lukeokeeffe.com

Originally uploaded by lukeo01

I start to strap into my full body armour and I wonder if this is a good idea.

I am at a segway rally day just outside of London. After we navigate through some forrest, we arrive at the office and are promptly given helmets and body armour. Hmmmm…. my body armour is a bit dirty, which tells me that someone has needed to use it earlier that morning.

I have been on a road segway before and my confidence is high. The offroad variety stands very tall, but handles as I expect. We are put through a variety of skill test and then its time.

Into the mud we go. The rally track is small, but has a number of obsticles, little hills, s bends and some puddles. As the condifence grows, so does the speed. 10 laps later I finish the rally having a great time. However the question I have to ask myself is why the hell am I wearing body armour?

Joust0120

Originally uploaded by lukeo01

Is that a man taking his knight for a walk? Indeed it is.
That amongst many crazy things happen at a Jousting competition I found out.
As it turns out, Jousting did not die out in 16th Century, but lives today through the every populate movie ‘A Knights Tale’, and of course a very much real Jousting competition. ‘King Henry’s Tudor Joust’ was filled with Medieval sports and exhibitions and people dressed in the costume of the day.

The highlight of the day was obviously the Jousting. Although I thought initially it would be with Nurf Lances, it was in fact very real lances, which looked quite painful when thurst at the body on a horse travelling at speed. There guys really much be crazy. I suspect that many of them would make great Cowboys at a rodeo.

On further inpection there is a International Jousting Association set up for modern day Jousting which has strict guidelines for the quality and authenticity of jousters’ armour & equipment. So here I was thinking this is a crazy once off affair, may infact be a common sport in the UK.
Be sure to look out for a Joust in your area.