Greet's Middle Ages

A boring journal post for those who don't fight...

(this is mostly for me, but because I got so much out of other people making their self-improvement journals public, I am sharing.)

Stayed in armor same amount of time (about 1130-2ish).  Fought four intervals, which were all longer. (See, stamina increasing.  Fantastic.  Must keep running, and watching nutrition.)  Lost track of number of bouts (will stop counting hereafter).  

Nine fighters, including Ceddie and Genevieve.  I really enjoyed Genevieve's comments, and watching her shapes, because she is not much smaller than I am.  Changing my focus to fight someone my size is Very Different.

Notes:

Movement - Stuttering.  Expect this to go away with practice, just like dance.  Need to not stand so 'square', turn from hips more.  When I focus on this, I can do it, but it's something to practice.  Was told I bounce a lot.  (if anyone is surprised, raise your hand so I can smack you.)  Compared to boxer.  (Darn - this is what comes of trying lots of stuff.)

Blocks - Practiced tent block; feeling more natural.  Must add to pell work.  Managed to block several head shots with shield without thinking about it, but I think they might have been intentional?  I hope this helps.

Shots - I was only aware of a few shots that went accidentally good; I think I just need to expect nothing here, and keep trying.  Genevieve had some really good advice about being a smaller fighter, I probably need to add more vertical padding to my pell, and mark 6'.  Arc work I did Friday helped, should go back to Rose and review the shots.

Armor - Must remember to trim down that arm strap that is just a bit fat to go easily through the buckle.  Tassets did their job.  Am becoming increasingly annoyed with plate for two big reasons: it's noisy, so hard to hear what people are telling me over my own clanking (since I bounce, I'm really noisy).  And I can't bend as easily as I would like - I think this is the lames on the harness hanging up, but not sure.  I wish I had a big mirror to check movement in.  I also want a shirt with a collar.  

Aftereffects:

Bruise on upper inner arm from florentine fighter.  Might have one on the back of my left leg...probably not.  Most noticeable: sword arm back-of-hand is very very tired.  Might be shop work yesterday plus pell work day before.  Will ice.

I really ought to paint "stretch after exertion for 20% strength addition" on the back of my shield, so I don't forget to do it - fortunately somebody razzed me about yoga and that reminded me.  But didn't remember mat, AGAIN.

Bringing chair is a good thing, and not just because I get to babble about bright colors on it.  Did get a great idea about burying assembly instructions in the decoration for it.

Run + Pell workout

Now that summer is over, temps are low enough for me to handle outdoor workouts.

I'm disgusted with how low my stamina is in armor, and this is colluding with an underlying "you really ought to be taking better care of your heart and lungs" worry.  I've figured out what my workouts should be for vanity's sake - I mix P90X with yoga, and am not terribly consistent with either one - but that is not cutting it for the performance I would like to bring to the sparring field.

So today I ran about 3K, on a road that is rather rollercoastery down, and then all the way back up again.  And then whacked the new pell for about half an hour, trying to move around, trying to always use the edge (instead of the flat) and also trying to complete my arcs.  When I couldn't raise my sword arm any more I walked around playing with the shield, standing in front of the car windows and practicing ducking behind it enough to protect my head.  That seemed to help me know that it takes a lot of ducking when you are getting used to a helm making your head taller.

Total time: about an hour huffing and puffing.  My heart feels better already.

First bruise

Oh boy, lots to catch up on from this week.

I went to my first fighter practice as a fighter yesterday, at Oldenfeld.  Nice turnout for a newbie, about six fighters - I did three intervals, which is back up to what I'd done at Daggers that flattened me so badly, and I had my armor on from about 11-2.  In Florida, late September, in the shade, about 80% humidity, high 80's temp.  Not bad.

I got this lovely thing, on sword side not-quite-hip.  It's tender, but not awful.  Not sure why there's a stripe through it.  I knew I'd gotten it when I did, and if my plate kit had tassets, I might not have gotten it.  Almost certainly I got it because I had my sword foot forward...but I'm so bad at blocking now, I really deserved it anyway.

