Sir Alexis wrote:Personally I'm fairly flexible on the lance design. Would like to hear a bit more from folks as far as the pro's and con's of tapered versus non-tapered when it comes to safety issues. Aesthetically, the tapered lances tend to look more pleasing, at least to my eye, but I understand the cost and accessibility factor. Unless there is an identifiable safety issue, then it seems to make sense to leave that to a given tournament organizer to dictate for their event, if they have that much of a preference.
But, as I said, I'm interested in hearing what folks have to say.
Regards,
Alexis/Dave
Personally, since you are not restricting jousters personas, harness and overall look to a specific timeframe/area, it does not make a lot of sense to restrict them to shaped or non-shaped lances for aesthetic reasons.
Most early lances were pretty straight with little or no taper. As time goes on the weight goes up and the taper starts (especially for jousting as opposed to field lances).
While I personally LOVE HE lances with a matching metal vamplate and think anyone that uses straight lances is missing the boat on safety & control, there are those that love and swear by the straight lances. It isn't a right or wrong, it is largely a personal preferance and what type of armour are you using it with thing. Also if you are using arrets/lance rests or even heavier rigs with the bracket extending toward the rear, especially with grapers, the system used with the lance makes a big difference.
For me the bigger lances have more mass, preventing them from being shoved back toward me quite has violently. Also the reverse tapered rear section when properly couched helps you avoid being jammed to a degree. They also force you to build up your strength, endurance, control and timing or you look really foolish. They are less affected by wind, tend to be more stable if your mount makes a mistake, so they are less likely to go astray once you have it aimed properly compared to lighter lances.
The one advantage to the lighter straight lances (other than being able to slip them as some have pointed out, provided you don't have a solidly mounted vamplate) is that weak people who are not strong enough to joust, can often get by with the home depot light weight wood without a taper.
Now you could just say that if you are not strong enough to use a 'real man's' lance, you should not be jousting. That was actually a thing for a while in the later middle ages, people bragging about the size of their lance (I think it was Walther who rode into the lists with a small boy on his lance to demonstrate his strength and control?). But since some of our jousters are lightweight people, they have zero chance of using the HE lances safely, at least not without more weight training than many are willing to put in.
But frankly lighter lances were perfectly authentic and used by manly man types in the earlier years of chivalry, look at the Bayeux tapestry amongst others.
A 1066 guy in maille looks silly with a heavy tapered lance with a massive vamplate right out of the 14 or 15th century. Personally I think jousting in just maille and a helm is not appropriate for the SCA, someone is going to get badly hurt with balsa tips or a socket hit to a maille only protected torso or limb.
So my answer is people should pick equipment they feel safe with and have it match their armour. We should not legislate tapered vs. non-tapered. We should have some minimum body, throat and helm armour minimums. Legislating materials for lances is fine however.
I think requiring vamplates is a something to consider, though many will argue you are safer without one (provided the lance is tapered and/or you have a really good gauntlet and don't get hit in the thumb
).
Many argue they can't ride with a lance with a vamplate. My attitude is if you can't deal with a vamplate and control yourself and your horse? Well, I don't think you and/or that horse are ready to be charging down the list aiming a lance at somebody else then....
Richard Blackmoore
Is the SCA a better place for having you in it? If not, what are you doing there?
I'm a female, not a particularly stout girl. I was up and practicing with your lances not all that long after a major abdominal surgery which kept me hopitalized for 2 months and in-home nursing for 2 months after. Seriously gang...they aren't that heavy.
