Post by schlager7 on Mar 3, 2008 9:28:03 GMT -6
The Four Winds Faire near Tyler has opened for another season. My wife, Nicole (Maupin on this forum), and I went up for the opening day.
It is quite small compared to the powerhouses in Texas like Scarborough Faire and the Texas Renaissance Festival. It takes little time to take in their vendors. There are a decent number of musical and comic acts and pretty darned good fight choreography.
The real treat, however, for us is the joust, which is held twice each day. Unlike many faires, it is not fight choreography, but a competition. The jousts are held twice each day, every day, with running points lists kept on the competitors through the run of the faire.
The knights take turns at:
rings (try to catch 4 suspended metal rings with their lance);
quintain (hit the quintain shield with their lance and see who can cause the most spins);
target (try to hit the bullseye of a target with a lance at a run);
and Saracen Heads which consists of two cabbages set along the rail, the knights at a run try to either knock it off the rail (1 Point), slice it (2 Points) or impale it and carry it to the end of the run (3 Points) all at a run on horseback.
Also there are a few who compete in full contact, that is, as you see in the films... they try to land a lance strike on their opponent's shield. (BTW, for you fencers, striking your opponents helm/head or his/her horse results in what we would call a black card).
On Saturday, four competed in the first part, with two opting to include full contact. I have some video I'll be posting soon.
It is quite small compared to the powerhouses in Texas like Scarborough Faire and the Texas Renaissance Festival. It takes little time to take in their vendors. There are a decent number of musical and comic acts and pretty darned good fight choreography.
The real treat, however, for us is the joust, which is held twice each day. Unlike many faires, it is not fight choreography, but a competition. The jousts are held twice each day, every day, with running points lists kept on the competitors through the run of the faire.
The knights take turns at:
rings (try to catch 4 suspended metal rings with their lance);
quintain (hit the quintain shield with their lance and see who can cause the most spins);
target (try to hit the bullseye of a target with a lance at a run);
and Saracen Heads which consists of two cabbages set along the rail, the knights at a run try to either knock it off the rail (1 Point), slice it (2 Points) or impale it and carry it to the end of the run (3 Points) all at a run on horseback.
Also there are a few who compete in full contact, that is, as you see in the films... they try to land a lance strike on their opponent's shield. (BTW, for you fencers, striking your opponents helm/head or his/her horse results in what we would call a black card).
On Saturday, four competed in the first part, with two opting to include full contact. I have some video I'll be posting soon.