Members Study Day
May 1, 2004

Despite the best efforts of Mother Nature, the Kyle Cook and the North Siders study group hosted another successful practice day in Magnolia, Texas. This time we were honored by the presence of seven members from the Texas A&M study group, Scott Adair from Lubbock, and the Dynamic Duo from Dallas, Ernie Perez and Ran Pleasant.

The day started with a 2-hour training session led by Kyle Cook and Ernie Perez. The session covered basic cuts, stances, guards, and footwork. The remainder of the day was informal, consisting of sparring and general studies. The sparring began with basic longsword, but soon was expanded to a plethora of weapons/combinations, including short sword (alone and with shield, buckler, or dagger), longsword and buckler, two-handed swords, spears, and polearms. The day was informative and fun. In particular, Scott Adair, who drove eight hours from Lubbock to attend, had this to say:

"I enjoyed the chance to meet informally with other members to train and spar. Training alone can leave you not knowing how you are progressing. The meeting's informal structure allowed me time to visit with various members about things and discuss unclear issues. Ernie helped me with my 10 cutting drills, while Ran helped me with the mastercuts and demonstrated me some of the finer points of dagger grappling from Goliath. Stacy gave me some pointers on Meyer's staff techniques, and passed on his knowledge of Jacob Norwood's lecture on Meyer's longsword instructions. The sparring itself gave me a good feel for the direction my training should take. It was well worth the trip."

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