Toby Capwell's Third Blog Post About the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen: 'Helmets Off'

This is an excerpt from the third of a series of blog posts that Dr. Tobias Capwell (aka Toby Capwell) has been writing about his experiences in the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen. In this post, he introduces the other jousters involved in the tournament.

From The Wallace Collection:

Wallace Collection Curator in Combat: NEW UPDATE! Part 3

Jousting tournaments are not known for their live reporting… until now. Toby Capwell, our Curator of Arms and Armour, reports from ‘The Great Tournament of Schaffhausen’ in Switzerland. Remember to keep checking in for updates or add the blog to your RSS feed!

Third Report – Friday 18 July, The Riders
Its Day 8 of 11 and the weather has changed in a big way. It’s HOT. Don’t get me wrong, the sunshine is glorious and its nice not to be getting soaked whenever we get on the horses, but the heat is a new challenge. Out in the sun, you can feel your armour slowly heating up, like your own personal humanoid-shaped oven. Now I’m thinking all that effort polishing the heck out of my armour is paying off- I must be reflecting a lot of heat. Black armour doesn’t seem like such a good idea anymore… I’m certainly glad to be shiny today.

In this installment I thought it would be nice to introduce the riders here at Schaffhausen- we’re so often enclosed in our steel carapaces its sometimes difficult to get a sense of who we actually are. So welcome to ‘helmets off’.

To read the rest of the article, click here.

Joram van Essen breaks his melee club across the back of Toby Capwell's head
(photo from The Wallace Collection)

More articles about the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen:
Arne Koets Comments on the Tournament So Far, Plus More TV News Coverage of the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

Tobias Frin Talks About the Riding at The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

Even More TV News Coverage of The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

Toby Capwell's Second Blog Post About the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

More TV News Coverage of the Schaffhausen Tournament

Toby Capwell is Writing Blog Posts about the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen!

TV Coverage of the Grand Tournament of Schaffhausen 2014

Video: Toby Capwell Explains His Passion for Jousting

Promotional Video for Die Grossen Ritterspiele zu Schaffhausen

Competitive Jousting Featured in “Combatant Magazine”

Combatant Magazine is the first online magazine dedicated to Western Martial Artists and Re-enactors.
On right: Combatant Magazine cover October 2013
(photo from Combatant Magazine)

Though almost all of the articles are about ground combat, this month's cover story focuses on the sport of jousting and includes an interview with international jousters Luke Binks and Sarah Hay. Here is an excerpt from the article:

What drew you to jousting?

Luke: I’ve been interested in Medieval history as far back as I can remember. I believe one of my first introductions to jousting was while watching Ivanhoe(1952) as a kid. I collected knight Lego and made armour out of cardboard boxes – dressing my six-year-old younger brother up so I had someone to hit. My passion for all things medieval never really left me but as I got a little older, into my young teens, my focus shifted away from medieval toys.
Until one fateful day I came across a 14th Century re-enactment group at a local markets. I was 14 at this stage and found grown men dressing in real armour hitting each other with real swords. That spark came back to life and set a fire in me that was going to last until this day. I did re-enactments of foot tournaments with the Knights Order of Lion Rampant(KOLR) for many years before I found jousting. But after seeing Rod Walker and Justin Holland joust at the Abbey Medieval Fair in 2001, I was hooked. I had to give that a go.

Sarah: There are many things that drew me to jousting. A great friend of mine said, ‘It's as if everything you’ve ever done has led you to this point...’
I’ve always loved adventure. The thrill of jousting certainly is appealing to my need for some adrenalin pumping action. Since a toddler I’ve always loved dressing up, hence my attraction to ‘the look’ of jousting, including all the soft kit and the armour itself. I started riding before I could walk and have tried all equestrian disciplines available to me since then. I was very much drawn to jousting as the application of high levels of equestrian skill in a context unlike anything I had experienced before.

From: “Destrier: Jousting in the modern idiom” in Combatant Magazine

To read the entire article, you need to pay either for this issue or a subscription to the magazine, but the rates are very reasonable. You can find out more about the magazine and how buy a single issue or a subscription at the Combatant Magazine website.

If you are curious, some of the other articles in this issue are:

"Spotlight on... Kryal Castle, Victoria's newly re-opened medieval themed attraction"

"Mordschlag: Fighting with the Murder Stroke in halfsword"

"Historical Hardcase: William Wallace - Guardian of Scotland"

"Ode to the longsword"

"Fight like a girl"

"The Dragon and the Crow: An excerpt from a novel by TB McKenzie"

The “Events” section also has interesting and informative summaries of HEMA and WMA events around the world. I was especially impressed by what the members of Forte Swordplay(referred to in the article as Forte Productions) are working towards with their HEMA Livestream Series. I would love to get to the point where jousting tournaments could be streamed live over the internet.

Images from article: Left-Luke Binks(photo by Garry Davenport)
Right-Sarah Hay(photo by The Jousting Life)

Modern Medievalist Interviews International Jouster Frederic Piraux

David Baker(aka The Modern Medievalist) interviewed Jouster Frederic Piraux, founder of the International Jousting League for his website, "Modern Medievalist":

"In 2001 I first met Frederic Piraux at Sunset Park , Las Vegas Nevada in October at the annual Renaissance and Medieval Fair.Sadly he had flown in from Canada where he had been a student at a week long school of European Medieval Martial Arts enthusiasts, only to find the person who had been contact with him was unable to make the event. He and his traveling buddy and my family spent most of that Saturday together walking around from one event to the next. At the end of day we exchanged e-mail address and promised to stay in touch. I think to the surprise of both of us, we did stay in touch.

