Equestrian
From MiddleWiki
When most of us stop and think about the middle ages, inevitably a horse will appear; whether drawing a carriage or with a jousting knight upon their back there is no doubt to the importance of the equestrian arts to medieval reenactment.
There are several equestrian activities for those interested to participate in within the Middle Kingdom; all under the guidance of marshals to ensure the safety of both two and four legged participants.
Middle Kingdom Equestrian events may include:
- Jousting as a combatant sport was approved in the SCA in 2005, and is growing in popularity. The SCA approved rules for jousting using cardboard tubes with styrofoam tips, attached to a wooden base. Testing in the Middle Kingdom had started in 2004, and in late 2005, rules were adopted, and jousting began in the Middle Kingdom. Wood jousting has also been added as an experiment at the Society level, and Lancer Gwendolyn of Shadowed Stars was the first authorized wood jouster in the Midrealm as of Gulf Wars 2018.
- Tourney elements
- Rings are a test of hand and eye coordination as a rider catches increasingly smaller rings on a lance/spear. From 6 inches down to 1 inch in size
- Reeds challenges a rider to hit objects with a sword on each side of them as they ride down a lane, they also decrease in size from 10 inches to 2 inches
- Heads simulates riding through a battle hitting ground soldiers by weaving through heads on posts and hitting them with a sword
- Quintain is a way to practice jousting by hitting a shield that is on a rotating arm with a lance. If the rider moves too slowly the arm will swing around and hit them before they move past it.
- Buzkashi also known as the goat game. A stuffed goat is picked up and carried by riders to a goal. There are two teams and each team can steal the goat from the other. The goat must be passed 3 times by a team before it can be place in the goal for a point. It is fast paced and require a bit of riding skill
- Tippet tag is a riding skill activity that has riders taking tippets from each others arms while trying to prevent their own from being taken. Each particular event may have their own specific rules about teams or time limits.
- Mounted Archery involves riding down a lane and shooting at targets while riding. Coordinating the bow, arrows and reins at one time can be quite a challenge.
- Mounted Combat has different rules from ground combat, hits from behind are allowed, but no hits below the belt to keep the horses safe, The swords are padded rather than bare rattan to add an extra safety element for the horses.
- Challenge courses have many elements that showcase riding skill as well as weapons skills, each one is different and may involve things listed above or may be new and unique elements.
Contents |
Links
Games
Equipment
- Easy Equestrian Equipment
- Medieval Horse Games (equipment)
- A Proper Tourney Fence
- Period Riding Garb from your closet
- Photos of Eq equipment at Gulf Wars 10
Barding, Tack & Armour
- History of Horse Barding
- History of Horse Tack
- Making Medieval Style Barding
- The Well Dressed Horse
- A Pattern for Full Fabric Horse Caparison (Approximately 13th through 16th centuries)
- An Overview of Lady Aliena Goodeve's re-creation and research of the Horse Trappings Pattern found in Juan de Alcega's 1589 Tailor's Pattern Book
- Costume of the Military Horse
