Well, I must admit I was expecting to make more entries than this when I started this blog. Work has been keeping me busy. I have also recently lost a promotion I was expecting, so I have started looking elsewhere. I have been putting out my resume, and am finally having some success. I have several interviews to prepare for, so I have put much of my fighting and brewing on hold.
I did have the pleasure of attending an open armouring session at Master Talbot's last weekend. I worked on a pair of Wisby gauntlets. They look much the same as when I started, but I actually did work on them quite a bit. I learned quite a bit, and feel I should be able to get them worked out in the near future.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Wiped Out
Yesterday we held out first outdoor practice at the new practice site. I was there at 6:30. I wanted to be early in case anyone else showed up and was unsure where to go. Jacob actually got there before me and left while I was en route. He contacted my lady, who told him I was on my way and that he should head back there.
Lady Francesca arrived with a friend in tow. I can't recall his name, but he is interested in learning to fight. Unfortunately, he is not yet 18 and we don't have any other youth fighters. They arrived as I was sitting down to work on my weapons. We sat and discussed weapon construction and I briefly explained some of the combat rules the SCA has.
Jacob is a member of Belegarth, another group which practices medieval martial arts. He brought his weapons over to compare the weapons he uses to the ones we use. The weapons the SCA uses are made of rattan. The weapons Belegarth uses are made of PVC and foam. The Belegarth weapons Jonah brought weigh about 1/3 of comparable SCA weapons, and he was complaining his weapons were on the heavy side for Belegarth.
Gareth and Tancorix were running late. They are straightening up their house and working on several home improvement projects. As happens while cleaning, things got misplaced. It took them a while to get their armor together, and then they had a heck of a drive to get to practice. They finally did arrive at around 8:00. We armored up and went at it for about 45 minutes, until it got too dark.
I realized that I need to do more conditioning, because I was getting exhausted after very short bouts. My breathing was off and I got winded way too easily. I think this may be in part because I was experimenting with my gorget, and it may have been effecting my breathing. It may also have been due to the fact that we have been practicing indoors in the air conditioning. Gareth and Tancorix were also fighting with pole arms, while I was using sword and shield. This difference in weapon styles required me to be more aggressive in order for me to get into weapons range.
Either way, at the end of the 45 minutes I was completely wiped out.
Lady Francesca arrived with a friend in tow. I can't recall his name, but he is interested in learning to fight. Unfortunately, he is not yet 18 and we don't have any other youth fighters. They arrived as I was sitting down to work on my weapons. We sat and discussed weapon construction and I briefly explained some of the combat rules the SCA has.
Jacob is a member of Belegarth, another group which practices medieval martial arts. He brought his weapons over to compare the weapons he uses to the ones we use. The weapons the SCA uses are made of rattan. The weapons Belegarth uses are made of PVC and foam. The Belegarth weapons Jonah brought weigh about 1/3 of comparable SCA weapons, and he was complaining his weapons were on the heavy side for Belegarth.
Gareth and Tancorix were running late. They are straightening up their house and working on several home improvement projects. As happens while cleaning, things got misplaced. It took them a while to get their armor together, and then they had a heck of a drive to get to practice. They finally did arrive at around 8:00. We armored up and went at it for about 45 minutes, until it got too dark.
I realized that I need to do more conditioning, because I was getting exhausted after very short bouts. My breathing was off and I got winded way too easily. I think this may be in part because I was experimenting with my gorget, and it may have been effecting my breathing. It may also have been due to the fact that we have been practicing indoors in the air conditioning. Gareth and Tancorix were also fighting with pole arms, while I was using sword and shield. This difference in weapon styles required me to be more aggressive in order for me to get into weapons range.
Either way, at the end of the 45 minutes I was completely wiped out.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
FP and Border Skirmish updates
It seems we are having a repeat of last summer's scheduling snafu for fighter practice. We were informed at the last minute of the loss of our practice site for the summer. Fortunately I was able to find a suitable alternative almost immediately. We only lost 1 night's practice. The new site is an outdoor will also allow us to practice more effectively. There is also a large shelter on the site which will allow us to hold practice even during inclement weather.
