Saturday, 17 December 2011

The Brutal Sport Of Modern Day Jousting

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The ground thunders as the beast races towards you, nostrils flaring. You can see nothing of the face of your opponent, which is encased in a metal helmet, but you can feel his determination as he points his lance towards you - and you can certainly feel the concussion as the long pole makes contact with your chest plate, unhorsing you and causing you to tumble to the ground.

This is the stuff of jousting - an integral part of military culture a thousand years ago and a full contact sport in the Middle Ages. But surely that was then and this is now? Not quite. There is a movement afoot to bring back jousting as the next extreme sport.

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