On the anniversary of our first meeting, I decided to corner my friend, and ask him to give me an interview. Of course being a friend, and knowing I would probably hound him until he did, Fred as I know him, graciously sat down with me via Facebook and granted an interview. What follows is our conversation."

To read the rest of the interview, click here.

Frederic Piraux(photo by Danny Van Hecke)

Article about the Estes Park Joust 2013

Here is an excerpt from an article written by Suzanne DeMink about the jousting tournament held at Estes Park during the "Longs Peak Scottish/Irish Highland Festival".

It was another successful weekend of competition at the 2013 Long’s Peak Highland Festival in Estes Park, Colorado. Twenty eight competitors took part in the activities, which ran from Friday through Sunday. The weather alternated between beautiful sunny skies, to clouds, to rain, to hail, yet the competitors competed through it all. Four jousting troupes were represented: The Knights of the Four Winds, The Knights of Mayhem, The Knights of Valour, and The Order of Epona. Each day ended with a packed house of patrons wishing the competition could continue.

To read the full article, follow this link.

Greg Boxma and Shane Adams joust at Estes Park 2013(photo by Suzanne DeMink)

To see more of Suzanne's pictures, follow this link.

Modern Medievalist Writes About Arundel Castle International Jousting Tournament

Writer David Baker, also known as the Modern Medievalist has written a very informative article about the upcoming "Arundel Castle International Jousting Tournament 2013". Here is an excerpt from the article on his "Modern Medievalist" blog and a link to the rest of the article.

"One of the principles I have set for my Modern Medievalist blog is sharing people and groups who are dedicating their time, efforts and even large segments of their lives to presenting as close as possible an authentic representation of a time, or of an event, and or their research into clothing and armour. It is easy for the general public to view something over the internet or watch a video on YouTube. It is oftentimes hard for them to grasp the years of scholarly work, and effort it takes to create such portrayals..."

To read the rest of the article, click here.

Arundel Castle (photo from Arundel International Tournament FB page)

Russian TV News Coverage of "Times & Epochs 2013"

A Russian television station created a 13 minute long feature about "Times & Epochs 2013". The jousting is featured in the first few minutes, and you can pick out the names of Petter Ellingsen and Arne Koets as they show footage of the jousters. There are a few glimpses of jousters and their horses later in the video, but no other serious footage of the jousting.

(video from RUTV.ru)

Sorry, I do not have a translation, but the images should speak for themselves.

TV News Coverage of Pin Oak Charity Horse Show Including the Jousters of "Opening 'Knight' of Pin Oak"

Houston's local ABC affiliate, KTRK television news was at Pin Oak Charity Horse show on Wednesday, March 20. They showed a number of the usual equestrian events that are regulary featured at Pin Oak as well as some events that were new to Pin Oak this year. Among the equestrian events new for this year are jousting and mounted melee. Beginning at 1:20, there is video of Wednesday morning's mounted melee demonstration in front of a large group of school children as part of the Pin Oak educational program. It includes a brief interview with international jouster Steve Hemphill, owner of A'Plaisance, Ltd, which produced both the joust and mounted melee for the "Opening 'Knight' of Pin Oak" and the mounted melees presented on Wednesday and Thursday morning.

Note: There is an ad before the news video(video from KTRK tv Houston)

You can read more about the jousters and jousting horses who participated at Pin Oak in the article:
"Opening 'Knight" at the Pin Oak Charity Horse Show".

Canadian Dale Gienow Wins New Zealand's “Harcourt Park 2013 World Invitational Jousting Tournament”

This past weekend, February 16 - 17, Dale Gienow of Canada won the prestigious Grail of Chivalry at the “Harcourt Park 2013 World Invitational Jousting Tournament” in Upper Hutt, New Zealand. The Grail of Chivalry is awarded to the competitor who does the best overall in three competitions of jousting skill – mounted skill at arms (MSA), mounted melee and the tilt (which is what most people think of when they think of jousting).

Dale Gienow(left) tilts against Simon Tennant(right) at Harcourt Park 2013
(photo by Andrew Turner/ATPhoto)

It was an especially impressive feat since Dale had to overcome several obstacles just getting to the tournament.

According to Dale:

“Rough start getting to New Zealand... was supposed to get there on Monday to train with the other international joust competitors, but a wicked Toronto snowstorm made it impossible to travel. Managed a flight at the 11th hour and made it on Friday – the day before the tournament. Unfortunately, the airline lost my armour and it didn't actually arrive (thank-you Helen!) until 1 hour before I was set to joust. Though I had no time to train in armour, "Buck" helped to carry me through the event (thank-you John [John King, one of the other competitors], for a great horse). My win was that much sweeter for all the aggravation prior.

Callum Forbes put on an amazing event, and I'm still in awe of how he manages to run such a large crew, so smoothly. The competition was fierce and I barely managed the win. Yay Canada! The horses were awesome and the ground crew great... especially Michelle Walker, who runs a very tight ship!” – Dale Gienow

Michelle Walker (photo from Rod Walker's camera*)

Although Dale won the overall competition, he did not actually win the tilt, the portion of the tournament that most people think of as the actual jousting. That was won by Australian jouster Sarah Hay riding another of John King's horses named “Nugget”. Sarah is the current Australian Jousting Champion and is probably the best female competitive jouster in the world.

Sarah Hay riding Nugget in the tilt (photo by KL)

Sarah is certainly one of the most active women in the world of competitive jousting having competed successfully not only in her home country of Australia and its neighbor New Zealand, but also in Belgium, France, Poland, Denmark and the USA. She has actually won international jousting competitions in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Sarah placed second in the overall Harcourt Park 2013 tournament, barely missing first place because of being eliminated early on in the mounted melee portion of the tournament.

