[Ansteorra] Order of the Rose Equestrian Champion!

[Lisa A. May]

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Greetings from Countess Margaret ny Connor on behalf of the Order of the
Rose!

The members of the Order of the Rose spent a lovely day (and a half!) at
Bordermarch's Autumn Melees watching sixteen doughty riders compete in the
King's Lancer Competition.  It was a most exciting and event-filled
tournament (who knew anyone could bounce quite that high?) and those of us
fortunate enough to be able to attend were entertained and delighted at the
skill and chivalry displayed!!  Queen Julia and Princess Conal were able to
take time from their duties of the day to join us for a while, and we were
most honored to have the Crowns of Trimaris and Meridies and the Coronet of
Gleann Abhann present for a while as well!  Many thanks to Sir Gideon and
his household for providing us with a pavilion and chairs from which to
watch the competition!

Sir Alexis ran the list this weekend and told us that he was trying a new
tournament format, where riders went head to head in elimination rounds.
Each rider competed on a parallel course attempting to gain as many points
as possible by successfully navigating a number of challenges.  Each
challenge carried a different number of points depending on difficulty.  The
only item that *both* courses did not have was a leather crown that sat atop
a pole on the fence between the parallel courses.  The rider who seized the
crown got 10 points but was not allowed to gain any further points on his or
her course.  It's rather difficult to explain (although Sir Alexis did a
wonderful job!), but the bottom line was that a careful rider who was
successful in meeting the challenges on her course could still win over a
rider who hurried through his course to grab the crown.

Each rider introduced themselves to the assembled Roses and was then asked
to represent a particular Rose during the course of the day.  We pinned
ribbons on each rider as a token of the Rose's favor.  They were lovely
fluttering in the wind!

It's impossible to describe all the exciting action, but we felt we must
mention at least a few of the day's events.  Mistress Ariella impressed us
all by riding a very spirited horse and navigating her course gracefully
despite being very new to the equestrian arts.  Lady Brigitte enchanted us
with her grace and seemingly effortless control of her horse, Cash (the same
spirited horse that Mistress Ariella rode).  Sir Alexis, as always, was a
delight to watch as he thundered through the course with a commanding
presence!  Sir Henri entertained us greatly with his battle cry "Sans
Hibou!" each time he charged the quintain (apparently, "sans hibou" means
"without owl," a reminder of a tourney in which Sir Henri's owl crest was
removed somewhat rudely from his helmet!).  HL Rolanda demonstrated the
determination and courage that only a woman of Ansteorra could possess.
Mistress Neassa, Sir Gideon and at least one other whose name I can't recall
(so sorry!) competed at least partly dressed in armor before dashing back
over to fight in the melees.  Several riders frightened and then impressed
us greatly when they were thrown from their mounts only to recover, get back
up and ride again.  All of the riders were gracious and welcoming!

The tournament was very exciting, and also very long.  They were unable to
complete the competition Saturday, and the tournament was finished on
Sunday.  Because of the length of the tourney, much of the site was packed
and most of the populace gone by the time the King's Lancer was declared
(congratulations Sir Alexis!).  So, while the Roses have chosen their
Champion from among the riders who competed both days, we have decided that
our choice will be announced at Steppes 12th Night in a month or so.  It
will then be our honor to thank the equestrian community once again for
their hospitality and their valour, and to announce for all to know that
rider who we have chosen to be our Champion of the Equestrian Arts.

Margaret

Countess Margaret ny Connor
Barony of the Steppes
Kingdom of Ansteorra

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