National Historical Swordsmanship Convention 2011

[Sir Edward]

Man, I still need to sign up.

Ancelyn, I would think it's fine. They're trying to target a wide range of experience levels, such that the classes build upon one another and lead you through the material.

[Sir Ancelyn]

I just signed up.

[Das Bill]

Bill,

I am enroled in the January 8th beginning sword class at VAF. Would the convention be a good thing for me to attend?

Thanks

Definitely. There will be both VAF people attending as well as people coming from out of town to attend. This is going to have a lot of material that will benefit people from all levels of experience.

We'll have class descriptions up soon. Probably after the weekend!

[Das Bill]

Jan 8...I think I could swing that as I'm interested in that very same class, Sir Ancelyn.  Bill, any openings left?

I'm pretty sure that it's still open. If it filled up this early, we'd still have enough time to find another time for an additional class.

[Sir William]

Oh ok, that's awesome.  Thanks, Bill!

[Sir Edward]

Class schedule has been updated on the site:

http://www.vafinc.com/nhsc/index.html

I'm all signed up.

[Sir Wolf]

  have fun hehe

[Das Bill]

I was just logging on to announce this. Thanks, Ed.

As Ed said, we've got our basic schedule and class descriptions up. We've also got a deal with the Hilton Springfield, where if you mention VAF (Virginia Academy of Fencing), you can get a special rate for that weekend at $89 per night, Friday through Sunday, and $171 per night Monday through Wednesday.

This is going to be a hell of an event. Sorry you're going to miss it, Sir Wolf!

[Das Bill]

A question came up on myArmoury about whether or not participants will a different weapon for every single style being taught. I replied, and thought my reply might be useful to copy and paste for others:

Hi Bryan,
Yes and no. You need something to simulate a single hand sword, but that can be as simple as a hardwood dowel rod or a cheap shinai. Likewise, for the spadone, you can get away with a 5' staff (you can get a hardwood broom handle from most hardware stores for a couple of dollars which will do the trick). The same staff can be used for the polearms classes. So if all you have is a short stick and a long stick, you're set for the weapons.  

For the shield and buckler, you can purchase them from places like A&A or MRL, or you can make them for a few dollars. A cheap and easy way to make a rotella is to cut out a circle of plywood, drill four holes in the middle and lace rope through the holes. Tie the rope off to keep in from sliding out of the holes. (Little kids do this method all the time!) A buckler could be made similarly, or instead of rope you could screw on a metal handle (also readily available from any hardware store).

So for about $10 bucks or so, you have all of your weapons and shields right there.  

The most expensive thing that people are required to have is fencing mask, but you can find these for under $50.

We will have a limited amount of loaner equipment there, but we can't guarantee that there will be enough, so we strongly encourage everyone to bring their own gear. We also have all of the equipment for sale at our store at VAF, should anyone wish to purchase anything there.

[Sir Edward]

I highly encourage folks in the DC area to attend this one as well if they can. Again, you can be a rank beginner, or an experienced practitioner. This one is a little more expensive than Longpoint in January, but it looks to be a great time!

[Das Bill]

This one is a little more expensive than Longpoint in January, but it looks to be a great time!

Yep. Longpoint will definitely be a great a event, but NHSC will be a little more "jam-packed" with classes over a three day period rather than two, and the curriculum is much more focused, since the classes build off of each other.

[Das Bill]

We've just added German Quarterstaff to the line up of classes. This will be the foundational weapon of the other polearms we'll be teaching.

[Sir Edward]

Sweet. Man, I'm going to have to bring nearly everything I own that weekend.

[Das Bill]

Sweet. Man, I'm going to have to bring nearly everything I own that weekend.

The cool thing about this is that a person can get away with just a dowel rod of sword length and a longer staff, and that will cover all of the weapons. But yeah, you have all the cool gear, so you have no excuses not to bring it all.

(I may ask you to bring your Albion Dane for people to handle, if you don't mind. I think it's a wonderful example of what can constitute as a Spadone.)

[Sir Edward]

Not a problem at all. Let me know if there's anything else I can bring to help out.