When asked about her experiences at Harcourt Park, Sarah responded:

“Harcourt Park is a very special event, and it was a privilege for me to ride there again. Callum Forbes runs a highly organised, professional event, and the setting, Harcourt Park, is absolutely magnificent. The riders this year were a really cohesive group who were generous with their praise to anyone who rode well. My thanks to all the competitors whose positivity, sense of fun and adventure and skill in the lysts made Harcourt Park so memorable.

My personal thanks goes to John King for providing my wonderful steed for the weekend ‘Nugget’. I’d also like to recognise the ground crew and squires who are absolutely essential to a smoothly run jousting tournament, especially Rosemary and Tony for all the help they gave me in preparing Nugget for each ride and helping me armour up.

There is a lovely feeling in the crowd at the Harcourt Park event. They really get excited about the joust, and it does make a difference to be cheered on... especially when we get the end of the competition and points are tight! My sincere thanks to Callum for putting on such a quality event. I can safely say that my recent week in New Zealand has been a highlight of my life.” – Sarah Hay

Anders Fernstedt(left) jousts Sarah Hay(right) at Harcourt Park 2013
(photo by Maarten Holl)

This year Swedish jouster Anders Fernstedt made his third appearance at Harcourt Park and placed third overall. Anders rode tournament organizer Callum Forbes' personal jousting horse Monty. Anders began riding with the Swedish Royal Cavalry in 1980. He later became involved with the jousting troupe Celeres Nordica and has been jousting internationally since 2005.

Anders Fernstedt at Harcourt Park 2013
(photo by KL)

Finishing in fourth place was the popular Belgian jouster Frederic Piraux who rode another of Callum Forbes' horses, PJ. Frederic created the “International Jousting League” probably the largest organization of competitive jousters in the world. He was also the winner of the previous “Harcourt Park World Invitational Jousting Tournament” which was held in 2011. Sadly, this will be Fred's last year of competitive jousting. He is planning to retire after competing one last time in all of his favorite tournaments.

Frederic Piraux(left) jousts Simon Tennant(right) at Harcourt Park 2013
(photo by Andrew Turner/ATPhoto)

In addition to the Grail of Chivalry competition for experienced jousters, there was also an inaugural competition for the Chalice of Courage – a competition for less experienced jousters. New Zealander John King won first place by virtue of being the only novice jouster capable of completing the entire competition. This was not as easy as it might sound since he ended up tilting against more experienced jousters who took the place of the withdrawn novices in order to allow the competition to continue. John rode his horse Cabby on the first day of competition and his main horse Buck on the second day.

John King on his horse Cabby(photo by Linda King)

John also managed to win the mounted skill-at-arms (MSA) competition. And ended the mounted melee in an exciting three way fight to the finish with Dale Gienow and Anders Fernstedt, managing to defeat both of the more experienced jousters.

When asked about his experience at Harcourt Park, John answered:

“This is the second time I have attended Harcourt Park and I felt much more relaxed. I had spent a couple of days at Callum's place helping sort out horses for the international riders and just getting our horses ready for the tournament. It took a couple of days for the Guild of the Hawk team – Rosemary Hassan, Vikki Subritzky and myself – to travel to the tournament with our 8 horses. I had a relaxed attitude and was out to enjoy myself. This was Cabby's first joust show and I was just testing her out. She settled in really well and I was trilled with her performance. ” – John King

Fortunately, Rod Walker, famous from the “Full Metal Jousting” tv show, was not injured when fellow Australian jouster Andrew McKinnon managed to break his lance against Rod's helm during one of their matches on the first day of jousting.

“Andrew McKinnon puts it right on my nose ;-) Funny bugger.” – Rod Walker

Rod Walker(left) gets a lance to the face from Andrew McKinnon(right)
(photo by Sarah Hay using Rod Walker's camera*)

Unfortunately, Rod hit his knee against the tilt during the first day of jousting and injured it again during the mounted melee on the morning of the second day of the tourney. After the second injury, he chose to withdraw from the competition. Rod was actually in the lead at the end of the 1st day, so it was not an easy decision to make.

“It was a great event, and it was a really hard decision to pull out knowing I had a good lead.” – Rod Walker

A surprising thing about this tournament was the number of tip to tip lance hits. These kind of hits are usually extremely rare, but there were four of them during this tournament. A photographer managed to capture a picture an instant before Sarah Hay and Frederic Piraux smashed their tips together.

Sarah Hay(left) and Frederic Piraux(right) about to hit their lances tip to tip
(photo by Mark Dinsbury)

Although the tournament organizer, Callum Forbes of “The Order of the Boar”, was trying out a new style of frangible lance tip[more about that in a future article], it is unlikely that the new tips had anything to do with the increase in tip to tip hits.

In addition to the jousting tournament, the Harcourt Park event also included a Battle of the Nations(BotN) style ground combat display and competition, an archery display and competition and various living history displays. You can find out more about Callum Forbes and “The Order of the Boar” on their website. They are planning for the next “Harcourt Park World Invitational Jousting Tournament” to take place in the year 2015.

Many of the jousters and ground crew responsible for putting on the tournament.
(photo from Rod Walker's camera*)

List of the Winners at Harcourt Park 2013:

Grail of Chivalry:
1st – Dale Gienow (Canada)
2nd – Sarah Hay (Australia)
3rd – Anders Fernstedt (Sweden)
4th – Frederic Piraux (Belgium)

Chalice of Courage(for novice jousters):
1st – John King (New Zealand)
No other places were given for the Chalice of Courage as none of the other novice competitors managed to complete the competition.