I'd been worried about the bruises.  I see people with them, and people boast/complain about them.  I am the sort of person that will acquire bruises unknown.  I'm not sure whether I'm oblivious (def. possible) or bruise easily.  I wasn't sure how much this sort of thing would hurt, in the getting of, and that scared me, because I'm having fun, and I don't want to be so worried about bruises that I won't take the risks I need to, to play the game.

It wasn't that bad.  Onward!

Notes from practice:

• The crossed arm block can come from a hip swivel, and not moving my arm.
• My new longer sword is probably too long.  I'll play just a bit more with it, and then make adjustments.
• "Wearing my water" is a fantastic idea, but sort of shocking to actually do.  Fun, though.
• Forgot to do warmup arm circles AGAIN.  Bad Greet.
• Did do half an hour of yoga afterwards despite forgetting yoga mat.  Mat would have been a good idea anyway, to sit on.  Yoga felt awesome, particularly the dogs and standing twists.  Was able to put an extra military pushup into ALL the vinyasa flow parts - I'm getting stronger.  I think that was about ten extra pushups.  Quad stretches a *very* good idea.  Right shoulder has become significantly tighter than left, unsuprisingly.  Must put belt in armor bag. The yoga impressed people.  Well, that's something, I guess.  ;)
• I am spending a lot of energy interrupting my sword arcs.  This feels awkward, and is a shoulder injury waiting to happen.  Will work on this with solo practice - I think it's just the new movement vocabulary of swinging my arm extended by 3 feet, heretofore untried.  New dancy people don't straighten their legs for the same reason...it's harder, and it feels funny.
• And the armor bag that I got with the kit is falling apart.  I have an old parachute bag - I'll try using that.
• Using a separate bag for clothes/tools/gloves is a good idea for catching the laundry right away.  Could put the water bottles in this, frozen, and not bother with a cooler.  "Greet Bag" works well.
• Would like to adjust half-gauntlets; to pull cuff tighter, so as not to bang on inside of center-grip.
• I did much better about backing up fast enough.  Must work on footwork, though - I'm 'running' backward, instead of keeping foot placement even.  I know better than this!  Must be concentrating elsewehere.
• I also did better about being able to look at sword+face at the same time.  Still too slow to do anything about it, but at least I'm starting to see things.  Maybe this means my eyes are staying open now?
• Used new round shield - like it very much.  Was able to hold it correctly (sword edge tipped out) nearly all the time, and my arm only gave out in the last interval.  Someday it'll get painted.

On the topic of relatively small shields, one of the Oldenfeld fighters uses a surprisingly small shield for his height - I need to watch Seamus more carefully in future.  Then again, Sir Norm (is this right?) uses such a long shield I have no chance whatsoever of a leg shot on that side.

Kit details

I've been talking with Brenna today, and she was full of questions about kit details, so I thought I'd share.

The belt I've got is not a C-belt.  Here it is laying out flat:

Here's how to make one, sacrificing a t-shirt and using lots of duct tape (heh - this sport runs on duct tape, it seems).

I need one of these soon.  I'm sitting in the legs now, and the leg straps on this belt are being pulled out by the legs...they don't run straight up like they ought.    The leg buckles seem to want to extend to my hip bones, but that's not where the belt straps are.  They're a good inch inside my hip bones.  Also it pulls hard on my lower back...as in this picture.

Here's where I got my jill (female cup).  I asked about sizing, and got a medium for me - I'm 5'-7", 150 lbs, 41" hip circumference, and it fits pretty well.  It's annoying though - black and white construction means it will show under any sort of clothes.  Maybe that's a safety feature.

Bri emphasized the kit feeling comfortable, and I've got a ways to go with this one.  The right leg straps fit fine, but the left leg needs a bunch more holes, particularly in the lower leg - it's essentially just hanging off the belt now, and that's no good.  I want the support of my calf structure.

