Jouster fangirl

[sister_raphael]

 

Are you even a ridiculous jouster fangirl if you don't pester them for signatures over breakfast? THANK YOU! You are the rockstars of our events!

The one I know better than others and those I count as friends were a bit bemused, because, and these are their words, we don't think of ourselves as special, really, which is nothing short of hilarious! 

Sir Phillip Leitch riding the most beautiful stallion in the world, Valliant, won the overall championship, but there were lots of exciting moments throughout the competition! One jouster was having lance issues and withdrew from the competition, but because the scores were so close she refused to let anyone ride in her place so her opponant could still compete and not lose points, so she rode without a lance!!!!! to allow herself to be a target. She did 6 passes all up without a lance presenting herself as the besy target possible and in doing so won the admiration of everyone who knows anything about jousting. 

Allowing another rider to sub in for her would have risked injury to horse, armour and rider which may have taken them out of the comp (all for no points themselves as it was a sub round, not their own round) and making her opponants not miss out on riding to compete for their own points was an exceptionally selfless and chivalric thing to do. 

I'll say it again. Jousters. Are. Rockstars.

Comments

[elwendell]

Folk like that risk life and limb to entertain the folk like me. Also...it sounds like you had a fun time.

[sister_raphael]

I really did! It was fantastic!

[cmcmck]

Richard III suffered from scoliosis- curvature of the spine and there've been arguments for years about whether he'd have been an effective horseman. They found a young guy who has a similar condition, built him some adapted armour (as Richard's was) taught him to ride and got him jousting.

He had no problems at all.

[sister_raphael]

Yes. There was a jolly good documentary about it quite a few years back. It was pretty interesting.

[ripplestitch]

I would fangirl over a jouster to an embarrassing degree. I was at a reenactment of some kind at a castle (I want to say Warwick but I have no real basis for this) in my teens and I remember watching the joust on tenterhooks like I never have for any sport. Presumably catching me staring one of them waved at me and I vividly remember feeling like I was just acknowledged by a rock star.

It requires significant skill and must surely be dangerous? Of course we think they’re awesome.

[sister_raphael]

I'm so fortunate that I know a few by name and to chat casually to, and have an actual friend Amanda who is a jouster herself. It's just so incredibly thrilling! It's very dangerous, which is why their insurance premiums are through the roof! it's crazy!