy who's go-to dance move coming into the competition was `The Sprinkler,' he had a hard time feeling disappointed about losing the coveted mirror ball trophy to Laurie Hernandez, who was pegged as the pre-competition favorite by her fellow contestants. "To nish runner-up to someone that is an Olympic gymnast, I think is a pretty impressive feat for someone who sits for a living," the 29-year-old said from New York, after doing appearances on Good Morning America and The View Wednesday (Nov. 23). Whatever he thought of his own abilities, Hinchcliffe quickly made an impression on the judges. While still wrapping up the IndyCar season, he and Burgess tied for the highest score on opening night. And while you would think that would have given him con dence, Hinchcliffe viewed it much differently. "It terri ed me, to be honest. There was some sort of expectation," he said. "I gured it was all downhill from there. Luckily, that wasn't the case. Sharna and I were able to keep developing and keep working on my ability, my technique." Each week provided a new dance, a new routine and a new challenge. Whether it was the 23 | Friday, November 25, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" Hinchcliffe pulls off `impressive feat' with DWTS runner-up nish by Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver Staff I t came just nine seconds into his rst performance. James Hinchcliffe has raced in front of 350,000 people at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, driving at more than 230 mph just inches away from concrete walls and other cars. He's felt adrenaline rushes before. This was different. Hinchcliffe signed on for Dancing with the Stars as an admitted `non-dancer.' He thought mastering the dance steps would be the hard part. He wasn't ready for the cheers of the crowd sitting just a few feet from the dance oor. "Every time you did a move that the crowd liked, they let you know about it. It kind of caught me off guard," Hinchcliffe said. "I'm not used to hearing people cheer every time you make a pass on the track. You're so hyper focused on what you're doing. I had to teach myself to make sure it didn't throw me off and have me forgetting steps." It was the rst of many lessons learned on the way to a runnerup nish Tuesday (Nov. 22) night for Hinchcliffe and partner Sharna Burgess on the 23rd season of the ABC series. Above, Oakville's James Hinchcliffe performs the jive on Dancing With the Stars (DWTS) with professional dance partners Sharna Burgess (right) and Jenna Johnson (left), who stepped in for two weeks during this season when Burgess was sidelined with a knee injury. At right, Hinchcliffe and Burgess perform their favourite dance -- the Cirque Du Soleil Quickstep -- during the DWTS nale. | ABC photos, courtesy IndyCar foxtrot, the rumba or a jitterbug, Hinchcliffe performed consistently, even though he beat himself up over the occasional misstep. "You show up on Tuesday, everything you learned the week before is thrown out the window and you start from scratch," he said. "What is so frustrating about that is you didn't feel you were making any progress as a dancer. You always felt like it was your rst week on the job." By the midway point of the competition, Hinchcliffe was still drawing rave reviews. Julianne Hough called him "the best male (dancer) we've ever had on the Vachon Insurance Group 200-5468 Dundas St. W, Toronto, ON 1-800-766-8662 vachoninsce.com show" -- a feather in Hinchcliffe's cap considering Hough partnered with another IndyCar driver, Helio Castroneves, to win season ve of Dancing with the Stars. see Hinchcliffe on p.24 BREAKFAST & LUNCH Smoked Salmon Hollandaise offer ends November 30, 2016 November Special As independent insurance brokers, we have freedom of choice. So should you. We'll present you with more options designed to better match your protection and budget needs. Don't settle for one quote from your insurance agent. Let us help you get your money's worth. Open 7 days a week 7 am - 3 pm 2501 Prince Michael Dr., Oakville, L6H 0E9 905.257.5126 · www.sunnysidegrill.com Oakville rates have been discounted. Call us for a quote today and start saving.