Winner of the tilt – Sarah Hay

Winner of the mounted melee – John King

Winner of the mounted skill-at-arms competition – John King

John King, Sarah Hay, Dale Gienow and Anders Fernstedt – winners at Harcourt Park 2013 
(photo by Linda King)

Photo Albums of Harcourt Park 2013
– Andrew Turner/ATPhoto
– KL Photography


News articles that mention the “Harcourt Park 2013 World Invitational Jousting Tournament”:
1-10-13 CNN Travel: World's most extreme sport? The modern renaissance of jousting

1-17-13 Wellington Scoop: Jousting in Upper Hutt named by CNN as one of world’s top six locations

1-23-13 Upper Hutt Leader: Serious jousting event goes global

2-15-13 The Dominion Post: Battles ahead in medieval sport

2-17-13 Stuff.co.nz: Joust so you know, armour-plated sheilas do it too

2-19-13 The Dominion Post: Joust another day at the office

2-20-13 Upper Hutt Leader: Nations jostle for position in ancient action


*Although these pictures came from Rod Walker's camera, he was usually not the one taking the pictures. He simply handed the camera to whomever was available to take pictures, thus it is impossible to know exactly who took which pictures.

“Harcourt Park World Invitational Jousting Tournament” Gains Media Attention

The “Harcourt Park World Invitational Jousting Tournament” which takes place February 16 - 17 in Upper Hutt, New Zealand is garnering attention from the news services.

Harcourt Park Medieval Tournament poster (photo from Order of the Boar)

First the New Zealand tournament was mentioned in a CNN Travel article about contemporary competitive jousting, and now a couple of other articles have been written about it in some New Zealand newspapers:

1-17-2013
Wellington Scoop: "Jousting in Upper Hutt named by CNN as one of world’s top six locations"

1-23-2013
Upper Hutt Leader: "Serious jousting event goes global"

Frederic Piraux, the winner of the last tournament, takes a blow from a lance
(photo by Peter McDonald)

You can find out more specific information about the joust, the jousters and their horses on the "Order of the Boar" website.

CNN Travel Posts a Nice Article About Contemporary Competitive Jousting

From CNN Travel:

World's most extreme sport? The modern renaissance of jousting:
Six places to watch competitive jousting around the world in 2013

By Dashka Slater for CNN Travel 10 January, 2013

Jousting -- the top-drawing sport across Europe for more than four centuries -- is undergoing a renaissance. And not just at renaissance fairs and goofy theme restaurants either.

The pastime has been the focus of two recent television shows: "Full Metal Jousting" on the History Channel and "Knights of Mayhem" on National Geographic.

As a new breed of modern athletes and equestrians exchange hard hits on horseback, opportunities are multiplying for modern spectators to see this most extreme of extreme sports....

To continue reading the CNN article, click here.

To see TJL's list of competitive jousting tournaments around the world in 2013, click here.

Jousting Tournament poster (photo from Order of the Boar)

Jousting in the News 7-25-12 through 8-4-12

7-26-2012
TV Midt-Vest.dk: Ridder Ole er i finalen ved EM i Ridderdyst (news video of Ole Bach competing during ECS at Spottrup Borg)


(video from article)

Reuters: Travel Postcard: 48 hours jousting in Sulmona, Italy (somewhat confusing article about some sort of jousting competition in Italy, probably a translation)

Get Surrey: A jousting good time at Loxwood Meadow (mentions jousting at a medieval festival)

7-28-12
TV Midt-Vest.dk: Ridder Ole Bach fra Viborg blev nummer 2 til EM i Ridderdyst pa Spottrup Borg (news video of ECS aka EM i Ridderturnering featuring Ole Bach, also shows Steve Hemphill getting his helmet knocked off by Gunnar Cederberg's lance)


(video from article)

Heste-nettet.dk: Et brag af en finale med mjød, riddere og skønjomfruer(Nice article with very good pictures about the Bishop's Market medieval faire and EM i Ridderturnering at Spottrup Borg) (I recommend google translate to read articles in foreign languages)

Heste-nettet.dk: Interview med Ridder Ole (interview with Danish jouster Ole Bach of Viborg)

7-29-12
Winnipeg Free Press: Medieval Festival is more than joust for fun (Nice article about Cook's Creek Medieval Festival featuring jousters Jordan Heron, Alison Mercer and Shawn Morrow, includes some nice pictures)

Jordan Heron and Alison Mercer (photo by Melissa Tait)

7-30-12
The Columbus Dispatch: Jousting tournament gives fairgoers a knight to remember (article features American jouster Thomas Nader and has a nice video as well as a photo slideshow)

(video from article)

The Columbus Dispatch: Photos: Jousting tournament at the Ohio State Fair (a direct link to the aforementioned photo slideshow)

Toronto Sun: 48 hours jousting in Sulmona (the same article as earlier, but this one includes a picture)

Jousting in Sulmona, Italy (photo from article)

Horseyard.com.au: Want To Get Medieval With Your Horse? (announcement of a jousting seminar in CAMDEN led by Rod Walker of FMJ and Full Tilt jousting)

8-1-12
CNN I Report: International Jousting League admires the Gniew Castle (brief article about Gniew tournament, mentions Frederic Piraux)

8-2-12
Horseyard.com.au: Victoria's Turn To Get Medieval (announcement of a jousting seminar in VICTORIA area led by Rod Walker of FMJ and Full Tilt jousting)

The Reporter Online: Hear ye! Hear ye! (announcement for a renaissance faire that has jousting)

Little Hampton Gazette: {photo from front page of paper} (picture of jouster Dominic Sewell on the front page of a local newspaper)

(newspaper photo by Stephen Goodger, photo of newspaper by anonymous)

8-3-12
DailyMail.co.uk: The Knights of Mayhem: Full contact medieval jousting aims to become the latest U.S. extreme sport (Interesting but rather inaccurate article about the sport of modern jousting)

Jousting in the News 6-22-12 through 7-25-12

I have gotten behind in posting "Jousting in the News". My apologies. I've omitted certain articles that only briefly mention jousting at faires that have already occurred. However, this will still be a rather long post.

