I’m rewatching a fun horror/comedy called John Dies At the End. It opens with a zombie variant on Theseus’ Paradox. The question posed in this paradox first posed by Plutarch is: If a ship gets damaged a little bit voyage by voyage and is gradually repaired so that every plank of wood is different from…
“From the moment a girl gets to be full-grown, the very first thing she learns When two men go out to face each other, only one returns.” -- Gene Pitney, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance Though opinions vary, the most recent revival of academic and practical interest in duelling started about two decades ago. This does…
Read More... from Book Review: "The History and Art of Personal Combat" by Wise
It is tempting as a teacher to always respond to this question with “Yes”. I have found that people these days seem to be hard on themselves and are terrible at accurately assessing their own progress—I certainly have seen this in myself. It is difficult to view progress subjectively because with learning comes a greater awareness of what you…
The days are just a little shorter and cooler, and the horses' coats are have gone from sleek to velvety, but there is still plenty of great riding weather left. Here are the fall riding and swordplay opportunities on offer through the Mounted Combat Program. Upcoming Courses To register for courses see the workshops calendar…
As a public service to those who read my blog, but don't visit every other Bartitsu source, I like to offer a digest of recent Bartitsu-related content from time to time. Bartitsu.Org The first article, The Original BJJ: New Discoveries and Speculations re. the Submission Grappling of British Jiu-Jitsu, is a longer piece for those…
You’re not too old to learn something new. Unless you plan to die in 10 years, there’s still plenty of time to gain a notable level of proficiency. Perhaps you won’t be leaping five feet into the air or out-competing some young competitor, but the benefits for your mind and body actually increase over time.…
What an amazing weekend! The skies were blue, the temperature was perfect, the horses were on their best behaviour, and the participants were incredible at Carosella 2016. On Friday the focus was on Horsemanship, Riding, and Mounted Combat Skills -- ie, the core tracks of our Mounted Combat Program. For Horsemanship we had Diane Prosser…
Dr. Julian Bailes is a neurosurgeon and a founding member of the Brain Injury Research Institute in Pennsylvania. This year, the International Boxing Association, or AIBA, interviewed him on the topic of concussions and brain injuries in boxing, as it relates to wearing protective headgear. Boxing is one of the four component martial arts of…
“But it must be remembered always that the early masters, professional or amateur, did not regard their art primarily as an exercise, but as a serious preparation for the difficulties their pupils were bound to meet with in after life.” -- Aylward, J.D. The English Master at Arms, 1712 [1]. The Olympics are over, as are the…
Read More... from Post-Olympic Sword Press: News for August 2016
Willpower is not enough Any plan that depends on willpower for success is doomed. Success in anything is largely based on rhythm and the ability to take gradual and reliable steps toward your goal. Crunching away at the 10,000 hours of mastery required to become excellent at a skill is not going to come from a…
Read More... from Willpower is for Suckers - Make a Training System to Succeed
Online registration closes today for Carosella! As our major event for the year, Carosella is your last (and sometimes only) chance to participate in some workshops and events in 2016, including: Intro to Mounted Combat Horseback Archery Classical Riding Clinics (only 1 space left!) Prix Fiore workshop Bandaging & Equine First Aid Clinics Ballet at the Barn Grooms'…
Training is at least 50% mental and 50% physical. If you’re truly down-and-out sick, then just let yourself be sick. No sense resisting the sleep you need and prolonging the pain. But if you’re just out with the sniffles, or you have an injury that prevents you from physically training, then here are some things you…
Read More... from Ways to Keep Training When You're Sick or Injured
Carosella 2016, our full three-day symposium of mounted combat, horseback archery, skill-at-arms, and horsemanship, is coming up fast. This once-a-year event is an unparallelled chance to immerse yourself in these ancient arts. Whether you're an experienced rider and martial artist, or completely new to it all, there is plenty to engage you all weekend. If…