The Armour Archive

anyone going?

No...I am going to Season of the Wolf in Sarnia instead.

Val Day has SUCKED so badly the past few years that I just dont want to go anymore.

I used to go every year with my Knight because that is the event I got squired at.
Now, neither of us go anymore.

Nope, I don't do anything on Ba-Humbug day except go to work.

Valday fightin history.

We used to be in a small room with concrete block walls on two sides of the list. Made marshalling a 12 man melee easy. Life was good. Hardest part of the organization was trying to keep 6 man teams around to finish the tourney.

About 6 or 7 years ago we moved into a HUGE building with tons of room. Suddenly we have our 6 man melee groups spilling into the crowds who are now set up around the list. We even had one guy go into the stands. So we try to get control of the fight. By making it a limited frontage in some way.

Barrier fighting was tried (much too long a wait for 125 fighters, many complaints about range) Lots of bitchin.

Haybales the next year. Hay on smooth concrete = slippery. We have several fighters that blow off the end of the bridge. Not a big deal if the fighters have ANY awareness, but several of the fights carry through into the list ropes and crowd. Lots of bitchin.

One year I built freakin 4.5’ walls for bridge battles. Turned out to be a big mistake on my part because we the marshals couldn’t see the fight going on through the walls. Legged fighters disappeared from view. We had someone with a lip or nose ring get caught in the helmet and yanked out. Lots of bitchin. Lots of blood!

One year we had a nice warm summer day in the middle of February and the king (who had been eliminated from the tourney) grabbed a ton of fighters and went outside to do pickup melee in the parking lot. Killed the tourney for the rest of the fighters still in it. Lots of bitchin.

Last year we had a Tournament of Chivalry. Best Valday in years. We had 136 fighters, a load of knights and everyone fought all day. Yada yada yada I get to the end of the day and low and behold I still get some complaints about people not having enough space to set up their big household’s day camp. (good complaint btw. Way too many people throw armor bags and a loads of other stuff wherever they feel like at most events I go to.)


We get 1300 SCA folk. 120+ fighters. 40+ fencers. It’s a big event that attempts to be something to everyone.

So we keep trying and listening. Thank god the event hasn’t suffered from lack of people willing to give us input it.

Sorry for being so blunt there Logan....

Its was one of those things where I went for so many years and then all of a sudden it wasnt a fun event anymore for all kinds of reason ( many of which you mentioned )...
and We just stopped going.

I hope you guys figure out how to find a common ground again to make it better like it once was.

First time in 8 years that I am not going. The event has had some trouble over the years, but I usually get enough fighting in and thats what it's all about for me. The only problem I had last year was the people trying to set up big sitting area's in such a confined space. I was told nothing more then a chair and armor, and yet some people set up camps. I was one of the earlier people so I could have taken up half the biulding if I wanted to, yet I was nice -only to have others come in afterwards and push my stuff out the door (figuratively speaking). That really annoyed me.

But the event as a whole is ok. The problem is that like many events -it has outgrown itself.

(^_^)

------------------
Hjalmar of Sognefjord
House Bearkiller
Barony of Grey Niche, Meridies.

"True nobility is not measured by being superior to another, but rather by becoming superior to oneself."