*** recommended articles

6-22-12
StamfordMercury.co.uk: Video: Knights re-enact medieval battles at Lincolnshire Show (video of theatrical jousting in England)

Webster Kirkwood Times: Dan Foss: A Knight's Tale (a very nice detailed article about theatrical jouster Dan Foss)

Dan Foss jousts(photo by Ursula Ruhl)

6-27-12
***Green Bay Press Gazette: Reflections and Directions: Jousting rides back, pokes the public's curiosity (interesting article about the rise in popularity of jousting)

Green Bay Press Gazette: Renaissance Faire back for third year (theatrical jousting at a renaissance faire)

7-4-12
Quest News Northern Times: Knights' mounts are also jousting stars at Abbey Medieval Tournament (nice article about jousting that focuses on the horses)



Metro News: Knights of Valour ‘demolition derby of the middle ages’ (brief article about Shane Adams, host of the tv show “Full Metal Jousting”)

7-5-12
WDRB.com: Art of jousting is alive and well in Eminence, Ky. (very brief confusing article that mentions a video that does not show up on my browser, does have a few pictures)

Broadneck Patch: St. Margaret's Jousting Tournament is Around the Corner (brief article about Maryland style jousting aka tilting at rings)

7-6-12
The Guardian: Emma's Eccentric Britain: medieval jousting, Eltham Palace, London (journalist spends a day with a re-enactment group that does jousting)

Jousting at Eltham Palace(photo by Richard Marsham)

7-9-12
National Post: Gentlemen, unsheathe your umbrellas! Chap Olympiad celebrates all things eccentric about the British upper classes (Okay, it's not about real jousting, it's about umbrella jousting on bicycles, but the pictures are hysterical)

7-10-12
Queensferry Gazette: Let battle commence in Linlithgow (brief article about jousting event by Historic Scotland)

The Norwood Post: Norwood Ren Faire a success (article about faire where the Order of Epona horse troupe performed jousting)

7-11-12
Inverurie Herald: Medieval mayhem set for Castle Fraser (article about Knights of the Damned joust stunt team performance)

Knights of the Damned (photo from article)

Battlecreek Inquirer: Time to go Medieval, BlackRock Summerfest makes Middle Ages fun (article about a new medieval faire where the Knights of Valour perform)

7-12-12
***English Heritage: Knights to the tilt yard! Jousting at Kenilworth Castle (Nice press release about an English Heritage joust, includes some useful jousting terminology at the end)

Jousting at Kenilworth Castle (photo from English Heritage)

Northern River Echo News: Here & Now with S Sorrensen (an EXTREMELY negative view of his experience at a renn faire joust)

7-13-12
NJ.com: Jefferson Starship, Atlanta Rhythm Section lead musical lineup at Freedom Fest State Fair (mentions performances by Paragon Jousting)

7-14-12
The Spokesman Review: Taking another stab, Jousters relish roles in 18th annual Northwest Renaissance Festival (article about jousters at a renn faire)

TheBayNet.com: Three National Champion Jousters from Maryland to Accept Touch of Class Awards Two Champions Are Teenagers New To National Competition (about Maryland style jousting aka tilting at rings)

7-16-12
***Horseyard.com.au: Going Full Tilt In History’s Extreme Sport (interview with Rod Walker about jousting in general as well as the tv show FMJ)

Full Metal Jousting (photo from article)

7-17-12
The New York Times: In Southern Sweden, Singing the Blues and Medieval Jousting (not really about jousting, but an interesting view of a Swedish renn fest)

7-18-12
Star Gazette: Summer Fun in the Finger Lakes: Renaissance festival a timeless site for fun (mentions jousting tournament)

7-19-12
***This is Kent: Past comes alive in lovely castles (describes various castles and mentions the jousting tournaments held at them)

7-20-12
English Heritage: Joust draws attention of world's media to Kenilworth Castle (mentions the possibility of jousting being at the 2016 Olympics)

Beausejour Review: Day time can still mean knight time (about Medieval festival featuring jousting)

Jousting at Cooks Creek Medieval Festival (photo by immaculate.ca)

7-21-12
Little Hampton Gazette: Horseback fun ‘joust’ around the corner in Arundel (announces jousting tournament at Arundel Castle)

7-23-12
Goldcoast.com.au: FLANAGAN: Medieval case of the flu (brief negative article about FMJ and Rod Walker)

7-24-12
Langley Advance: Photos 2: Festival a challenge (unfortunate weather at renn faire where Ripper Moore and the Society of Tilt and Lance performed)

Jousting in the News: 6-1-12 through 6-21-12

*** recommended articles

6-2-12
Adelaide Now: Aussie jouster booted off reality TV show (article about Landon Morris being kicked off “Full Metal Jousting”, includes video)

Your Houston News: Bear Branch hosts Tournament of Champions (EAFK performs at Bear Branch Elementary)

6-4-12
Lancashire Telegraph: Gallery: Great Harwood show hailed a success with record attendance (county fair that included “stunt jousting”)

6-5-12
This is Leicestershire: Show serves up monster fun (county fair where the Knights of Middle England performed a jousting show)

6-7-12
Lutterworth Mail: Knights will do battle (The Knights of Nottingham perform a jousting show at Rockingham Castle Medieval Fair)

