And I might well be.
From what I've seen, the rattan combat community is largely done with significant experimentation. Perhaps it's just a phase in an ongoing cycle, but the push is for standardization and retrenchment. While the rattan community refines an existing rule set I see people in the rapier community discussing ways of pushing the boundaries of their study. They talk about ways to move away from foils and even schlagers to blades that are more accurate representations/recreations of period weapons. They talk about ways to bring their rules for competitive combat closer to simulating actual conditions. They talk about pushing their studies of historical manuals ever earlier. Not everyone, and certainly they disagree in some areas. But it seems that a portion of the folks who are movers and shakers in the rapier community at the Society level talk seriously about these ideas and work, slowly, to make them happen.
I hear talk about how cut and thrust combat (the re-tooled Sidesword program) will eventually allow simulation of some forms of combat going back as early as 1300. The marshallate wants nothing to do with period combat studies (gladly turning that over to the A&S community, and thank heavens for that in my opinion). Jousting? Knights were involved but it's an equestrian activity at heart; and the equestrians keep submitting bids to get out from under the marshallate (and I believe the marshallate supported at least one of those bids).
Rattan combat, armored combat if you prefer, is the flagship martial activity of the SCA. And it is perhaps unfair to compare growth and experimentation in activities that are, at best, 1/3 the age of rattan combat (i.e. they are going through rapid early growth that rattan combat once went through). And it is also true that the armored combat community continues to make strides in appearance and some folks are really pushing some serious study of chivalry. But it seems that much of the rattan community is content with things the way they are and have no further desire to innovate.
Just my thoughts.
I just think it's like two cowboys eating pudding.
