Marches of Precedence/BB20t

[Mark Harris]

Kateryn asks:

>I don't get out much, so please pardon this question, but do Marches of
>Precedence really happen?  When is this likely to occur?

Gunnora said:

        We just had one at the Bjornsborg XXth Anniversary.  We used to do
them more when the SCA was not so populous, as it was a way of adding
ceremony and atmosphere (Bjornsborg typically had the entire March pavanne
into the hall).  Plus it was a way for each of us to celebrate our
achievements.

>>>>>
Frankly, I hope it is another ten years before it is attempted again.

This last weekend's March was held just before feast. Even if things had 
been on schedule this placed feast at 7pm. Well after dark and when it
was getting colder.

The March started late. It was so dark that you really couldn't see the
people parading in. While you could hear the herald, a lot of the majesty
of the event was lost. Many people were already hungry. It didn't help
having to wait for the March to finish to eat. Afterall there was another
half hour waiting in the buffet line after the March was over. Perhaps if
breads and cheese were served prior to the March it would have helped.

The March was also quite long. Even though a lot of people did not join
in, including some with peerages, it was a long drawn out afair. I guess
it's nice to be able to list all awards, but is it neccesary to list
every one that a person has including baronial awards. Why not list just
the top 5 or 10 awards? Why not do the March during feast? Since this
was served buffet style, you wouldn't have had to worry about interferance
from servers.

On the positive side, the organisers had the marchers fill out file cards
with their awards so that they could start organising early in the event
and not have to wait until the March to figure out where everyone fit.

Other than these complaints/suggestions, I liked this event. The archery
and the axe throw were fun, small events. The museum was interesting. Wish
I'd had more time there. I only found one merchant. At night I found a
scattering of small bardic fires. These seem to have mostly disappeared
from SCA events. I hope they start coming back.

I even talked to a pair of mundanes who drove through the camp. They
seemed to really like what they saw. Hope you folks in Seawinds will
welcome them in when they show up there.

Anyway, these are some of Stefan's opinions. Others will have their
own.

Stefan li Rous