Ottawa Sun: Valley News & Notes, June 7 (brief mention of jousters performing at Medieval Festival)

Your Local Guardian: Hundreds take to the streets in four-day jubilee celebration (Knights of the Damned jousting team perform at a local celebration of the Queen's Jubilee)

6-8-12
Florissant Patch: Renaissance Faire Offers a Trip Back In Time (mentions the risks of theatrical jousting)

Renaissance Faire jousting(photo from article)

6-9-12
This Is Kent: What are you up to this weekend? Take a look at 10 things to do in Kent (mentions jousting tournament at Leeds Castle)

6-10-12
Lehigh Valley Live: Sunsational: The Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire offers entertainment for all ages (mentions jousting will be part of the entertainment)

6-11-12
Idaho Press Tribune: Ye Olde Renaissance Faire is this weekend at Eagle Island State Park (mentions performances by the Academia de Cavalaria’s Mounted Military School and Jousting Troupe)

6-12-12
East London Advertiser: Eltham Palace to host medieval jousting tournament (announcement for an English Heritage jousting event at Eltham Palace)

Jouster at Eltham Palace(photo from article)

6-13-12
Manly Daily: Joust great, world's best knocked off (article about Andrew McKinnon and five jousters from the US beating the European jousters in the French tournament Les Medievales de Neauphle Le Chateau)

Australian jouster Andrew McKinnon (photo from article)

6-14-12
Northwest Star: Turning back the clock at Curry Show (jousting at Cloncurry show features Rod Walker and Sarah Hay)

PJ Star: Jousting holds court at Olde English Faire (Shane Adams and the Knights of Valour perform at the Olde English Faire)

6-15-12
The Columbia Star: A Step into Kingstree’s Past, Part 5: Jousting, Lancing, Tilting (an interesting, but questionable, article about the history of jousting and jousting in America)

6-16-12
WHSV.com: Joust Club Continues Tradition (actually about little kids tilting at rings, includes video)

PJ Star: Olde English Faire Gives Visitors a Taste of Life in the Days of Yore (jousting at a Medieval faire)

James Fairclough and Rob Combe joust (photo by Zach Nelson)

6-17-12
Blogs PJ Star: Medieval history holds court at Wildlife Prairie State Park (photos of Olde English Faire mentioned in previous article)

Boise Weekly: Catch One More Day of Ye Olde Renaissance Faire (the Academia de Cavalaria Mounted Military School and Jousting Troupe performs at renn faire)

The Academia de Cavalaria Mounted Military School and Jousting Troup (photo by Tabitha Bower)

6-18-12
Northwest Star: Jousting battle sticks with crowd (Rod Walker and Sarah Hay joust at Cloncurry and District show, includes pictures)

Jouster Sarah Hay(photo by Brad Thompson)

6-20-12
***Maxim: Modern Jousting (article about Rod Walker of Full Tilt Jousting troupe)

The Sydney Morning Herald: Wednesday, June 20 - PAY TV (brief article about “Full Metal Jousting” tv show)

Red Team Member from "Full Metal Jousting" (photo from article)

6-21-12
Midhurst and Petworth Observer: VOTE: Alright on the knight as jousts get green light (some of the legal issues involved in putting on a renn faire)

The Australian: Dangers of old (brief article about FMJ tv show)

***Simcoe Reformer: Simcoe man killed in crash was world-class jouster, artist (article about James Merrilees, a jouster who was killed in a truck crash)

James Merrilees
The jousting community mourns the loss of one of its own.

"His great personality and readiness to find joy and humour, as well as his strength and steadiness as a competitor, leaves us much diminished with his loss." -- Radar Goddard, fellow jouster

.

Jousting in the News 5-19-12 through 6-1-12

*** recommended articles

5-19-12
Sydney Morning Herald: Sirs lance a lot and get hit, too (enthusiastic review of “Full Metal Jousting on Australian tv)

Press Enterprise: RIVERSIDE: Medieval times come to campus (very brief article about Imperial Knights putting on a demonstration at an elementary school)

5-21-12
Daily Telegraph: Jousting gets a spike in popularity across Sydney and NSW (brief article about jousting at Blacktown Medieval Fayre)

Northampton Chronicle: Rural treats in Althorp entertainment (county show in Althorp that included the Knights of the Damned jousting team)

5-22-12
Northampton Chronicle: Hundreds enjoy annual country show at Althorp (this event apparently included knights on horseback and an “exciting jousting finale that included a woman’s bra and a pair of shades.”?)

5-24-12
Langley Advance: Renfest lives on: Organizers offer words of assurances to vendors, participants, and spectators that the 2012 festivities are happening (Mainly about renn faire politics, briefly mentions Ripper Moore of “Full Metal Jousting”)

The Tennessean: Miss the Renaissance Fest? Surely you joust (mentions the Gath of Baal jousting tournament)

Orlando Sentinel: What's new at Medieval Times and Wet 'n Wild (discusses new show at Medieval Times)

Andalusian does airs above the ground at Medieval Times (photo from article)

5-25-12
Press Citizen: Celebrating Renaissance: Annual Memorial Day event is considered Iowa's best family festival (mentions Knights of Evengard and an “enhanced joust competition”)

Press Citizen: Iowa Renaissance Festival to be Memorial weekend (Another very brief article that mentions jousting tournament)

5-26-12
The Tennessean: Gath of Baal jousting tournament starts today (very brief and innaccurate article about jousting tournament)

5-27-12
The Independent: Summer 2012: Family-friendly festivals (mentions medieval festival in Sweden that includes jousting)

Knights joust in Sweden(photo from article)

Easier Travel: Celebrate the Whitsun half term in Shakespeare Country (various activities around the UK including jousting at Warwick Castle)

5-31-12
***Scoop: Jousting to replace hockey (not sure if this is a serious article or not, discusses building a $2.5 million jousting field in New Zealand)

InOut: Getting Medieval on the Grass with a Lance (uploaded image of a print newspaper magazine, talks about Copenhagen Medieval Market which includes jousting)

Sierra Sun: War horses, knights, lances come to Camp Richardson (nice article about Imperial Knights jousting at Valhalla Renaissance Faire)

6-1-12
Derbyshire Times: Top jousting event at historic castle (video of English Heritage joust at Bolsover Castle)

Video from article

Wyvern Oaks Talks About "Lysts on the Lake 2012"

If you regularly check the blogroll on the sidebar, you have probably already read this post, but for those who haven't...

