Our Customers...

Not only are our customers fearsome, strong and goodlooking, they're talented, too. Just take a look at this lyrical letter we got from Kate, in Australia:

I stand, with a cavalier attitude, within a ring of fellow renaissance fencers.
Slung across my shoulder, leaving me completely hands-free, my bag carries my rapier, my sword, my two-hander, my dagger, and my buckler.
They drag bags that are too big, cradle bags that are too small, juggle individually bagged swords.
“Is it a snowboarding bag? A golf bag? A rifle bag?” they ask in confusion, knowing all too personally the faults of these bags they list.
“No,” I answer them. “You’ll never guess.”
“Is it for a musical instrument? A travelling salesman?” they offer wildly.
“No, it is for…. rapiers!"
Collectively they sigh in rapture and disbelief.
“There is no such thing!” ventures a brave soul. (Doubt my word? With my rapier just a zip away, and his tangled like a Gordian knot in his silly eastern sword bag that doesn’t believe in quillions?)
“It’s new, it’s from America ,” I tell them.
“Ahhh,” they sigh, “Too expensive then.”
I tell them the price.
I tell them the website.
They are lost for words.

Thank you,
Kate

Thank you, Kate!

The Cestus--a Roman Boxing Weapon, Close-Up

I was wandering around the Greek and Roman galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City the other day. If you've never been there, well, you could spend everyday there for a week and still not see everything they have to offer (and I've heard what's on display is only the tip of the iceberg compared to their entire collection). Anyway, it's a great place to spend some time.
The Greek and Roman galleries offer a great assortment of big and small items, from marble monuments through everyday items like bowls and jars, to helmets, swords, and armor. In one small display case I can across this delightful surprise:

Here we have a ancient roman sculpture of a left fist wearing a cestus! It would have been made at the time that gladiatorial fights were commonplace.The label indicated that it was probably sculpted to stand alone, perhaps as a votive offering (I could see it as having been a sign for a school or even an award of some sort). I've seen cestii roughly depicted in sculptures or paintings, but never life sized, and in such detail!

Now if you're a little lost here, let me back up and tell you what this is. The cestus is commonly described as a kind of early gladiatorial "boxing glove" or knuckle protection, but in fact, it is far more of an offensive weapon. It would have been used in prize fights, and the kind of brutal competitions that the Romans loved (possibly also for personal combat and defense).

There's no question that this item features knuckle protection. There is a plate that covers the knuckles, probably with a strap on its inside for the boxer to hold on to. I have to note that in this sculpture, the thumb is oddly exposed over the knuckle protection. Perhaps the boxers actually used it this way, or perhaps the boxer posed for this sculpture in a relaxed position (the thumb at full extension as it is seems quite relaxed). Perhaps the boxer merely lent his cestus to the sculptor, and the sculptor used his own hand to pose, and guessed at the proper grip. Alternatively, it may be that without the thumb exposed, it was difficult to tell what the sculpture was supposed to be. Either way, I would assume that when used in combat, the thumb would have been balled firmly with the fingers, or at least under the knuckle-guard. Judging from the simple curve of this guard-plate, and it's thickness, it's very likely to have been leather.

But what is most fascinating about this sculpture is the projection extending from the boxer's middle two knuckles! This cestus is no mere hand protection. This is a potentially deadly offensive weapon.
Even though there's no way of knowing what the actual projection would have been made from, it's still a very nasty bit of business. If it were made of hardened leather, it would leave punishing bruises on the opponent's body, and possibly break bones and even gouge out eyes. If it were made of bronze or some similar metal, it could easily break ribs and bones. Notice the scalloped striking edge of the projection, which would help the blow "dig in" even more, yet not necessarily break the skin. (I 'm guessing that the projection would have been cast of bronze or some similar metal due to the thickness of it in the sculpture).


It might have been based on a common street weapon carried for self defense, sans the knuckle protection, in the way that brass knuckles were, until recently commonly carried (and probably still are, in some parts of the world). It is interesting to notice on the sculpture how a string or thong runs down the back of the hand, to stop the deadly spike from being pushed down the fingers during the fight.

Rotten Bag Update

I'm happy to say that once we were able to track down the right people at Ebay, they promptly stopped the guy who was selling our old garbage. We're still keeping an eye out on things like Craigslist and other chatboards. If anyone comes across a seller offering "brand new" Rapier Bags at an unrealistic price, or tries to make a deal on a quantity sale, please let us know and we will certainly reward you for your efforts.
We are happy to offer wholesale quantities and prices to honest resellers. Email us if interested.

