Although I’ve been reenacting various periods, this one was a new one for Max and I and unlike the others; this involved the use of the sword and lance rather than pistols. Basically, the setting is during Napoleonic Wars in Spain and the landscape is very similar to many parts of Southern California. The event itself was help on a friend of mine’s place located close to the town of Anza, east of Temecula.
This was the second time Max and I have attended this event so I had a pretty good idea of what we would encounter but I still opted to trailer Max out the day before so I could work him before the event actually started. Set up for this event was pretty easy and we had a separate horse camp where we parked and tied the horses off the trailers. The weather was warm and sunny during the day but at night the temperature dropped into the 20s so horse blankets were definitely in order, especially since Max had already shed his winter coat.
Working Max was pretty straight-forward and I spent most of my time simply walking around the property and checking out the footing. The one thing that definitely struck me was that the winter storms had washed down a high volume of sand and footing in most of the low areas and the creek beds was very soft, almost on the order of a beach and this in turn meant that I was going to have to avoid fast trotting and cantering in these areas so as to reduce the possibility of bowed tendons. Most of the battle area was open with some scrub brush, trees, and some dug fortifications and presented few issues except the deep footing mentioned earlier.
After a cold night, the next day, dawned sunny and clear with temperatures in the mid-70s. Since the battles wouldn’t start until about 11 am, I took my time grooming and tacking up Max. By the time I finishing tacking, some of the infantry units were falling in for drill and firing practice volleys. Soon the cannon joined in, and soon the air was filled with black powder smoke.
Our group formed up next to the infantry to watch them practice their shooting and strangely enough, Max was somewhat upset by the shooting even though he’s been exposed to it before at exactly the same distances. At this point I was forced take Max off by himself and do a quick desensitization session and after about 15 minutes, Max seemed OK again.
We then began the battle. Unlike the prior Civil War reenactment that I went to, the battle was mostly unstructured and it continued for about two hours with the two sides constantly shooting at one another, advancing, and retreating. For the cavalry, we divided up into two sides and although I was playing a Spanish Guerilla, I became “French” in order to even out the numbers (in practice, it made little difference). The cavalry would either clash with the other cavalry or we’d harass the infantry by riding up close and retreating. The weapons consisted of rubber swords and bamboo lances and the combatants would attempt to tap each other on the arm or the shoulder, which counts as a “hit”. Anyone taking a hit would retreat from the immediate battle, wait a minute or two and then recycle back in. For me, I spent the time giving Max water (we had stock tanks filled with water scattered about the property).
The battle proceeded pretty smoothly for Max and I although on occasion Max wouldn’t turn into the opposing horse while I was in clashing with my opponent- I found myself having to use a lot of spur and pull hard on the reins. Not sure if it’s fright, excitement or something else- it’s a real pain while holding a lance in one hand and neck reining with the other. We’re going to have to put in some more practice and get him to focus more on me than what’s around him.
And as with all group equestrian activities, the one factor that always needs to be considered is the power of the “herd mentality”- Max was eager to join the other horses in battle (he knew most of the horses and some live with him at the same stable). This can be good when trying to close with the opposition or chase someone but it can also work against you if you’re trying to separate or stand still in position. It wasn’t a major issue but I constantly had to remind Max to pay attention to what I want versus everything else. I think this will reduce itself as we do more battles on a frequent basis, supplemented by more practice (to include some one-on-one sword fights with a friend).
After about two hours, we paused for a long lunch break. Naturally, I made sure that Max was drinking water and eating; there were no worries on that point and in fact his appetite was pretty fierce (I was amazed by the amount of alfalfa he put away).
The rest of the afternoon battle went pretty well and the only real issue was Max shying away from a cannon (it wasn’t in use at the time) while I galloped past it. I managed to stay on but my left leg muscles were cramped severely from the strain of pressing against him to keep on. It certainly demonstrated the value of having a good seat and my companions were amazed that I stayed on and even kept my lance. It also goes to show that sometimes, objects that you don’t think will cause an issue can and it happens suddenly. Naturally, afterwards I had Max sniff the cannon and soon we were running past it many times over with no issues.
Overall, it was a good weekend but it also pointed out some gaps in our training and we’re going to have to take some time to do further work on our seat, moving off the haunches and generally focusing Max’s attention on me so he’ll be more responsive to my aids. Also, I noticed that his appetite was greatly increased, most likely due to the cold nights and the exertion during the day; he ate far more alfalfa than normal (I always bring extra anyway so food supply wasn’t an issue) and his water intake was increased. Both of us arrived back at the stables exhausted and we’re both taking the week off.
