Well, sort of new. The name of the Riding & Horsemanship classes has changed to the Cavaliere Class. Why? Because we've added 45 minutes of sword drills and practice time to the end of class. You'll still get your all your horsemanship instruction -- feeding, grooming, vet & first aid, conditioning etc -- as well…
The Sword Press News Expositor Reporter Times
While We were skating the internet for the appropriate subject-relevant press items, We got to musing … why doesn’t somebody just collect (loot) all of these references and make a newspaper already? A newspaper … with real sections … like this … The Sword Press News Expositor Reporter Times (Gloucester, Ontario) 08 October 12…
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Two of my favourite things
I really enjoyed this particular post of Randy's. And not just because he's writing about cats; there are a few gold nuggets to talk about. The first is practicing what you're not good at. Ignoring techniques that that you find challenging mean certain defeat when an opponent tries it on you (whether they're aware that…
Non-Violence and Self-Defense
This is a tricky subject, and I hope you will discuss these issues with myself and your friends to figure out your own opinions. This post is going to be a multifaceted exploration, because I'm not settled on all the factors. Ethics is messy, so let's get our hands dirty. War, Police, Politics And I…
Duello.TV for October 1st: Rapier offhand, dagger, and disarms, plus longsword sequence
It's the turn of a new month so again our curriculum focus shifts. This month Green Cords (level 1) will be learning to use their offhand to support their defence, Blue Cords (level 2) will be stepping into the fundamentals of Rapier and Dagger, and Red Cords (level 3) are working into rapier disarms with…
What a day for Knightly Games!
We couldn't have ordered nicer weather for our annual Cavaliere Tournament ... or asked for a better group of riders and volunteers! We had four teams of grooms out bright and early to make the horses beautiful, and once more our volunteer judges from Richmond Pony Club lent their critical eyes to check horses and…
Motivational Sword Press
As WMA/HEMA ‘scholars’, a lot of us study texts from the medieval or renaissance past, and then try to recreate the art using modern sword technology and protective equipment. The third part of this time-based triad is of course ‘the future’. And our efforts to engage young people in our interest and passion can only…
Sometimes there's only one way to practice
Randy's at it again. The take home message in his post, or, the one that I want to point out, is that there are some lessons of fencing that can only be learned by fencing. Call it what you will: being under pressure, no thinking time, art vs. practice they all lead to the same…
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Choreography is a Physical Story
I just watched The Raid: Redemption (and I thought colons were only used for sequels, silly me!) which is a film that was hyped in martial arts cinema, and fits in the sub-genre of "Take The Castle". It's a fun genre. Troy is an excellent example: fortified city, army within besieged by an army without.…
More from Forteza Fitness
So as I commented on in my last blog post, after we finished up at the Armizare Academy last weekend we visited Forteza Fitness, the home of the Chicago Swordplay Guild. They had a great space that was working its way toward becoming even cooler. Well, after we left they launched an Indiegogo campaign to…
Knightly Games Tournament this week!
Come one, come all! The Knightly Games Tournament has something for everyone this Sunday September 30th, at Red Colt Farm! As promised last week, here is a list of games and their descriptions. Groom Competition Grooms will have 45 minutes to turn out a well-groomed and correctly tacked up horse. Entrants may participate with their…
Swordplay Videos this week: Counter-attacking, Second Assalto, Longsword Wrestling
Welcome to this week in training at Academie Duello. In our training at the studio we are looking at counter-attacking as a method of defence (Green Cord), the second assault of sidesword (Blue Cord), and how to enter into grapples with the longsword when you've lost the crossing (Red Cord). On Duello.TV we have…
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Sword Press of Prudence and Poland
The privilege to practice our arts within city limits is a large part due to how we conduct ourselves as a mature, trust-worthy community of ‘real scholars’. That said, sometimes, for a whole variety of reasons, one of us – or worse, a member of the viewing public, gets hurt during a sword-themed event. Notwithstanding…