I'm not sure what to do about knee pads.  I got some standard generic knee pads, and they're too big for this metal.  The metal fits me really well - I just need something to transition from tender skin to metal poleyn, and just heavy fabric isn't enough.  Perhaps old knee braces?  I used to use those when we did lots of knee work in ballet...hours  kneeling on hardwood floors while the other choreography got worked out.  Must dig them out.

Initial data dump

 (a C-belt is in my future.  Also some particular yoga moves.) 

Well, as typical for me finding a new rabbithole, it's going to be All Fighting! All The Time! for a bit at Greet's Middle Ages, until I find balance again.  Some of you will love that...everybody else just hang on.  There will be tents and tunics and graphic design and embroidery soon.

 Progress report:

I have read The Armored Rose, and I liked a lot of it.  The part I could judge was of course the psychology/chemistry/physiognomy part.  Which jived completely with the swimming, dance, working construction sites that I have done.  (She got tears out of me at page 78.  Twice.)  The rest - the flip photos, and the drills, remain to prove themselves.

I have tried two things.  One is the 6-zone pell drill.  I am slow, of course, and my arm tires, but the satisfaction of putting the blows in precise places is keen.  Just like in ballet - there are marks to hit, and a form to be in when you get there, and a development of body shape to get there efficiently/safely, and a certain amount of energy that should be there when you get there.  (No music cues though.  Darn.)

The other is the forward leg stance.  I like it.  I observed when I worked with Earl Robert, that I kept wanting to step forward with my sword leg, because to not step meant I was choking off the end of the swing.  (I resisted then, because I thought that was the Right Thing.  Now I know better - the Right Thing is What Works For You.  Try stuff.)  I also like it because:

• it leads with my dominant, aka smarter, side.
• it aligns my right knee, which has had the ACL reconstructed.
• it feels like going into a particular turn from dance that was very powerful.  I'm not sure about directing this power, but I figure that'll come with practice.

Of course I don't expect to go through fighting life always with my right foot forward, but this is an interesting observation, and journals are for notes.

More advice from the Inbox.  Bart: "Go to Res Ducis* and pay very close attention to what Duke Gaston has to say about how exactly to throw shots...to avoid debilitating elbow, wrist, and forearm pain from throwing shots the wrong way."

People continue to shower resources upon me.  I'll be compiling these in the Links To Places Elsewhere monster page referenced at upper left, but for now the list is as follows - much comes from a recent thread on the ArmourArchive.

The Armored Rose (book)

The Knights Next Door (book)

http://swordmaiden.com/armor/talon/ (which goes directly to the original core of this armor kit)

http://www.createforum.com/thegirlsclub/

http://forums.armourarchive.org

www.bellatrix.org

http://www.midrealm.org/kith/kith/

http://www.vitaporten.se/

http://houseasgard.com/files.php

Res Ducis (I just google this and get YouTube videos, but there may be more)
"Duke U videos"
House Asgard's "Two man kata"
http://board.belegarth.com/viewtopic.php?f=135&t=26377

Kyrax's Glaive Fighting Tutorial 
Sir Kyrian's Florentine Fighting Tutorial 
Advanced Sword and Board Class at Ragnarok pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4, pt.5, pt.6, pt.7 (Video) 
Same Side Single Sword (Video) 
Tons of SCA Related Videos (Video) 
Fighting Definition Videos: Round 1 

ESSENTIAL VIEWING 
SCA Fighting 
SKBC Resources 
Iron Mountains University (Video) 
ARMA 
Brennon's Videos (Video) 
Magnus' Fighting Tutorials (Video) 
SCA Melee Combat 
Belegarth Fighting Articles 


BASICS 
Bhakdar's Beginner Basics (Video) 
Six Session Basic Training 
Battlefield Tips for Beginners 
Advancing Basic Shots (Video) 

