Quarter Staff class in the Forest at South Lake Tahoe June 7

ALso, the Highland Broadsword masters like The Highland Officer warns you to engage swords (with a firm inside or outside guard) when advancing from out of measure. If you advance into lunging distance without blade contact you are in danger of being struck.

But, especially Silver although mentions crossing and uncrossing of blades often never mentions about making making blade contact or engaging swords to avoid the lunge attack.

Yes Silver knew about lunges - they weren't a big secret. In Paradoxes he does suggest that Open and Guardant are the best fight to use against a rapier, on the basis they are superior to Variable fight with a sword, and rapiers are in Variable too. But in Brief Instructions, he appears to have changed his mind somewhat, saying:

"Lye not aloft with your short sword if he lye alowe variable upon the Stocata or passata, etc., for then your space will be too wyde to make a true Cross in due time ... I say make your space narrow until you can cross his sword blade strongly and sodainly, so shall you put by his point out of the right line, and instantly strike or thrust, and slyp back according to your governors." So, why don't you check it against a lunge fencer? Is is it possible to defend against a lunge thrust.

You mean was Silver right about rapiers? ooo, big question. I would say, against a rapier-ist who is unfamiliar with the sword, yes Silver's tactics are very affective. But an experienced rapierist, familiar with the shordsword as well, can make it very difficult for the swordsman. Swetnam said: " if I have the Rapier and Dagger, I will hazard both games, and set against any man that holdeth the short sword to be a better weapon, although that George Giller hath most highly cõmended that short sword & dagger, yet one Swallow maketh not a Summer, nor two Woodcocks a Winter, if a thousand more were of his opinion, yet without all doubt there is a great deale more danger then at Rapier and Dagger; for he that fighteth with a short sword must adventure in pell mell without feare or wit, but I have seldome heard or seene any fight with short sword and dagger, although they be each weaponed alike, but one or both commeth home most grieuous ALso, the Highland Broadsword masters like The Highland Officer warns you to engage swords (with a firm inside or outside guard) when advancing from out of measure. If you advance into lunging distance; without blade contact you are in danger of being struck.>But, especially Silver although mentions crossing and uncrossing of blades often never mentions about making making blade contact or engaging swords to avoid the lunge attack.

That's basically what he means by making narrow space:

"Stay not with in distance of the long sword or rapier with your short sword, nor suffer him to win the place of you, but eyther Cross his sword, or make your space verye narrow to cross it before his blow or thrust be in force, yet keeping your distance where by he shall strike or thrust at nothing, and so he shall be subject to the time of your hand against the time of his feet."

I was asked to hold a quarterstaff class on the Monday following Tahoe faire in South Lake Tahoe in Camp Richardson on June 7. This class will begin Monday morning at 11am and go till 3pm. I am teaching this class in Tahoe because I will be doing this class in Santa Clara on June 12 and this is the second weekend of the Tahoe faire and the people that are staying for the week in South Late Tahoe will not be able to attend the quarterstaff class at the sword school.

This month we will be looking at the use of the quarter staff as it was used in the late medieval and renaissance periods. The basis for this course is treatises from England and Italy. Some of the manuscripts that we will pull information from are;

Ø Joseph Swetnam (1617)
Ø George Silver (1599)
Ø Giacomo di Grassi (1570)
Ø And spear techniques of Fiore dei Liberi (1409)

We will learn the guards of the staff, the way to transition from one side to the other side whilst maintaining a defensive position of the staff, and the offensive use of the staff. We will also learn how to move to 'half staff' and close the distance of the fight and use the staff in more of the way that it is often used in the movies that we all know and have seen.

While we will not be doing an exhaustive study of each of these manuscripts, we will be able to look at the similarities and differences between the techniques put forth in them.

This class is a sample four hour class that will show the student some of the use of the quarterstaff in a martial use.

When: June 7, 2010
Time: 11:00am â€" 3:00pm
Where: Camp Richardson - Tahoe Faire
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96158
Cost: $50.00

Equipment: Fencing Helmet, Gloves, Staff, Elbow Guard (not required) You do not need this equipment but if you do have it please bring it with you as we may do techniques that can create contact. If students do not have this equipment we will use techniques that do not strike the head. All contact that occurs between the students will be controlled and soft.

If you do not have a staff, you can pick up a closet dowel at a hardware store for very little money. A 1 inch staff of approximately 5 â€" 6 feet (depending on how tall you are) will be the weapon of the day. You will want the staff to be about 4 inches taller than you.

We will hold this class a second time in Santa Clara at the Salle d'Armes. This will be the same class in Santa Clara as is being taught in South Lake Tahoe.

When: June 12, 2010
Time: 9:30am â€" 2:00pm
Where: 3233 De La Cruz, Unit F
Santa Clara, CA 95054
Cost: $50.00

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call me to ask. I look forward to seeing you at the class!

Steaphen Fick
Davenriche European Martial Artes School (DEMAS)
3233 De La Cruz, Unit F
Santa Clara, CA 95054
408-776-6808 Message
408-857-0120 cell
author of 'The Beginner's Guide to the Long Sword'
www.swordfightingschool.com

Holiday weekend...solo training today but first...

On Wed I had Chris and Guv out and we worked through a nice combo: low lead hook followed by a high lead hook with a passing step to your inside, slight body shift when delivering the next blow a straight rear to the head, followed by a lead leg fouette to the inside of the thigh then a rear leg chausson to the gut. We went through several variations of this and built it up from the first two punches slowly.

Chris and Guv sparred two rounds as well and they really beat the hell outta each other the first round...just pure aggression. Maybe not the best way to train or even fight but highly entertaining:) The second round I had them move more and punch less, working more with the
concept of reacting to the opponent rather than just both wailing away.

We finished with about 45 mins of mountain axe work concentrating on blocking incoming blows with the head and following with a butt smash then a step back and downward blow.

So today for me (pretty much what I do three times a week anyway with two days S&C):
4 rounds of shadow boxing
3 rounds heavy bag
1 round floor bag
2 rounds freestyle footwork
3 rounds navaja work
4 rounds e-tool work
3 rounds shillelagh

What are you folks all up to?