My shoulder hurts.
Aside from Wolfy pasting my shoulder it was an ok practice. I fought Wolfy, Oscad, Vasilli, Everet, and Timur. I was using Timur's center grip round, which is the same size as my wooden one but a bit lighter. I am certainly doing a bit better than at Birka. I found that using it flat against my arm in a hig form, which had been working last year, wasn't working this year, but suing a sword foot forward guard was, even though I don't have as much offense out of that stance my defense was much better. I fought four fights with Oscad and each of us won two. My best fight In the first fight I won i took his leg fighting from a sword forward lead. Then I stepped in and jammed him with the center grip and hit him in the arm. The second fight I won he took my leg and I somehow managed to fake a leg shot and thrust him in the face. I found that in all those fights I was being much more aggressive, even when on my knees.
The rest of my fights were mostly teaching fights.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
Beau Geste and other stuff
Dugal won the Beau Geste tourney yesterday. Vivat!
I showed up but didn't fight, giving my back a bit more rest. However, I'm into a good workout program. One day a week I do upper body, one day a week I do lower body. I do aerobics at least three times a week. I have changed my program too, upping the weight a bit, going to three sets of reps on each exercise. This week I'll go to the gym on Wednesday and Friday (today I have to skip it for a doctors appointment, but all that means is I do my aerobics some other way). My next fighting event is probably Mudthaw.
I showed up but didn't fight, giving my back a bit more rest. However, I'm into a good workout program. One day a week I do upper body, one day a week I do lower body. I do aerobics at least three times a week. I have changed my program too, upping the weight a bit, going to three sets of reps on each exercise. This week I'll go to the gym on Wednesday and Friday (today I have to skip it for a doctors appointment, but all that means is I do my aerobics some other way). My next fighting event is probably Mudthaw.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Birka Recap
Birka results can be found here.
Prova Dura might be the grandest tourney, but Birka is the greatest fighting event in the SCA. It's a three hour bear pit with ten fields that averages right around 1000 fights an hour (last year it was four hours).
My Birka this year wasn't as good as last year. I had fun, but I was, well befuddled. No excuses, but there are lessons learned. In some cases they are things that you already know, like stick to one style and if you are going to switch then don't do it on the day of a tourney. Also, if you are going to switch to a heavier shield, do it a few weeks ahead of time not on the day of the tourney. Fighting with a bad back will slow you down. Big shields have an advantage in an oxhide tourney (a holmgang where you cant step out or you're dead). Center grip rounds are really tough to use against polearms.
Brika also favors brawlers. It took awhile for me to find my inner thug this year.
And I( want' doing well against florentine fighters either.
A number of times I hit my shield with my sword. A bunch of times I didn't know where I was because I had so much lower visibility with the center grip than I did with the bunny round. And my thrusts were missing terrible early on.
I got knocked out of the pit at least three times. Once I pushed my opponent out and went out with him.
I ended up in a five way tie for 30th. There were 152 fighters and 87 places.
I fought 51 fights this year: 27 wins, 21 losses, 3 double kils. That's fewer fights than last year, but the tourney was an hour shorter.
My winning percentage was 52.9, thanks to a run of wins after ten minutes was called.
I did give Arturius one of his seven losses, and I did it with a technique Lucky taught me twenty years ago: snap, pass on the right off line to the left, pass on the left, offside head. I hit him in the shoulder cause he's so freaking tall. I also managed to kill Frodo and Edward of Loch Laven, and I double killed with Vis. I pulled a lot of knights as my first fight out there. I lost to Sir Angus at least three times, maybe four.
At the end of my last run, my shield was so heavy I absolutely couldn't lift it. I rested it on my knees and just sword blocked (I'd lost my legs). I won one fight that way.
For the most part, guys were counting heavy and hitting light. Though I did get some bruises from Doug. And Artos knocked my head into next week.
But Birka is the most fun fighting event, like, ever. You can't get more fighting in anywhere.
Prova Dura might be the grandest tourney, but Birka is the greatest fighting event in the SCA. It's a three hour bear pit with ten fields that averages right around 1000 fights an hour (last year it was four hours).
My Birka this year wasn't as good as last year. I had fun, but I was, well befuddled. No excuses, but there are lessons learned. In some cases they are things that you already know, like stick to one style and if you are going to switch then don't do it on the day of a tourney. Also, if you are going to switch to a heavier shield, do it a few weeks ahead of time not on the day of the tourney. Fighting with a bad back will slow you down. Big shields have an advantage in an oxhide tourney (a holmgang where you cant step out or you're dead). Center grip rounds are really tough to use against polearms.
Brika also favors brawlers. It took awhile for me to find my inner thug this year.
And I( want' doing well against florentine fighters either.
A number of times I hit my shield with my sword. A bunch of times I didn't know where I was because I had so much lower visibility with the center grip than I did with the bunny round. And my thrusts were missing terrible early on.
I got knocked out of the pit at least three times. Once I pushed my opponent out and went out with him.
I ended up in a five way tie for 30th. There were 152 fighters and 87 places.
I fought 51 fights this year: 27 wins, 21 losses, 3 double kils. That's fewer fights than last year, but the tourney was an hour shorter.
My winning percentage was 52.9, thanks to a run of wins after ten minutes was called.
I did give Arturius one of his seven losses, and I did it with a technique Lucky taught me twenty years ago: snap, pass on the right off line to the left, pass on the left, offside head. I hit him in the shoulder cause he's so freaking tall. I also managed to kill Frodo and Edward of Loch Laven, and I double killed with Vis. I pulled a lot of knights as my first fight out there. I lost to Sir Angus at least three times, maybe four.
At the end of my last run, my shield was so heavy I absolutely couldn't lift it. I rested it on my knees and just sword blocked (I'd lost my legs). I won one fight that way.
For the most part, guys were counting heavy and hitting light. Though I did get some bruises from Doug. And Artos knocked my head into next week.
But Birka is the most fun fighting event, like, ever. You can't get more fighting in anywhere.
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