BODY MECHANICS AND DRILLS 
SKBC 2007 Body Mechanics pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4 (Video) 
Triangle Footwork (Video) 
Boxing Stance (Video) 
Step Drill (Video) 
Plyometrics 
General Fitness pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4 (Video) 
1-6 Drill 
Duke U Sword Drills pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Footwork in Belegarth 
Amtgard Workout 

GENERAL COMBAT 
Targeting (Video) 
Team Fighting SKBC 2005 (Video) 
Defense pt1., pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Range Control pt.1, pt.2 (Video) 
Closing pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Feints & Baits pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
SKBC Stabs 'n Feints 2007 pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4, pt.5 (Video) 
Legged Fighting 
The Box pt.1, pt.2 (Video) 
Peter the Quick's Class Parts 1 & 2 (Video) 
Closing at Range 

SINGLE SWORD 
Introduction to Single Sword (Video) 
Lief and Guy's Class SKBC '04 pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4 (Video) 
High end single sword sparring (Video) 

SWORD AND BOARD 
Introduction to Sword and Shield (Video) 
Advance Sword and Board (Video) 
SKBC Advanced Sword & Board pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Fundamentals of Old Castle Shield Work 
Sword and Shield Technique pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4 (Video) 

FLORENTINE 
Two Swords (Florentine) 
Duke U Florentine pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Florentine in Belegarth 

GREAT SWORD AND POLEARM 
Longsword Techniques (Video) 
Stances 
Great Weapons (Great Sword and Naginata) (Video) 
Advanced Polearm pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4 (Video) 
Poleaxe Article 

SPEAR 
Spear Tactics 
Pamphlet on Spears (PDF) 
SCA Spear Fighting (Video) 
Duke U Spear pt.1, pt.2 (Video) 

COMBAT ARCHERY 
Archery Tips in Belegarth 

HERALDING 
Heralding in Belegarth 

SPECIFIC TECHNIQUES 
Stabs pt.1, pt.2, pt.3, pt.4, pt.5 (Video) 
High Cross Block & Counter (Video) 
Sparrow Seeks Nest (Video) 
Shield Kicking (Video) 
Close Range Escrima Fighting (Video) 

LEFTY'S 
SKBC 2006 Lefty Fu pt.1, pt.2, pt.3 (Video) 
Fighting Lefties pt.1, pt.2 (Video) 

TACTICS 
OODA Loop 
Roman Tactics 

OTHER 
Viking Sword Technique 
Paradoxes of Defence 
Renaissance Martial Arts The Web Documentary 
The Trueswordsman (PDF)

Down yet another rabbithole.

(It's funny, I'm now able to feel a rabbithole opening up beneath my feet and there is still NOTHING I can do about it.)

Why am I interested in fighting?

(here I try out a bit of grande allegro on the armor...someday I'll get a photog who'll catch the tour jete')

Because I was a dancer.  I trained for classical dance 20+ years.  I did mostly ballet, but also lots of modern, jazz, tap, and the occasional oddness like Scottish and African.  (I was better at the non-ballet, but ballet, particularly pointework, makes you tough.)  I have also done swimming as athletics, and in school occasionally displayed skill at volleyball, badminton, and field hockey.  I do yoga now, and like the "hard stuff" especially - arm balances, flexibility, being upside down.  I like plyometrics - jumping workouts.

In other words, I like body mechanics, I am quite used to being sore, sweaty, and breathing hard.  I like endorphins.  I am competitive.

I also want help against the crap in my head.  The stuff that says I'm not supposed to like working hard.  That says it's not desirable for a woman to say grr.  To be someone who flings herself through the air, who smacks the ball, who defends herself and obtains advantage.

Like many parts of the SCA, I want to practice something that will help me in real life.

And I want to see what all the fuss is about, because honestly, Arts & Sciences in the majority of SCAdian's mindsets comes somewhere after:

Fighting.  Eating and drinking.  Camping.  Looking Good.

