Actually, the rain was not as bad as Pastonpalooza - it was mostly intermitant misting and showering - we did have a whopping thunderstorm and heavy rain about 3 or 4 AM this (Sunday) morning. As Jenn said, it was clear enough to run the tactical Saturday afternoon, and it didn't rain after that point until early this morning.

We had folks show up from Texas, Quebec, Virginia, Maryland, Deleware, and New Hampshire - 17 all told, and two horses (for the first 28 hours) - originally we were looking at 30, but things happen in peoples lives (ranging from real emergency, to trivial items like an urge to skydive).

It was Normandie and Phantoms first event - they did very well, until the first evening. Normandie will stand on a picket line, and Phantom will not, so we built a coral for them. The plan worked perfectly well, until at 11PM a pack of coyotes passed close to the site, and spooked the horses, leading to a very minor stampede outside of the corral- they were quickly rounded up, as they were going from tent to tent sniffing for us. Then Phantom realised she could get out of the corral and promptly did the trick again a half hour later - we ended up stringing a picket line, and putting Normandie on it, to keep Phantom from wandering. Worked great until Normandie decided to use a tree as a scratching post, and managed to fall into and over the corral, getting tangled up - we hear a thump, I'm not sleeping at this point, and I run like hell barefoot to the corral and find to my horror my horse tangled in the ropes. Fortunately, he trusts me implicitly, and stopped struggling, allowing me to free him - Thank God there was no serious injury - merely a rope burn to a rear fetlock. I spent from that time (accident must have occured 2:30PM, set to rights including fixing the enclose 2:45) until 5 AM sitting with the horses in the rain and 40 degree temperature until relieved by Frederich (we set up a horse watch). We sent the horses home at 3PM next day, to have Normandie get a serious looking over to be sure of no permanent injury, thus ending the saga of the horses. It was a good learning experience for us, and next event will see us all a bit better prepared for the unexpected.

The event itself went very nicely despite the weather - we had enough food for 30 people, all excellent in quality, ranging from Lombard pasties, fresh bread, an assortment of cheeses, to venison stew, civet of hare, and a number of other delicassies - needless to say, no one went hungry.

The tour of Schoolkids went very well - it lasted longer than planned, both we and the kids enjoyed ourselves, and Erik (the siteowner) was very pleased.

As we had so few people, and the canonner having to cancel due to a last minute emergency, we altered the scenario slightly to the English being a party of foragers looting, being burdened with two chests of valuables, seeking to regain the safey of the main column of the English army. We diveded up into two teams, of Burgundians and English (5 a side), as there weren't enough civilians to form a third team, and I was a bit frazzled after the experiences of the previous sleepless evening to come up with a creative way to include them - for this I profoundly apologise. We walked the English to their starting point, probably a good quarter mile along the trail in the woods, dropped off their chests, and made our way back down the trail - the English giving us a five minute head start - a mechanisim to force us to choose the Burgundian point of interception quickly, and wind us a bit more then the English to simulate our being a garrison reacting to an English incursion.

The English had to cross a stream at one point - it being the only dry crossing available, so we set a blocking force of several men, while having a team of handgonners and an infantryman harrass them from a point of ambush further up the road. The woodland the scenario took place in is substantial, and the English had a great deal of terrain with soft and hard cover off the trail to use if they so choose, which they did with great creativity. They advanced down the road to the first point of harassment, and were fired upon - so of course they made off into the woods. They created a diversion with a bit of ingenuity - Peder having a horn, and knowing how to play, detatched himself from the remaining English, and played a clever game of wandering over a wide range of countryside, blowing his bloody horn, leaving us in the dark as to where the actual English force was - The English had come across a boat on a bordering pond, but decided not to use it to go around us as it was a canoe, which they felt would spoil the feel of the tactical - so they ranged deep into the woods to try to find a place to ford the stream.

After a good 5 minutes or so of horn playing, Peder stripped off his livery, and boldly walked down the road, straight past the second point of ambush, bidding the ambushers a good day - them letting him pass in confusion, playing the game out thinking him a civilian. He tried the same trick at the bridge, but since he had not divested himself of his helmet and sword, I assumed him to be either an armed lunatic, or a looter, and so cut him down when he attempted to pass me - I didn't have the manpower to place a guard over a prisoner - this led to somewhat strident (and humourous) protestations over 'Burgundian warcrimes', and retorts about' it was revealed to me by St. Anthoney in a vision that you were an enemy'.

