AHC: Jousting Remains Popular

jahenders

Banned
I think you need two things:
1) Back when jousting was popular, you need to spin-off a 'peasants' league' where anyone with a horse can participate. The contestants only wear light armor (a jerkin and a facemask), but the lance is broad and heavily padded (a standardized piece of equipment provided by the tournament). That reduces lethality

2) Make it the MMA / American Gladiators of its time. A match starts with the joust, but is then followed by a period of padded sword battering, then MMA-style brawling until someone gives up. Make it a popular spectator sport so sizable prizes can be given to the day's winner
 
I think the best way is make it like it's done in Maryland instead of the medieval version where two armored men are playing a game of chicken on horseback
 
I just think it would be hideously expensive to make popular between the horse and armour, let alone the not-so-slim chance of being killed.
 
Much as I like the idea, it would be difficult without a large base of landowners who can afford to keep horses.

A more Jeffersonian rather than Hamiltonian United States perhaps?
 

jahenders

Banned
Much as I like the idea, it would be difficult without a large base of landowners who can afford to keep horses.

Not really, for several reasons:
1) You don't have to have heavily armored knights on incredibly expensive destriers. You could have guys in light padding on regular riding horses, using blunt and heavily padded lances.
2) When you consider the cost of maintaining today's baseball/football players, maintaining horses (even if you DID use super ones) is a pittance. You've got some pro players paid $10M+ per year -- you could maintain a pretty large group of knights and horses for that.
 
Not really, for several reasons:
1) You don't have to have heavily armored knights on incredibly expensive destriers. You could have guys in light padding on regular riding horses, using blunt and heavily padded lances.
2) When you consider the cost of maintaining today's baseball/football players, maintaining horses (even if you DID use super ones) is a pittance. You've got some pro players paid $10M+ per year -- you could maintain a pretty large group of knights and horses for that.

The land rents for stables in areas with populations who would like to watch the sport might be a problem today, but yeah, expensive yet not impossibly so.
 
People still practice equestrian sports today (polo, racing, hunting, jumping over things), so cost shouldn't be an insuperable obstacle, even if it does mean that only wealthy people can become jousters.
 
I know a few people who joust. Full harness and proper lances as shown in that YouTube video, NOT the nylon mail brigade. They should look at extending the application to also include foot combats as well such as the Bohurts and suchlike http://battleheritage.co.uk. I'm now too old and full of aches and pains to do that myself.
 
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