I've been told many times in the past three years "you should fight."  When I ask for explanation on something I've seen, or that people are discussing.  When I bounce around and demonstrate something I've read about or learned in a class.  When I do yoga and people see how tough I am about it.  But up until recently, I managed to sidestep the rabbithole with excuses..."my reflexes are slow."  "I don't have enough lifetimes for everything I'd like to try."

One of the readers here, when seeing my non-armoring work with the armorer Mike Moulton, suggested that I play around with Mike's forge, even if I wasn't interested in fighting, because "you should take advantage of the opportunity while you have it."  Little did he know that "opportunity" is a magic button for me, and that Mike had been offering me "some female armor that will fit you perfectly, you should try it on."

So now I have the World's Most Glorious Loaner Armor, and I am fighting.  If only in my head so far.

I also have two books loaned to me, "The Armored Rose" and "The Knights Next Door."

I have wonderful offers of teaching, both local to me and not too far away, and lots of advice right off the bat, which I will list here so I don't lose it all.

A side note - staying up nearly all night contributes strongly to the IQ-lowering effects of putting on a helm.  I am not going to be as clever with this field as I might seem in others, I fear.  But I learn by taking notes and repetition, and part of the deal here is to be fierce about playing My Game.

Sir Lex:  A very lightly padded gambeson.

Earl Sir Robert:  Strike zones.  Legalities.  Names of armor pieces.

Sir Baras:  Lightness of weapon and shield.

THL Brielle (Brianne?):  Wear your water.  Movement - learn to be faster, practice at pell.  4 blocks: knuckle in, elbow down, rap, and tent.  Practice two-shot combos, then more.  Make armor as light as possible, and spend as much time in it as possible - make it your second skin.

THL Ianka:  Consider butt protection.  Be aware that unsolicited advice is rampant, even mine.  A third thing that I've forgotten already, darn it.  Turn your front foot out for increased movement options...(need to talk to her more about this, since I was exhausted...I am wary about turnout, since the knee reconstruction on the other leg.)

Armor debut - It's a whole new world, and I'm way behind again.

I have to admit that I *like* being way behind.  Learning stuff is fun.  Though I need to learn how to get more sleep.  The cough is back.

More pics of me being shiny and beat upon are here.  Also a fair amount of pics of me with strange expressions.  I utterly fail as a photography model - eh, it's more interesting to see personality, right? 

Things that happened at Daggers & Hemlock:

• The hug-a-Greet line that formed at troll.  I miss my Gladians already.
• Stayed with Cordial/Raven/Angel/Daniel - had a great time listening to Malcolm and Lex's stories.  Shared my cemetery report with Cynred and Malcolm, as part of the "14thc Resistance".  Heh.
• Met Bart and Sir Logan.  Bart fought for me (that's why I'm missing a belt in the pictures), did well, and taught me things.
• Had great serious discussions with Bart and Cynred, caught up with some of my very level-headed friends - Kerstyn, Vittoria.  Always nice to return to center.  Met new people - Rozani, from Enterprise, does terrific paper-mache masks, and is working on researching them...somebody else I know is working on paper-mache', and I can't remember who.  I hope they mention it again soon, so I can hook the two of them up.
• Did a little child-minding, which was fun.  Sir Robert (the jolly!)'s three-year-old Nathaniel, who was fascinated by his pockets, and my buddy Brooke, who is now walking!  But she still likes my beads, and now can play the blow-in-the-face game without being scared.
• Took another trichonopoly (Viking wire weaving) class, in which I was made fun of by the teacher (my friend Sorcha) for inspiring her to put footnotes in her handout, and to bring some geekier background to keep me amused.  She did a great job of her class.  Sorcha got a Meridian Cross during court...she's learned so much about silverworking in the last few months, I'm proud of her.
• Met THL Brienne, recently moved to Phoenix Glade from Trimaris, and have made plans to go back and get more instruction from her.
• Armored up (see pics).  Learned too much for this post.  Got instruction from Earl Robert on the utter basics (strike zones, etc), Sir Baras on weapons, and worked with Bri about twice as much as the guys on movement and blocks.  People thought it was cool that I had so much fortitude, if not actual stamina.  (Working on that.)