Though the author of Wyvern Oaks no longer jousts herself, she has helped a number of people learn to ride and to joust, including her husband. She is still actively involved in the sport and frequently squires for he husband and sometimes for others. She also works as judge, ground crew, mounted squire, etc... She willingly does whatever needs doing.

Her husband, several of the people she helped get started on horses, and many of her friends competed in this year's "Lysts on the Lakes". Here are the first few paragraphs from the post about her experiences during Lysts:

"Wyvern Oaks: And then there was JOUSTING!!!!"

"Despite the rather impressive storm on Thursday night, the first day of jousting ended up being quite nice. In the morning was the beginner joust, which Cash was supposed to take part in... only his rider's saddle slipped on the first run, and that was pretty much the end of that plan. Cash can be... shall we say... speedy down the lane, and after that mishap it became apparent that retiring would be the better part of valor.

(No, nobody bothered to inform Cash that 24-year-olds are supposed to be "old and slow." Somehow he missed that memo, I think.)

Next up was the Skill at Arms. These are feats of skill that knights used in medieval times to train for jousting and fighting - for example, hitting a quintain, slicing cabbages on posts, or throwing spears at a target. The hubby rode Red for this, since he's quite maneuverable and easier to rate speed-wise than Saga is. As usual, Red was a star and hubby did quite well.

That afternoon was the first round of jousting...." Read more

Most, but not all, of the competitors at Lysts on the Lake 2012

Jousting in the News 5-2-12 through 5-18-12

Some nice tv news videos of "Lysts on the Lake" international jousting tournament and of Rod Walker of "Full Metal Jousting" and Robbie Hubbard getting ready for the "Blacktown Medieval Fayre".

*** recommended articles

5-1-12
Kent News: Jousting tournaments throughout the summer in Kent (announces theatrical? Jousting tournaments to be held at Hever Castle, Edenbridge)

5-5-12
***The View: VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP: Knights of Iron enters the lyst in competitive jousting WITH VIDEO (nice, but somewhat inaccurate article about the Knights of Iron and jousting in general)

Brian Stephenson tilts at rings (photo from The View)

5-6-12
Tulsa World: Take a stroll through merrie olde England (about a renaissance faire in Oklahoma that features a “royal joust”, probably theatrical jousting)

5-7-12
Northern Life: Jousting the draw of Celtic Festival (the Knights of Valour will be performing at the Sudbury Celtic Festival and Highland Games, June 2 in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada)

My Valley News: Old World Festival Begins Saturday in Corona (renaissance faire in California that features “full-contact knight-jousts”)

Southwest Riverside News Network: Old World Festival to kick off Saturday in Corona (exactly the same as previous article, but with a picture)

5-8-12
Oxford Mail: Jousting knights wow crowd at the palace (Knights of Royal England jousted at Blenheim Palace)

5-9-12
The Norwood Post: Jousting in Norwood: Renaissance Fair seeks sponsors (Norwood Renaissance Fair in Telluride, Colorado, USA, that will include jousting, seeks sponsors)

5-11-12
***Manly Daily: Glory could be joust around the corner (nice article about Australian jouster Andrew McKinnon travelling to France to compete)

Andrew McKinnon with a different kind of ride (photo from Manly Daily)

The Press Enterprise: CORONA: Renaissance Fair returns for 15th year (The New Riders of the Golden Age to joust at Koroneburg Old World Festival)

5-12-12
****Austin YNN: International jousting competition comes to Texas (nice tv news article with good video of “Lysts on the Lake”)

5-14-12
Asbury Park Press: Olympic implications at horse-trial event (Don't get too excited. The event organizers of this normally staid equestrian Olympic qualifying event decided to try and draw in more spectators by including some theatrical style jousting. Mentions James Fairclough from FMJ)

The Press Enterprise: CORONA: Jousting, juggling highlight Renaissance Festival (another article about the Koroneburg Renaissance Festival that includes jousting)

5-17-12
Examiner: Jersey Fresh event swept by Australian Olympian (Another article about the Olympic qualifying “Jersey Fresh International Horse Trials” that included jousting to draw more spectators. James Fairclough of FMJ mentioned)

5-18-12
The Telegraph: Knights armour up for jousting tournament (tv news video of Rod Walker of Full Metal Jousting and Robbie Hubbard preparing for Blacktown Medieval Festival)

***The Sydney Morning Herald: Crunch time: making money from a medieval extreme sport (very nice article about Rod Walker from “Full Metal Jousting” and the joust team he and his wife Michelle run in Australia)

Blacktown Advocate: Doonside: Medieval Fayre at Nurragingy Reserve (brief article about Blacktown Medieval Fayre which will include a jousting tournament)

Wyvern Oaks Talks About the Tornado Scare the Night Before "Lysts on the Lake"

The author of the blog "Wyvern Oaks" gives her account of the tornado scare that occurred Thursday, May 10, the last day of CMAI and the day before the "Lysts on the Lake" international jousting tournament.

