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When to go to an event and compete in an archery tournament you always
do your and and shoot your best. However, I think that sometimes
doing your best can mean deciding not to shoot anymore and stepping
aside so that an archer who can better serve as champion will be
proclaimed champion.<br>
<br>
It does a noble no good to have the best archer in the world as his
champion if that champion can not or will not fullfil the duties of the
office. When a person shoots and wins a championship tournament and is
never seen again, or poorly fullfills the duties of the office it hurts
us all.<br>
<br>
When you travel to a championship tournament you should expect that if
you win there will be certain obligations that you will be honor bound
to fulfill. Those obligations vary from one group to another. If the
demands that will be placed on the champion have not been spelled out
in advance and you think that there is a chance that you will not be
able to meet those demands then call or email someone and ask. Every
Kingdom Calendar event must have an event announcement and that event
announcement must have contact information provided. Before you leave
home you have the opportunity to contact the event sponsors and ask
what demands they place on their champions. <br>
<br>
Lord Alden mentioned earlier that while he currently holds a a title
from the Loch he would in December like to seek a similar title from
Stargate and that he intends to in advance consult with the nobles from
each group to make sure that is acceptable to them. I applaud Alden
for his approach and foresight.<br>
<br>
I think the Carolingian approach of requiring that the champion be a
Carolingian to be a bit odd. However it is their tournament and they
have made these requirements so well and widely known that we are even
talking about it here in Ansteorra so I dont see big a problem.
Arthur, dont waste your gas money and time driving to Carolingia cause
they wont allow you to be champion.<br>
<br>
The barons request that that his champion not have divided loyalties,
that they try their best to attend the Carolingian events, and all the
rest are I think perfectly acceptable requirements and a perfectly
acceptable set of duties for a Baronial Champion with one exception.
Moreover I think they should be a pretty NORMAL set of expected duties
for a champion and exactly what I expect with the one exception.<br>
<br>
A few weeks ago Fergus d'Onray
and I were discussing what Gate's Edge required of our Champions and I
basically said, attend our events if you can, represent Gates Edge
well and make sure that you bring us no dishonor, display our banner
with pride wherever you go, when Gates Edge needs a champion to shoot
for us in other competitions stand ready to do so, shoot or fight with
our shire and not against us, come back next year and help to test the
people seeking to replace you and defend the title as best you can.
Is any of that abnormal?<br>
<br>
We dont ask that our champions organize, run, and provide for our
tournament for the next year because we think that is wrong. The
champion may not have archery range equipment, may not be a marshal,
and shouldn't be asked to cough up prizes out of his own pocket for
next years tournament. We sorta feel that if as a branch we can not
internally support and host a good championship tournament then we have
no business holding one in the first place.<br>
<br>
I think archers and archery will get more respect if the community
takes these things more seriously. Look how seriously the Rapier
Community takes their responsibility to the Queen and Princess. To
have the Queen at an event without her Champion nearby or a Don
standing in in nearly unthinkable. I assure you that there a plenty of
rapier fighters who have not won queens champion or other championship
tournaments, not because they could not have won on that day, but
simply because they did not think they could serve as needed. <br>
<br>
To have a our Princess at an event without a Cadet there to serve her
is becoming equally unthinkable. These cadets serving the princess
have not won any tournament that obligated them to such service, they
simply but on a red scarf and with that action obligated themselves to
doing what is necessary to make the rapier community stronger.<br>
<br>
Look how seriously the typical rapier fighter takes his/her
responsibility as a champion and how seriously the leaders in the
rapier community take their service to noble ladies of this kingdom.
Please consider that is a large reason why the Queen and Noble ladies
of this Kingdom pay such attention to those people and why that
community gets the respect that it does. <br>
<br>
I think we can all help the archery community of we make sure that when
we hold Baronial Championships we make sure that the Nobles know that
they can count on their champions. Moreover I think the champions need
to be there helping even if unbidden.<br>
<br>
We can have lots of tournaments that are not championship tournaments.
These can be held before or after the champion tournaments at events,
at events where champion tournaments are not being held, at local
fighter practices, etc. Just get out and do it.<br>
<br>
Yes nobles and branches may need to pay more attention to their archery
championships. But if their archery champions aren't going to be
meaningful for them then why should they? WE can make the office of
archery champion meaningful by our exemplary actions as champions.<br>
<br>
Some branches do a good job with their champions. The nobles spend
time at the archery range, they make sure that at ANY event the B&B
attend that their champions have their hospitality, shade, water, and
lunch. The make sure that the champion has nice regalia and good
keeper prizes as payment for their service as champion. They make sure
that they keep published their lists of champions and that they send
them a complementary subscription to the branch newsletter and they
waive site or feast fees for their champions at local events when
possible. None of these are unheard of or even uncommon in some areas
of the kingdom. Encourage your branch to do as much of same as makes
sense locally.<br>
<br>
In short I think that having a strong set of of requirements and
responsibilities for a Champion is a good thing because it shows that
the group takes pride in those positions and pays attention to them.<br>
<br>
<br>
Always in Service,<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
<font size="+1">HL Eadric Anstapa</font><br>
DSEM CA<br>
<a href="mailto:eadric@scabrewer.com"><i>eadric@scabrewer.com</i></a>
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