Beware Rotten Rapier Bags!

We have been warning customers about an Ebay seller who got his hands on some rotten Rapier Bags that were designated for the garbage dump, due to water and mold damage. I do not know how he got access to the stuff, whether he dug them out of the trash, or someone sold them to him (he claims he's selling them for someone else). This seller is not authorized to sell our products, and these bags are a POTENTIAL HEALTH HAZARD due to the presence of BLACK MOLD. We do not recommend anyone buy these bags, and will not warrant or replace them. (For what it's worth, the seller will not accept returns, either).

A few people asked about the whole story, so here it is, so far...

A year and a half ago, we moved our stock of Rapier Bags out of out of our old warehouse into a pristine new facility. We had some serious issues with the ethics of the old warehouse, but I won't go into detail now. When we moved the last few cartons away from the back wall, we were horrified to discover those cartons and the bags inside soaking wet and covered in black mold! There were holes and leaks in the back wall! Rainwater had been coming in, probably for a long time. In fact, part of the wall came away when we pulled the boxes away. (Happily, those boxes sacrificed themselves to protect the rest of our stock, which we carefully examined and found to be in pristine condition).

The old warehouse promised to compensate us for the damage and advised us to leave them, and file a damage form. They even gave us a claim number to submit to their insurance company.



We moved the rest of our stuff to our wonderful new storage facility, and business went on as usual.

Except their insurance company told us it was a made-up claim number and there was no insurance. And the old warehouse refused to return our calls. So we sued them.

Six months ago, in court, they testified that they never did any maintenance to their storage building, and that they took the Rapier Bags and dumped them because of the water damage and the mold.

Recently, we were alerted that someone was selling those rotten bags on Ebay! Sure enough, and they're even using our company name right in their auction title! I don't know if this guy fished them out of a garbage dump, or if the crooked manager of the old warehouse sold them as abandoned property (which is not legal), or if the seller IS the crooked manager of the old warehouse.

We contacted the seller and sent a "Cease and Desist" notice, and explained that they were violating our intellectual property, and our material property rights, since they were not an authorized reseller. I also explained that these bags pose a potential health risk, particularly to anyone with respiratory issues, due to the black mold. The seller doesn't care. The bags are cleaned up, and look good to him, and he has a lot of them, and plans to sell them.

Well, we have the wheels of justice turning, but as you know, the wheels of justice turn slowly, and in the meantime, I am concerned about unknowing customers buying bags that may not be all they should be, or even a serious health risk.
Because these illegally obtained bags are basically hazardous garbage, we will not warrant or replace them, and the seller is adamant that he will not accept returns. We do frequently sell Rapier bags on Ebay under our own account Cavalierattitude! http://myworld.ebay.com/cavalierattitude%21/?_trksid=p4340.l2559

Food for fencing

Whether you train like an Olympian, or just noodle around once a week, the things you put into your body can strongly affect how well you fence.

Let's take a quick look at three things that sources say can help:

Protein--protein has probably been associated with physical activities longer than any other substance. Most obviously, protein helps build muscles, which are made out of protein. While building muscle isn't the thing that comes to mind first when one thinks of swordsmanship, muscles are unquestionably involved. Consuming protein after working out gives the body materials to help rebuild the muscle, as well as connective tissues, and speed recovery time.

There are plenty of way to get more protein into your diet. Protein powders & supplement are easy to find in health food stores, and offer protein from various sources that are generally easily digested and rapidly assimilated. Whey protein comes from milk and is the most rapidly assimilated. Soy is also popular, for people who don't do well with dairy. Some proteins, like casein (also a dairy derivative), are more slowly absorbed, and popular with weight-lifters who want to consume a protein that offers their muscles a slower, more continuous supply.

Protein bars are convenient ways to get protein, but be careful--some of them have a lot of calories!
Low-fat cottage cheese is considered to be a good dietary source for dairy protein.

Meat is, of course, a very traditional source of protein. Unfortunately, meat often also includes a lot of fat/cholesterol and salt, which are less than ideal, particularly red meat. Another important consideration is that meat is digested rather slowly and can slow your whole metabolism down. Avoid consuming large quantities of red meat the day before a competition or serious training session. It can make you feel like you're made of lead. Save the barbecue for the day after.

