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abendgulesSaturday court had been long - combining principality and kingdom business - and making up for past courts where scrolls could not be distributed in the rain. Our evening was still ahead, with our light supper and dancing; the musicians had gathered in our encampment and practiced over the afternoon. I never tire of listening to musicians warm up, because I know how hard I find playing, and am glad that there are folk who delight in making music as much as I delight in dancing.
But frankly...I was beat. I changed out of the novitiate outfit, put on a wool tunic, and went and watched dancing for awhile. And in the end, I went to be reasonably early.
Sunday was the Big Day of Fencing, with two more provost, and three prefect challenges to complete. I watched the wrap up of the individual skills challenges for the provosts in the fountain court, but it began to rain (surprise) and the fencers retreated to the undercroft, where they set up the half-hour all comers challenge area.
It seemed heavy going - fencing as continuously as possible, for half an hour, in the semidarkness (no candles wanted in the undercroft), with rain outside and repeated shouts of 'NEXT!' and 'EDGE!' or 'CENTRE!' to get the challengers or their opponents to start in the middle of the fighting area. I got a stool for Gabriel our timekeeper, and water for everyone.
I was impressed by both challengers - I hadn't got to fight HE Pol or HE Anna for their challenges, and was glad to contribute to this one, for Lord Duncan Chaucer, and Lady Gwenllian. There was an exellent pool of combatants to draw on - from newly-authorised, to Dragon's steel.
Seeing this challenge enacted made it, to me, much more achieveable, and I'm now thinking of aiming for a provost challenge for next year's Raglan.
The afternoon was the prefect challenges, for Dom Duarte![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
goncalves, Master Cernac, and Visc Eirik. I armed up for cut and thrust, so I could meet Cernac in this form as many times as possible - it meant I felt a bit clumsy fighting the others, and couldn't change weapons easily (my steel gauntlets were lovingly repurposed by my sweetie from a pair by Lord Duncan McLeod in Caldrithig - but they're not easy to take on or off) but I decided I'd not fuss about trying out different forms, just stick to sword and dagger.
They were distributed around the fountain court, and we formed an orderly queue (of course!) to fight them. The marshals rotated them round the court, so everyone stood in sun (which had now emerged, making the whole venue steamy) or shade as was available.
Again - it was heavy going. I felt pushed, as well as the challengers, because I rarely fight for anything like an hour at a time. I took a wicked, wickedly sturdy blow from Cernac's two-handed sword on my L leg; we both paused, and he said, ah, not wearing armour there are you? The next bout with him he made a point of taking my right leg, with a much more moderate blow.
While it no longer hurts all the time, it's made better padding/protection to my delicate thighs more of a priority, at least against two-handed weapons.
I was as relieved as any to mark the end of the challenge. I could hardly drink enough at the end.
TRM had watched this latter part of the challenge and then held court that the participants could be honoured and the new challengers announced as successful provosts and prefects.
It was a fine moment to also award arms to the youngest fencer, who had authorised at Raglan just a few days earlier - Etienne explained he'd fought long and hard that young men of great enthusiasm and violence might also join the combat on the field. :-)
He had similar welcomes for his fellow prefects, explaining he'd long fought with Cernac, til they had discovered the SCA; he'd long fought withgoncalves (5 hours a day, 3 days a week, at one point), til they discovered the seneschallate, and were able to put their energies into new venues.
Etienne had taken apart his own prefect braid, to put one strand in each new prefect's braid, thus creating a lineage to his own. A very gracious gesture.
That day's beer felt heartily well earned, for me.
But frankly...I was beat. I changed out of the novitiate outfit, put on a wool tunic, and went and watched dancing for awhile. And in the end, I went to be reasonably early.
Sunday was the Big Day of Fencing, with two more provost, and three prefect challenges to complete. I watched the wrap up of the individual skills challenges for the provosts in the fountain court, but it began to rain (surprise) and the fencers retreated to the undercroft, where they set up the half-hour all comers challenge area.
It seemed heavy going - fencing as continuously as possible, for half an hour, in the semidarkness (no candles wanted in the undercroft), with rain outside and repeated shouts of 'NEXT!' and 'EDGE!' or 'CENTRE!' to get the challengers or their opponents to start in the middle of the fighting area. I got a stool for Gabriel our timekeeper, and water for everyone.
I was impressed by both challengers - I hadn't got to fight HE Pol or HE Anna for their challenges, and was glad to contribute to this one, for Lord Duncan Chaucer, and Lady Gwenllian. There was an exellent pool of combatants to draw on - from newly-authorised, to Dragon's steel.
Seeing this challenge enacted made it, to me, much more achieveable, and I'm now thinking of aiming for a provost challenge for next year's Raglan.
The afternoon was the prefect challenges, for Dom Duarte
goncalves, Master Cernac, and Visc Eirik. I armed up for cut and thrust, so I could meet Cernac in this form as many times as possible - it meant I felt a bit clumsy fighting the others, and couldn't change weapons easily (my steel gauntlets were lovingly repurposed by my sweetie from a pair by Lord Duncan McLeod in Caldrithig - but they're not easy to take on or off) but I decided I'd not fuss about trying out different forms, just stick to sword and dagger. They were distributed around the fountain court, and we formed an orderly queue (of course!) to fight them. The marshals rotated them round the court, so everyone stood in sun (which had now emerged, making the whole venue steamy) or shade as was available.
Again - it was heavy going. I felt pushed, as well as the challengers, because I rarely fight for anything like an hour at a time. I took a wicked, wickedly sturdy blow from Cernac's two-handed sword on my L leg; we both paused, and he said, ah, not wearing armour there are you? The next bout with him he made a point of taking my right leg, with a much more moderate blow.
While it no longer hurts all the time, it's made better padding/protection to my delicate thighs more of a priority, at least against two-handed weapons.
I was as relieved as any to mark the end of the challenge. I could hardly drink enough at the end.
TRM had watched this latter part of the challenge and then held court that the participants could be honoured and the new challengers announced as successful provosts and prefects.
It was a fine moment to also award arms to the youngest fencer, who had authorised at Raglan just a few days earlier - Etienne explained he'd fought long and hard that young men of great enthusiasm and violence might also join the combat on the field. :-)
He had similar welcomes for his fellow prefects, explaining he'd long fought with Cernac, til they had discovered the SCA; he'd long fought with
goncalves (5 hours a day, 3 days a week, at one point), til they discovered the seneschallate, and were able to put their energies into new venues. Etienne had taken apart his own prefect braid, to put one strand in each new prefect's braid, thus creating a lineage to his own. A very gracious gesture.
That day's beer felt heartily well earned, for me.
