On April 12 – 14, in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia, jousters competed for the title of New South Wales jousting champion for 2013. Rod Walker, who you may remember as the coach of the black team on the tv show “Full Metal Jousting” won this year's “Full Tilt International Jousting Tournament” with a perfect score of 60 points.
John King, in his first international jousting tournament, earned second place with a score of 51 points.
And Sarah Hay and Gunnar Cederberg tied for third place with scores of 50 points.
Although Rod finished with a perfect score, things did not go perfectly for him on every pass. During one pass, Andrew McKinnon accidentally struck Rod in the head with his lance. In some tournaments, such as “The Grand Tournament of Sankt Wendel”, head shots are allowed and even awarded points. However, the armour requirements for such tournaments are much stricter than for those that do not allow head shots. In the “Full Tilt International Jousting Tournament” head shots were not allowed, and Rod was not wearing the kind of armour best suited for protecting his head from the lance. Fortunately, Rod was not injured, but he was upset, and they did re-run the pass.
Rod Walker(left) just after being struck in the head by Andrew McKinnon's(right) lance
(photo by Bronwyn Elliot)
When asked about accidentally hitting Rod in the head, Andrew had this to say:
Notice that Andrew was more concerned about the safety of Rod's horse than of Rod's head. If the lance had gone low instead of high, there was a chance it might have hit Rod's horse. In jousting, the safety of the horse is paramount. The jousters have chosen to risk injury by competing, the horses have not. Jousters would far rather get hurt themselves than risk hurting a horse, as Rod succinctly states in the following:
After the incident, the two resolved the issue...
and headed to the nearest pub to have a cold beer together.
Left to Right: Andrew McKinnon, Rod Walker, Sarah Hay and Gunnar Cederberg
(photo by Bronwyn Elliot)
You can see more pictures from the tournament in Bronwyn Elliot's photo album.
The tournament was produced by Full Tilt Entertainment. You can find out more about Full Tilt on their website and Facebook page.
John King, in his first international jousting tournament, earned second place with a score of 51 points.
And Sarah Hay and Gunnar Cederberg tied for third place with scores of 50 points.
Although Rod finished with a perfect score, things did not go perfectly for him on every pass. During one pass, Andrew McKinnon accidentally struck Rod in the head with his lance. In some tournaments, such as “The Grand Tournament of Sankt Wendel”, head shots are allowed and even awarded points. However, the armour requirements for such tournaments are much stricter than for those that do not allow head shots. In the “Full Tilt International Jousting Tournament” head shots were not allowed, and Rod was not wearing the kind of armour best suited for protecting his head from the lance. Fortunately, Rod was not injured, but he was upset, and they did re-run the pass.
Rod Walker(left) just after being struck in the head by Andrew McKinnon's(right) lance
(photo by Bronwyn Elliot)
When asked about accidentally hitting Rod in the head, Andrew had this to say:
“The reason I was staying a bit high was my horse very nervous, and I wasn't going to overcommit to a shot that might potentially go low if the horse balked. So safety was the first consideration.” – Andrew McKinnon
Notice that Andrew was more concerned about the safety of Rod's horse than of Rod's head. If the lance had gone low instead of high, there was a chance it might have hit Rod's horse. In jousting, the safety of the horse is paramount. The jousters have chosen to risk injury by competing, the horses have not. Jousters would far rather get hurt themselves than risk hurting a horse, as Rod succinctly states in the following:
"He [Andrew] did the right thing, better high than low. Unfortunately, it made the marble in my head roll from the Nice Rod side to the Bad Rod side for a few minutes.” – Rod Walker
After the incident, the two resolved the issue...
and headed to the nearest pub to have a cold beer together.
Left to Right: Andrew McKinnon, Rod Walker, Sarah Hay and Gunnar Cederberg
(photo by Bronwyn Elliot)
You can see more pictures from the tournament in Bronwyn Elliot's photo album.
The tournament was produced by Full Tilt Entertainment. You can find out more about Full Tilt on their website and Facebook page.