Chicken and fish are usually lighter and healthier, and more easily digested depending on how they're cooked.

The more active you are, the more protein you may need. However, too much protein can increase nitrogen in the blood which damages the kidneys. For average people, sources say you should have a hunk of protein no bigger than your fist (which is a charmingly unscientific, and not terribly useful, definition).

Do some research, and experiment to see what works best for you. You might find your muscles recovering faster when you begin to increase your protein intake. Remember to avoid sources that will also increase fat & salt. Take as much as you feel you need to help your recovery, but you won't need much extra, since "bulking up" isn't your goal, and too much at one time will not be absorbed.

Carbohydrates-- "Carbs" are the fuel your body actually runs on. After you burn through the carbs in your blood stream, you body begins to break down muscles into "burnable" compounds, and if it still needs more, it will then metabolize your body fat into fuel. (Your fat is like your body's savings account, it will break down and "spend" muscles before it goes for the fat reserves. This is why some people who exercise for weight-loss don't loose much weight: their body is reserving the fat for an emergency!).

Supplementing with carbs before you exercise can give you more energy to run on. If you've found yourself running out of steam before you're done, or you just can't find the energy you need to get up to speed when you train, you may benefit from increasing carbs before you start. Be careful, though! The unused carbs you consumed will be converted to fat and stored for future use.

As with proteins, some sources for carbs are better than others. Simple carbs are usually starches and are easily metabolized, while complex carbs, like sugars, take a lot more work for your body (in the form of an insulin release) to metabolize. You can find simple carb supplements in stores, or you can use dietary ones, like pasta, or starchy vegetables. You can consume them a couple of hours before training. Highly conditioned individuals facing an extended competition might even "carb load" which is to say, consume a lot of carbs the night before a competition to saturate their bloodstream with usable fuel. Any carbohydrate that isn't utilized gets converted to fat, so don't overdo it!

Hydration-- Experts say that almost all people in industrialized societies are going around in a state of mild dehydration! Dehydration will make you uncomfortable, it can make you confused or even become overheated. You body needs plenty of fluids for the chemical exchanges going on inside your muscles: bringing carbs into the muscle and taking waste materials and heat out. Hydration is vitally important for strong exercise. Always try to drink 16 ounces of water or a sports drink before working out to keep you well hydrated.

Water is great for hydration. Sports drinks frequently include mild mineral salts, or "electrolytes," to replace substances your body may be metabolizing or sweating out. These minerals are considered to help your nervous system work properly. Avoid sugary beverages for hydration! The sugar can actually make you more thirsty, and the sugar also causes your body to release a burst of insulin to break down the sugar, and that can also cause your energy level to drop fast.

So, in a nutshell consider:
Carbohydrates before practice
Protein after practice
Hydration before and during practice.

I have not found a single, ideal source in book or on the web to recommend for specific amounts, since everybody is different, and it depends on your level of training. The best thing is to do your own research to start, then experiment --slowly and sensibly-- to find out what improves your performance.

Looking forward to your feedback!

Cheers,
Jeff

Blackbeard's Sword!!

Blackbeard set the mold for everything we think of when we think of a pirate. Heavily armed, wily, hairy... A crazed biker of the sea who never lost...

Here's some fascinating new discoveries....Like his sword!




http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Blackbeard-Ship-Ornaments-Discovered/ss/events/lf/011411blackbeardship

Thinking with your feet! The importance of knowing the right distance

Trench warfare –or– don’t use your head, use your feet!

One of the hallmarks of fencing, regardless of style, is footwork.* In fact, it’s apocryphal that fencing spawned ballet. Nearly every historical treatise describes it’s own very particular footwork patterns or techniques... St. Didier, Agrippa, Thibaust, DiGrassi, Viggiani... you name it. And certainly, modern competitive fencers are drilled in footwork, lunges, and distance until they do it in their sleep.

So it’s a peculiar thing that many fencers neglect this area of their training. It seems endemic in nearly every gym except the most competitive: fencers love the blade-work, but seem loathe to do the footwork.

This 4-page, downloadable report discusses the importance of proper footwork--why it is vital to your ability to defend yourself, possibly even more than the parry.

It explores how distance effects the effectiveness of your parries and your timing, and most important, offers practical solutions solutions and exercises.

read it, try it out, and share you opinions and experiences!

Use the link below to get the report!

Trench Warfare -or- Think with Your Feet, Not Your Head!