On the brewing front, I ordered a drinking horn from Raymond's Quiet Press as a prize for the Populace Choice Brewing Competition. It wasn't my original idea to have a horn as a prize, but it just kind of fell into place. I think it will be better than what I had originally intended. I just don't know if it will be appropriate as a revolving prize. It may have to remain with the champion and a new prize acquired for next year.
That leads me to believe that we should consider an entry fee for next year's competition. I haven't looked at the other SCA Guilds out there to see if they are doing this or not. At the time, I'm not sure how well that will go over. I will admit I was hoping for more responses from the local guild members before now about helping out with this years competition. It's probably just nerves. I feel responsible for the brewing activities, and want to have a successful event. I just need to relax and let it happen.
On the brewing front, I ordered a drinking horn from Raymond's Quiet Press as a prize for the Populace Choice Brewing Competition. It wasn't my original idea to have a horn as a prize, but it just kind of fell into place. I think it will be better than what I had originally intended. I just don't know if it will be appropriate as a revolving prize. It may have to remain with the champion and a new prize acquired for next year.
That leads me to believe that we should consider an entry fee for next year's competition. I haven't looked at the other SCA Guilds out there to see if they are doing this or not. At the time, I'm not sure how well that will go over. I will admit I was hoping for more responses from the local guild members before now about helping out with this years competition. It's probably just nerves. I feel responsible for the brewing activities, and want to have a successful event. I just need to relax and let it happen.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Works in progress
There was supposed to be a fighter practice tonight, but as seems to be the case lately life is intruding. At least it wasn't my life, this time. Tancorix, Richard and Bojei all have work or work related issues tonight. Ansel is continuing to work on his helm in order to be able to get back in armour. Maybe next week.
To make up for not having practice tonight, I went and took a gravity reading on a Ginger Saison I brewed at the end of last month. I got the recipe from Extreme Brewing.
I was expecting a gravity reading of around 1.015, but instead have a reading of 1.026. I am not sure why I am fermenting so slowly, but that seems to be a theme with everything I have been brewing. I suspect it is the temperature in my basement, which is a constant 65 deg F. That might be just a little cold, however John Palmer, author of How To Brew, recommends a fermentation temperature of 60-70 deg F. I have sent out a call for help on the Yahoo! groups SCA brew and Bathtub Brewers.
I also followed up on an order I placed with Sir Vitus for a shield he had on sale on the Armour Archive. I feel like a kid waiting for a Christmas present.
Please follow the links above to get a better idea of how I am living my current middle ages. I will continue to post links as a kind of blog shorthand to keep my posts short and readable.
To make up for not having practice tonight, I went and took a gravity reading on a Ginger Saison I brewed at the end of last month. I got the recipe from Extreme Brewing.
I was expecting a gravity reading of around 1.015, but instead have a reading of 1.026. I am not sure why I am fermenting so slowly, but that seems to be a theme with everything I have been brewing. I suspect it is the temperature in my basement, which is a constant 65 deg F. That might be just a little cold, however John Palmer, author of How To Brew, recommends a fermentation temperature of 60-70 deg F. I have sent out a call for help on the Yahoo! groups SCA brew and Bathtub Brewers.
I also followed up on an order I placed with Sir Vitus for a shield he had on sale on the Armour Archive. I feel like a kid waiting for a Christmas present.
Please follow the links above to get a better idea of how I am living my current middle ages. I will continue to post links as a kind of blog shorthand to keep my posts short and readable.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Hello
Greetings. I thought it would be a good idea to keep a log of the things I have been doing lately in an attempt to:
- Be a little more organized in recording my brewing sessions.
- Keep a log of my fighting practices as a constant reminder that I can always be doing more to improve.
- Generate and maintain an interest in brewing throughout the Midrealm, and elsewhere.
- Share successful recipes and lessons learned from failures.
- Share my dreams of armour, garb accessories and events.
I hope you enjoy reading about my current middle ages.
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