The story of The World's Most Glorious Loaner Armor (tm):

This armor was given to me (it happened to be my birthday) by Mike Moulton.  It was most recently Sir Jocelyn's old kit.  The body section was made by Talon for her, and the rest (I think, correct me Mike) came from Mike's shop, with Jocelyn's help.  It is aluminum, with a stainless helm circa 1420, and came with a stainless-hilted sword and flat shield that's shown.  I have it on two conditions:

• that when I am finished with it, either because I am done fighting or because I have replaced it with other kit, that it goes back to Mike.  I like this even better than an outright gift, because it means that it will go on to someone else's use, and I don't have the trouble of finding that person, or selling it, and it will be Taken Care Of.
• that I fight Mike a lot when he feels better.  No problem.  I'm having a wonderful time.

I'll write more in another post about what I learned from Robert, Baras, and Bri, how the armor and I did on our first outing, and how I feel about fighting.

Third lesson

Long range attacks and parries.

I learned long-range attacks in a drill with an eight-year-old.  Got to wear a medium breastplate and a 38 front-close jacket.  Of course the kid kept poking me under the edge of the breastplate.  I'm not sure whether to look forward to being poked by an adult because they will have a better idea of distance (and therefore not poke as hard) or to be worried because an adult will have more strength.  Better check my non-bruise vitamins.

Found the first casualty of my dance background.  I chassee forward, when kitted out and under pressure to skewer someone.  Must break this habit, as it wastes lots of time bouncing and dragging feet.

Parries.
More positions.  Started with 6 and 4.  6 is the default en garde, and 4 is the one you get to by moving your hand just across the body.  THE TIP STAYS IN PLACE.  This is the hardest part.

If you drop the tip, then you're in 7 and 8.  I need lots of drill practice on the parries.  And to look up the two kinds again...disconnected and ???

Got quite tired trying to keep my tip up - more hand muscles working.

I don't get another lesson until a week from Thursday, since next week they're running a tournament.  I am offically allowed in the tournament, but seeing as I am the most novice in the club, I decided not.

For some reason, all these high school boys (students of my husband's) want to fence me.  I hope this isn't what I suspect it is. 

I am not allowed to fence someone outside of club yet.

Second lesson

Second lesson - Thursday of first week.
Reviewed footwork.  Did drill again.

Attacks:
Close range attack = straighten arm.  Right of way discussion.  Distance drill with foils and masks.  Got to poke the teacher.
(I wear a size 4 mask - of 5, and an XtraSmall glove.  Big head, small hands.  Shut. Up.)

Noticed during the distance drill that:
1)  It's still weird to be allowed to poke someone with a sharp object - even when you filled out paperwork and wrote a check to qualify.
2)  I'm lunging already, to correct my distance judgement.  Time for...

Mid range attack = straighten arm  + lunge with leg.
Worked on lunges first.  Then added the arm.  Helps to think of this as being yanked forward by the tip of your sword.  Reprise of rightofway discussion.

I am being told my form is very good.  Can only blame 20+ years of ballet.  Form is my friend.

Got tired and went home.  I want my own foil, as it's clear that nothing I've done so far reaches the small fencing muscles of the thumb and forefinger.

First lesson

First lesson:

How to hold the foil.  How to stand en garde.  Salute.  Foil taken away.
First position.  Second position.  En garde.

Footwork. 
Advances.  Heel first, stay very level.  Keep steps the same size.
Retreats.  Back foot first, try to keep L-shaped position of feet - overcross backward is Hungarian.

(I pointed out that any Hungarian bad habits are totally appropriate.  Was told not to do it anyway.  But nicely.)

Drill:
Opponents face each other across a counted distance.  One opponent leads.  The other tries to keep the same distance.  We practice on a tiled floor with 12" tiles, which is very handy.  This was fun.