"....About halfway through the practice, we started to see lightning quite close, and hear thunder. Riders were told to dismount, and that practice was being canceled due to the weather. Someone checked the forecast on their cell phone, and discovered we were under a tornado watch. They announced over the loudspeakers that we were to take shelter in the cement-block bathrooms if the tornado sirens went off, or if we heard a noise like a train. So much for an uneventful practice!

We began to help the jousters disarm and get them off their horses, when suddenly the wind picked up and rain started coming in sideways through the covered arena. The wind began howling, and the solid panel jousting lane started coming down in the wind. We quickly got the remaining riders off their horses, as the thunder built and the lightning came down so quickly the sky was nearly daylit. At this point, the wind and the driving rain were so loud we were screaming at one another just to be heard, even though we were standing quite close...." Read more

After the storm (photo by Wyvern Oaks)

Jousting in the News 4-20-12 Through 5-1-12

4-21-12
This is Lancashire: St George's Day celebrations in East Lancashire (a renaissance type faire that includes jousting)

4-22-12
ITV Central News: Birmingham celebrates with St George's Day Parade (briefly mentions jousting team Knights of Middle England)

4-25-12
Orangeville.com: Jousting is alive within Dufferin(article about an educational renaissance festival featuring Shane Adams and the Knights of Valour)

4-27-12
The Tennessean: Castle beckons maidens, merrymen (article about the Tennessee Renaissance Faire which says it will include an international jousting tournament)

4-28-12
Western Advocate: Jousters take to the ring (brief article about Full Tilt International Jousting Tournament at Royal Bathurst Show in Australia)

4-30-12
The Province: Caution: Don't read while driving (strange article about FMJ focusing on the warning at the beginning of the show to “not try this at home”)

Wyvern Oaks Talks about Training to Joust

The author of the Wyvern Oaks blog recently posted an article about her husband training for the upcoming competitive jousting tournament "Lysts on the Lake". She talks a bit about training a less experienced horse to joust and why jousting on an experienced 14.2 hand horse doesn't work very well when your opponents are riding 18 hand drafts.

Wyvern Oaks: How not to wear a flymask (and... jousting!)

"Now, on to the jousting part. Since hubby built a quintain at Wyvern Oaks, he's been out practicing on it almost daily - good thing too, since it's only two weeks till Lysts on the Lake, the big jousting competition. He's been working on getting Saga to run straight, keeping his rein hand low, and turning his body to target his opponent. The basic idea is to drop your lance into place and then let your opponent run into it, as opposed to trying to reach over and hit your opponent. It's hard to do from the back of a moving horse, especially one like Saga who is new to the sport. There's a lot going on, and it happens very, very quickly." read more

Tall horse vs. short horse on the lyst field(photo by AzulOx)

"Horse & Man" writes about the horses of "Full Metal Jousting"

"Horse & Man" is a blog about "exploring the bond between equines and their people." Someone on Facebook recently linked to this blog, and it turns out that the author has written several posts about the horses used in "Full Metal Jousting". Her first article, posted on March 27, was about the show in general:

Horse & Man: FULL METAL JOUSTING… Have you seen this show?

"Have you seen this show?

OMG.

Hubby and I sat down to watch it… and he was GRIPPED from the first scene.

Now, what guy is gripped when he watches a show about horses?… Yup, well, this show isn’t really about the horses. It is about men who try to smack each other off of BIG horses by using even bigger sticks while wearing a thousand pounds of armor with cool logos.

They look like MONSTER ENERGY DRINK CANS sitting on top of horses.

OK, so it isn’t really my kind of show… BUT…

The horses are gorgeous...." read more

In her second article, posted on April 11, she shares information about the FMJ horse, Gulliver:

Horse & Man: MEET GULLIVER: One of the Full Metal Jousting horses!

"After I wrote the blogpost about the new, very dynamic show on the History Channel, FULL METAL JOUSTING (here is the link to that post), the former owner of a few of the warhorses featured on that show contacted me!

What luck!

I had mentioned in that FULL METAL JACKET blogpost that the show would be even greater fun if the horses were featured more. I was saying how engaging it would be if we knew more about the equine partners!

Well… not only did the previous owner (her name is Rachelle) of a few of the horses contact me, but the wife of the Head Jouster, Shane Adams, also contacted me! Unfortunately, she could not grant an interview right away because the producers of the show wanted to look over my questions first (figures…), but I still hope to hear some ‘behind the scenes’ horse talk from her.

But today, I feel very fortunate to give you a glimpse of Gulliver in a fabulous report by his Rachelle, who loved him." read more

Gulliver from Full Metal Jousting ridden sidesaddle by previous owner Rachelle
(photo from Horse & Man)

In her third article, posted on April 24, the author of Horse & Man shares information about the FMJ horses Jefferson, Harlan and Reginald:

Horse & Man: MORE FULL METAL JOUSTING HORSES! Meet: Jefferson, Harlan and Reginald.

"Earlier, I wrote about FULL METAL JOUSTING, a series on the History Channel.

Then, I was lucky enough to hear from the previous owner of 4 of the jousting horses featured on the show!

A few weeks ago, I wrote about Gulliver (linked here).

Today, I will give you insider background into Jefferson, Harlan and Reginald thanks to their previous owner, Rachelle!" read more

Harlan from Full Metal Jousting and some of his herd mates(photo from Horse & Man)

I've added the RSS feed for "Horse & Man" to the list of "Blogs that deal with jousting(at least sometimes)". Hopefully, the author will be able to interview Shane Adams' wife and learn more about the horses used in "Full Metal Jousting".