This was the second time Max and I have attended this event so I had a pretty good idea of what we would encounter but I still opted to trailer Max out the day before so I could work him before the event actually started. Set up for this event was pretty easy and we had a separate horse camp where we parked and tied the horses off the trailers. The weather was warm and sunny during the day but at night the temperature dropped into the 20s so horse blankets were definitely in order, especially since Max had already shed his winter coat.
Working Max was pretty straight-forward and I spent most of my time simply walking around the property and checking out the footing. The one thing that definitely struck me was that the winter storms had washed down a high volume of sand and footing in most of the low areas and the creek beds was very soft, almost on the order of a beach and this in turn meant that I was going to have to avoid fast trotting and cantering in these areas so as to reduce the possibility of bowed tendons. Most of the battle area was open with some scrub brush, trees, and some dug fortifications and presented few issues except the deep footing mentioned earlier.
After a cold night, the next day, dawned sunny and clear with temperatures in the mid-70s. Since the battles wouldn’t start until about 11 am, I took my time grooming and tacking up Max. By the time I finishing tacking, some of the infantry units were falling in for drill and firing practice volleys. Soon the cannon joined in, and soon the air was filled with black powder smoke.
Our group formed up next to the infantry to watch them practice their shooting and strangely enough, Max was somewhat upset by the shooting even though he’s been exposed to it before at exactly the same distances. At this point I was forced take Max off by himself and do a quick desensitization session and after about 15 minutes, Max seemed OK again.
We then began the battle. Unlike the prior Civil War reenactment that I went to, the battle was mostly unstructured and it continued for about two hours with the two sides constantly shooting at one another, advancing, and retreating. For the cavalry, we divided up into two sides and although I was playing a Spanish Guerilla, I became “French” in order to even out the numbers (in practice, it made little difference). The cavalry would either clash with the other cavalry or we’d harass the infantry by riding up close and retreating. The weapons consisted of rubber swords and bamboo lances and the combatants would attempt to tap each other on the arm or the shoulder, which counts as a “hit”. Anyone taking a hit would retreat from the immediate battle, wait a minute or two and then recycle back in. For me, I spent the time giving Max water (we had stock tanks filled with water scattered about the property).
The battle proceeded pretty smoothly for Max and I although on occasion Max wouldn’t turn into the opposing horse while I was in clashing with my opponent- I found myself having to use a lot of spur and pull hard on the reins. Not sure if it’s fright, excitement or something else- it’s a real pain while holding a lance in one hand and neck reining with the other. We’re going to have to put in some more practice and get him to focus more on me than what’s around him.
And as with all group equestrian activities, the one factor that always needs to be considered is the power of the “herd mentality”- Max was eager to join the other horses in battle (he knew most of the horses and some live with him at the same stable). This can be good when trying to close with the opposition or chase someone but it can also work against you if you’re trying to separate or stand still in position. It wasn’t a major issue but I constantly had to remind Max to pay attention to what I want versus everything else. I think this will reduce itself as we do more battles on a frequent basis, supplemented by more practice (to include some one-on-one sword fights with a friend).
After about two hours, we paused for a long lunch break. Naturally, I made sure that Max was drinking water and eating; there were no worries on that point and in fact his appetite was pretty fierce (I was amazed by the amount of alfalfa he put away).
The rest of the afternoon battle went pretty well and the only real issue was Max shying away from a cannon (it wasn’t in use at the time) while I galloped past it. I managed to stay on but my left leg muscles were cramped severely from the strain of pressing against him to keep on. It certainly demonstrated the value of having a good seat and my companions were amazed that I stayed on and even kept my lance. It also goes to show that sometimes, objects that you don’t think will cause an issue can and it happens suddenly. Naturally, afterwards I had Max sniff the cannon and soon we were running past it many times over with no issues.
Overall, it was a good weekend but it also pointed out some gaps in our training and we’re going to have to take some time to do further work on our seat, moving off the haunches and generally focusing Max’s attention on me so he’ll be more responsive to my aids. Also, I noticed that his appetite was greatly increased, most likely due to the cold nights and the exertion during the day; he ate far more alfalfa than normal (I always bring extra anyway so food supply wasn’t an issue) and his water intake was increased. Both of us arrived back at the stables exhausted and we’re both taking the week off.
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