For the last several days in Drake Park in Bend, Oregon I have watched a group of young people, sporting medieval clothing and, equipped with shields and wooden bats, engaging in combat. I snapped this shot without bothering to ask the name of this game. Perhaps you know? There are two teams of about six players that line up across from one another At a given moment a signal is given and a battle ensues where it appears the object is to strike the opponent in the flesh with the bat. Skilled players show nifty blocking techniques with the shield. Upon being hit, the unfortunate victim lies on the ground until one team is completely conquered. The entire foray usually takes a couple of minutes, then the teams regroups and repeats the process. No score was kept, that I could tell, nor was the contest unnecessarily rough. It seemed like wholesome, almost relaxing, fun on a sunny summer afternoon at the park.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Days of Yore?
For the last several days in Drake Park in Bend, Oregon I have watched a group of young people, sporting medieval clothing and, equipped with shields and wooden bats, engaging in combat. I snapped this shot without bothering to ask the name of this game. Perhaps you know? There are two teams of about six players that line up across from one another At a given moment a signal is given and a battle ensues where it appears the object is to strike the opponent in the flesh with the bat. Skilled players show nifty blocking techniques with the shield. Upon being hit, the unfortunate victim lies on the ground until one team is completely conquered. The entire foray usually takes a couple of minutes, then the teams regroups and repeats the process. No score was kept, that I could tell, nor was the contest unnecessarily rough. It seemed like wholesome, almost relaxing, fun on a sunny summer afternoon at the park.
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4 comments:
I always see those kids! We refer to them as the battlers... although, I have no idea who they are.
This strikes me as very funny. It's nice to see. Kind of surreal. Maybe you should talk to them. I wonder if they actually speak English or Middle Earth, or ???
It's very possible these kids are affiliated with the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), but OTOH they could also be members of some other role-playing group or historical re-creation society. The only way to find out for sure is to ask them. My husband and I were members of the SCA for several years in the early 1980s. I think I told you about it in a letter one time...good grief, remember snail mail? That was the Middle Ages right THERE!
I find it interesting all the ways that humans find to amuse themselves. At least in this contest no one gets hurt.
And it's coed. That's nice.
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