[Ansteorra-rapier] Pros and Cons of change

[Andrew Heinrich]

Greetings,

Tivar wrote -

>It wasn't intended to be. I was pointing out the fallacy of banning
something *solely* >because only a few people use it, or because some
people aren't interested in it.  You >said earlier that we have over 500
authorized rapier fighters. But only 34 of them are >Cut and Thrust
authorized? That's a pretty small percentage.

Except, that's a misrepresentation of the argument, which is why you're
failing to point out a fallacy. The argument isn't "not enough people do
this". The argument is "the use of these blades is basically dead and has
been on the decline, we have progressed *past* the use of them (as they are
clearly inferior simulators to actual rapiers), and a tiny fraction of
actual use occurs at events." I can very easily recall the last time I saw
cut and thrust at an event, and I can recall seeing pictures of Cut and
Thrust at many events. The number of authorized cut and thrust combatants
and marshals is on the rise, not the decline. The number of folks
authorized for epee and foil seem to be propped up in part by folks who
never even went through the appropriate authorization.

No one is attending classes like "how to maximize your efficiency with the
epee" or "foil and epee for SCA rapier combat". No one is hosting epee or
foil competitions, demonstrations, or tournaments. And there's a reason for
that - those blades are inferior to the heavy rapier when it comes to
recreating unarmored combat from the later portion of the period.

There is no reasonable comparison to the two, Tivar

> Being born? Well... sort of. C&T has been legal for almost seven years
(plus a few
> years before that as an experimental "sidesword" program.) I did a survey
a few years >ago, and most other kingdoms had numbers similar to
Ansteorra's. As best I can tell, >C&T is a fairly small part of SCA rapier
combat, and seems destined to remain so.

The number of authorized cut and thrust combatants has increased, as has
the number of marshals. The program continues to grow steadily. Regular
competitions, classes, and exhibitions continue to occur at events at an
increasing rate.

The classes I have taught just recently have been well attended. Heck, I
think there was well over 20 people, probably 30, in the Destreza class I
taught at King's college, and nearly that many in the basic C&T class I
taught before that one.

I doubt if I held a "epee for SCA combat" class, it would be as well
attended.



> All this being said, I don't really have a problem with dropping foil and
> epee *if* nobody is using these blades. But if they are still being used,
> even if it's in relatively out-of-the-way corners of the kingdom (does
> Elfsea qualify as out-of-the-way?) then I think we're doing people a
> disservice to drop these blades.
>

Unsurprisingly, I think we're doing our fighters a disservice by keeping
them in play.



>
> Maybe the folks who are so adamantly in favor of getting rid of the
> lighter blades should sponsor some beginners tournments in the smaller
> groups, with a brand-new heavy blade as the prize.
>

Sure, that's actually a great idea. However, as has been pointed out many
times before, you can get a good heavy rapier simulator for a pretty small
investment, and you can get a *great* heavy rapier simulator for a modest
investment.

 - Mateo



-- 
it is good to know, it is better to do, it is best to be.
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