Category: Practices

Archery Practices Commence! (Weather Permitting)

Salve accolens, Debatable Lands archers!

As the ice and snow begin to thaw and the temperatures begin to rise, our bows and quivers grow restless, eager to resume their vigilant protection of the barony’s skies.

To that end, our valiant archery marshals will be monitoring weather conditions in the coming weeks, on the lookout for opportune conditions to hold outdoor practices at our regular martial practice site – this includes this coming Sunday, March 8th!

For newcomers, our archery practices run from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm in Highland Park (https://share.google/5FMkIxQRNfVMIXeoO) next to the Northeast Parking Area, at the northern end of the Cat Tail Trail. Loaner gear will be available.

Watch this space for information on cancellations due to inclement weather.

Yours in service,

Niall mac Raedwulf, Captain of the Archers

Archery Practice Cancelled for 6/8

In case you weren’t at archery practice or the barony social last Sunday, archery practice for Sunday, June 8th is cancelled, due to Scarlet Guard Inn AND Iris Festival the day before.

Archery practice will resume on Sunday, June 15th, where we will be holding both the baronial archery and thrown weapons championships.

Yours in service,

Niall mac Raedwulf

Archery Practice Cancelled, 4/6

Due to inclement weather, archery practice is cancelled for today, Sunday, April 6th.

Reminder that next Sunday, April 13th, we will be at the Castle for the Archery Muster. The following Sunday, April 20th, is Easter Sunday and there will be no practice that day. We will return to normal archery practices at the Washington Blvd. site on April 27th.

YIS,

Niall mac Raedwulf

Archery Season Comes to a Close!

The temperatures are dropping, as are the leaves, which means that’s a wrap* for this year’s Archery Season!

(*for outdoor Sunday practices at the Washington Blvd. site)

We will resume regular outdoor practices next spring, likely mid-March, weather-permitting, so watch the blog and the Facebook page for updates.

Next week, martial practices are being hosted at the Debatable Lands Harvest Revel (Barony Social) at Duke Byron and Duchess Ariella’s in Wexford. Archery will be included, but not a full Royal Round range (and unfortunately, no archery off the roof… this time…), but all are invited to come for arrow-launching good times.

If you want to keep your archery skills from getting rusty, our neighbors in Steltonwald continue their practices through the winter at the Beaver Valley Archers’ Association (site for 7 Pearls and Archers to the Wald) on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month from 6:00 to 8:00 pm – contact Bill Moore for more information.

Also, watch for information for our annual Archery Potluck at Chieftain Archery in New Kensington early next year (January or February).

It’s been a joy and an honor serving as the barony’s Captain of the Archers this year:

  • We had so many new archers join our ranks that once or twice we nearly ran out of loaner gear!
  • We had five archers attain the rank of Marksman or higher for the first time, including the first Junior Royal Round Bowman in our area in at least a decade!
  • Our monthly Sky List Stellar Tournament produced 5 different Defenders of the Sky, and each competition was a unique shoot crafted by the defending champ.
  • Several of our archers received recognition for their skills at the Baronial and Kingdom level, including several Hematite Comets and Golden Alces, and even a couple of Scarlet Guards!

We close this season on a high note and I look forward to what next season will bring.

Yours in service,

Niall mac Raedwulf

Fiber Guild July Meeting

Looking for some camaraderie while you prepare for Pennsic? The Fiber Guild is having a laid back July meet up to keep each other company while we work on our Pennsic projects. Please bring a fiber project if you have one, and your smiling face if you don’t. If you are already perfectly prepared or just prefer procrastinating, our Arts & Sciences minister has mentioned that the largesse gift basket for Pennsic needs to be filled.

Our meeting will be on July 15th at 7:30 PM at 5167 Rosecrest Dr, Pittsburgh, PA. This meeting will not be virtual, just this once (I will be out of town and so will my laptop), so please come in person.

Photo for the Algorithm – Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk
Zhang Xuan / 907

Gate Work Sunday

Turlough, Brandubh, and Ishiyama got a bunch of work done on the gate project last Sunday, but there is still plenty more to do. If we get enough of it done, we might be able to try first assembly and make sure this thing stands up! Towards that end, let’s meet at the Sunday practice (Washington Boulevard site unless it’s raining) again (April 28) and put in a few more hours. Ishiyama can’t bring the lumber until after lunchtime, so there is plenty of time in the morning for other stuff.

I know that some of you will still be at Blackstone Raids, and some of you are not able to help with woodworking, but there will be a least a few more work sessions (including probably at War Practice), and a few different kinds of work to do (including general finishing and painted lettering) so don’t worry about missing out.

Gate work Sunday

For those of you who don’t follow the minutes of the business meetings, the Woodworking Guild has been granted some funds to build a new entrance gate for the Baronial encampment at Pennsic.

https://ee0r.com/sca/misc/proposal-gate-debatablelands.pdf

I have already purchased some lumber to get started, and will host the first work session this Sunday, April 21st at the Summer practice site (weather permitting).

I probably can’t get down there until after Lunch, so there is plenty of time in the morning for your other interests.

Mid-week archery practice is happening on Wednesday!

Hello Debatable Lands!

Do you wish you could practice your archery more than once a week? Well you’re in luck! This week on Wednesday June 14th from 5:00pm to 8:00pm, Lord Godzimir the Golden will be holding another weekday evening archery practice at the Washington Boulevard site.

Come on out and sharpen your skills as we shoot until the sun goes down!

The Stellar Tournament series returns with the Sky List this Sunday!

This Sunday, April 23rd from 11am to 2pm, we will once again be holding archery practice at the Highland Park practice site. During this week’s practice we will also see the return of the Stellar Tournament series with the first Sky List of the season!

There will be a qualifier shoot happening from 11am until around 12:30pm and then the tournament will begin shortly after. Join us for a fun day of archery and competition as we determine who will be named the next Vindex Coelorum, the Defender of the Sky!

If you’d like to borrow our loaner gear please reach out to me via email at archerymarshal (at) debatablelands.org, or send me a message on Facebook or Discord, and I’ll make sure to bring a set for you.

Good luck to all competitors!