I'm blogging at your from beyond the internet....... oooOOOoooOOOooo! heh heh. Today I was going to write about the differences inherent in each of us (I thought I wrote about this but I couldn't find it). Take a look at this article. It's wisdom though needs to be somewhat massaged for fencing. Basically the message…
CNAT Ate My Class
Just a brief reminder: Stage Combat and Bartitsu classes on Saturday 18 August are cancelled because your dutiful instructor will be at CNAT. See you next week! Comment on this post on our Posterous Blog.
The Amateur-Professional Divide
I just read an article by Isaac Butler on the difference between amateur and professional theatre in the USA. It was inspired by a blog post about the same topic in photography. In the era of cheap(er) high quality cameras and Photoshop, the quality of the amateur's work is often comparable to professionals, and so…
Event Report: World Wide Open Championships Germany
Greetings all, I have been rather silent on the Academie Duello blog over the past 2 weeks as I have been away in Germany at the third World Wide Open Championship that took place just outside of Hannover. I thought I'd take a few moments to share my impression and experiences of this Historical European…
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Don't look down!
Back from holidays and back to business. This week our riding skill is: 8. Walk and trot over single ground poles and a group of 3-4 trot poles Riding over ground poles is the beginning of learning how to jump, but is also a useful exercise in and of itself for improving a horse's way…
Video Lessons: Rapier cuts, refused, and two swords plus longsword thrusts
The core theme of this week across all class is strategic constraint. In Green cord (level 1) we explore the constraining capacity of the cut with the rapier, in Blue (level 2) how to create dominant positions when the sword begins from a withdrawn position, and in Red Cord (level 3) we explore how to…
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Read Israeli Sword Press … in Russian
We love this job – We read Japanese-language blogs about German sword fighting; Estonian press about a Canadian ‘knight’; and now Israeli sword-press in Russian! Notwithstanding the problems of the Internet; it has provided significant resources to students and practitioners of the WMA art wherever they are – and more importantly, given us the opportunity…
Practicing on the pass
Learn how to strike on the pass (aka passing lunge). I find that practicing some finer movements in slow practice can be very challenging with lunges. There's a point in a lunge where you lose all control until you stop lunging. This makes it very hard execute techniques that occur close to the start of…
Bartitsu Focus Fight Night
The second Friday of the month is upon us, which means it's Bartitsu Focus for sparring. See you at 8pm for walking stick, purring, pugilism and jujitsu. Comment on this post on our Posterous Blog.
Bartitsu Fitness
Training the fighting skills of Bartitsu can help with your fitness goals, but skill development should be your main focus in class. We set aside some time in class for strength and conditioning, and you should continue this work outside of class for the best results. Warm Up Always begin your physical activity regimen with…
More Holiday Show and Tell
Still on hols, so more photos this week. While the Royal Ontario Museum doesn't have cuddly herds of black horses (see last week's post on the Musical Ride museum), it does have a surprisingly decent collection of western arms and armour. Here are a few of the cavalry related pieces: This rather gorgeous cavalry sabre…
Civic Sword Press
During this day, Canada’s Civic Holiday – what better reason to post WMA/HEMA-related events supported whole-heartedly by … civic authorities? Yes, we’re going back to Russia! (Apparently, last weeks assertion that things were quiet ‘over there’ was sadly mistaken, to say nothing of completely wrong!} Russia: Big Place … Big Events МАНГАЗЕЯ (Tobolsk,…
Being internal
Another link to Randy's blog today. I know that I start thinking internally a lot during my practice. Personally I do it more when playing with sideswords and longswords due to the many methods of moving a sword on an arc (cutting). I find that being attentive to how my body feels when practicing greatly…