During these rainy winter months in Vancouver, we hold monthly workshops in Umbrella self defence. At the turn of the last century, every gentleman carried a walking stick, and every woman carried a parasol. Since we carry our modern umbrellas just as frequently in Vancouver today, it's a great value to learn how they learned…
The evening world., August 17, 1921, Wall Street Final Edition, Page 3. New York, N.Y. Using Jiu Jitsu on Time and Mashers, Mrs. De Hart Tells How to Master Pests In Three-Minute Hot Weather Interview Woman Who Has Laid Low 40 or 50 So-Called "Men" Proves She Is as Clever and Forceful in Speech as…
Short answer: absolutely. A few of our newer students who feel a little anxious about registering for the 2013 Vancouver International Swordplay Symposium(VISS). There are several reasons for this feeling and I'll address some of them here. "It's kind of expensive" This applies to beginners and "veterans" alike. And, actually it's not. At a cost…
If you pickup this week's Westender Newspaper you'll see a great article by Gen Handley about Academie Duello. Gen checked out a class a few weeks ago and it looks like he had a great time. It's a good article and tells a little about the origins of Duello. You can also check it out…
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Every day is boxing day for me. It’s just coincidence that in Canada we also celebrate the day after Christmas by the same name. Is it Boxercize? If you’re not taking some punches, hardening your abs for impact, and feeling your fist contacting an opponent (or a heavy bag to simulate one), then you’re doing…
VISS 2013 is approaching, and we’re excited to announce a first look at our workshop lineup! We are proud to offer two styles of workshops at VISS. The first style offers a more in-depth look into various topics, with work that will build across three days of classes. Topics for this style of workshop include:…
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A few weeks ago I was in Eugene, Oregon teaching a seminar at the Northwest Fencing Academy. The day after the seminar I got together with school director Sean Hayes and his senior student Mark Kruger to work with them a bit on an historical intepretation project of a 1537 wrestling manual written by a…
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Brilliant stuff today, great for the novice and experienced fencer alike.Occasionally, when I talk to someone about fencing the conversation turns to applicability outside the salle. "It's just good for killing people with a sword. What are you going to do when you don't have your sword?"There's so much wrong with that (besides the grammar).We…
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Here's an infographic related to my previous post: Concussions R Bad. Created by MastersInHealthcare.com, it is sourced from the following: www.cdc.gov/concussion www.silive.com/sports/index.ssf/2010/10/scary_statistics_about-concuss.html www.mayoclinic.com/health/post-concussion-syndrome/DS01020 usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/nhl/story/2012-01-23/costly-concussions/52762290/1 Safety in Training and Reality In class, we avoid striking the head, even when wearing protective gear. To be a good partner, we either move slowly, change the target (do a…
Swordplay from the Ground: Movement Last week I covered the essentials of a balance and martial stance. Now we need to add mobility, without losing the effectiveness of that grounded posture, for the second item in the mounted combat checklist: Demonstrate methods of movement The movements we are looking for are: 1. Advance: take a…
The month of December is like a gift of stage combat. It ends with the Paddy Crean, and everyone is preparing for it for the weeks leading up to it. The Paddy Crean Workshop I've written about Paddy Crean and the workshop in his honour before. It's one jam-packed week of stunts, stage combat, and…
We've been talking a lot about goals at the school and on the blog over the past few weeks and its led to many interesting discussions on the impacts, both positive and negative, that goals can have in your life. One of the core reasons to set goals and work to achieve them, is to…
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Last week I gave an overview of the Mounted Combat portion of the Green Spur program, which includes Swordplay from the Ground, Swordplay Knowledge and Mounted Swordplay Knowledge. For the next little while we'll look at each of those checklist items in a bit more detail, starting with Swordplay from the Ground: Stance and Posture…
Although the walking stick techniques of Bartitsu are an integral part of the art and contribute to its popularity, there are other martial arts that explore the cane. Tai chi and forms of Chinese kung fu sometimes incorporate weapons, including the straight sword, the saber, the staff, and the cane. I’m no expert on those…
The month of November is here, and the ritual of growing a mustache to raise funds for testicular cancer and other men's health issues has been dubbed Movember. Deliberate and sometimes elaborate facial hair was common in Victorian era, so I'm sure Bartitsu enthusiasts are keen to learn more. Mustache Goals If you're participating in…
I was doing some drills with a fellow student last week and noticed an interesting phenomenon. The drill was as follows: Agente controls Patiente's weapon Patiente disengages to strike Agente strikes in contratempo I was the Patiente for the drill. I gave my partner a few tries to get warmed up in the drill and…
October is the month of death and candy in North America, so let's talk about a steampunk-Holmes-Victorian Halloween. Besides your best clockwork sky pirate garb, I don't have costume ideas, just some inspiration and factoids. Jack the Ripper Synonymous with the words "serial killer", Jack the Ripper murdered female prostitutes in the Whitechapel district of…
If you live in Eugene, Oregon or Chicago, Illinois I'll be in your area in the next few weeks teaching workshops on Italian Knife, Longsword, Sidesword, and Rapier. This weekend on Saturday the 27th I'll be visiting Northwest Fencing Academy in Eugene Oregon to teach two workshops, one on Italian Knife and the second on…
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