[Ansteorra] Marshalling pole challenge

[Galen Bevel]

Michael Silverhands wrote:

>To answer your question, I've never personally seen a hardwood staff  
>fail in the described manner *at an SCA function*. However, I have  
>seen exactly that scenario unfold with a lightweight, unarmored  
>combatant who fell against a hardwood staff that was held at one end  
>and grounded at the other. Luckily, nobody was hurt (any more than  
>falling on a grounded hardwood staff hard enough to snap it in two).  
>This was at a marshal arts seminar.
>
>I imagine that with heavyweight, armored Ansteorran beef in the same  
>situation, the catastrophic failure of the staff would be even more  
>certain.
>
>However... all of that having been said... I was merely playing  
>"devil's advocate" and answering the original question "why do we  
>have this rule?" The scenario I described was (I believe) the reason  
>for the rule. I was specifically *not* trying to address the question  
>"is this a reasonable concern?" :-)
>
>Michael
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>  
>
To Lynonel and Michael,

I actually have seen this happen, not with hardwood poles but with the 
pine dowels which used to be a rather common marshalling staff (I have 
seen the breaking, not the impaling).  I think that rather than try to 
enforce a "hardwoods are ok, but everything else is not" rule and then 
inspect the marshalling equipment, etc it was just decided to say use 
the same materail we use for our weapons.  And I do agree it is a long 
shot and I also think it is silly, but I wasn't making the rules then.   
For that matter, I am not making them now either.........

Galen K.