We (Bernard and I) assumed the worst - the prime fear being that the English forded the stream upstream while we were distracted (they tried, and Bengalishlancer got wet up to near his knees in the abortive attempt), or the greater horror I had that the English would attack the stopping force (I and Pieter) at the bridge with overwhelming numbers while the rest of the patrol was further up the road. To add to our difficulties, Bernard (the seargent) had brought plenty of powder, but forgot slowmatch, so we had to split the little match we had in half, and there was a point where if the English had waited 5 minutes more to attack, they could have done so devistatingly, as we would have had no means of firing the arquebuses. Adam (of White Mountain Armouries) went up the stream to scout, and was nearly bushwhacked by the English - a few more feet closer and he would have been close enough in their range to have insured his demise.

When the English did attack, they attacked the ambushing force - it was over in moments, in a brief burst of shooting (arrows and handgonnes), and an armed clash, with Bernard laying Bengalishlancer low, Kennith the bowman surrendering, James killed by Adam(? - I was farther back, guarding the bridge), and Jeff J. surrendering with the two chests of loot.

All was not over however - the English had a desperate plan to escape with their ill-gotten loot yet. Jeff J., being particularly evil and clever, made a point of asking Pieter as soon as he was escorted across the bridge "You didn't kill me, right? I'm a prisoner?" Pieter responding in the afirmative - Jeff Johnson still carrying the two chests - bolted off down the trail, straight for the designated area that would gain the English victory if they got their loot that far. As he went past me, I gave him a glancing cut to his right arm - but on he went without dropping the chests, forcing us into a footrace in which he exhibited great althleticisim, before finally being run down by Adam (passing me in a blur of speed, first shouting to me "you run like an Old Woman" - actually, I was going pretty fast myself) and being brutally put to the Sword by Adam and Pieter in a scene worthy of a Medieval Martyerdom. Great fun was had by all, with chattering commentary comparing our various perpectives, and group photos being taken (For some reason Peder didn't want to pose laid out on the ground with me, the Burgundian lieutenant Calley posed with one foot on his chest, the sword that cut him down in hand).

Dinner was grand, and we spent the evening drinking various libations while reading earthy stories out loud to one another from the 'Au Cent Novelle nouvelles", and joking along from there.

This morning, we had been going to have an archery competition - instead, we had a 'shoot chef de chambre in his harness' (light half-harness) competition - me being the idiot I am blisfully volunteering for the task of being an ambulatory pincushion. Charelote took the honors, nailing me in the right thigh above the knee, and a dazzeling display of shooting me in the bend of the right elbow twice in a row (and the upper rerebrace once). We spent the afternoon breaking down camp, chatting, eating and disposing of food, and after a 2 hour ride, a shower, and supper, I make you this report.

I wish the weather could have been better. The horse related portion of the event was a combination of small triumphs, a couple of aggravating moments, and, fortunately, an aversion of tragedy - all in all giving them and us important experience, and I consider it a success, although not everything we wanted to do was able to be done. I think the tactical went extremely well, being the first undertaken with rebated steel and padded rabbit blunts in North America - it will be even better as we go forward from this point, but I believe we have a good system worked out acceptable to all the groups. The site, and the site owner were great, the owner being extremely gracious, and enthusiastic about the event itself, and us as well.

There will be a Return to Calais II - this is officially an annual event.

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I had actually gone food shopping for the event Friday right after work, however when I got home my Wife was handing me the phone and Microsoft was telling me I needed to be on a plane to San Diego Saturday morning at 7:30.

Needless to say that put a rather large dent in my plans for what was going to be my first real LH event.

All in all it seems like everyone had a blast. Our Canadian friends want us to come up to a gathering in Quebec.

The really cool thing is that they've figured out how to do archery in an effective manner. A MAJOR step forward.

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Phantom and Normandie, ruthless leaders of the nocturnal cheveux-chez.

Kenneth Mead, a REAL English Archer.

Pieter and Charlotte.

A gathering of the minds.

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Bob gives orders for the Burgundians to setup the ambush.

Adam laying in wait for the English looters.

Richard keeps the match ready in case the English appear.

Richard takes his position.

The English come up the trail with their loot. Bernard, a Burgundian Sgt. springs to the attack, cutting poor James down.

Retreat to Calais

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