800*600
      |
AER Fall 2002 Tournament Return of the Mudfest! This Tournament, like the last one, saw some changes and firsts. On the down side, the expected weather and various personal obligations caused this to be the first Tournament at Kbubbles that was not a full campout Tournament. It was thus the second Tournament that was not a camping Tournament. Ultimately, the weather was cooler than usual, but not cold. So the weather snookered us out of a better time. On the much larger upside, there were two new events, some really good brisket, our first clash of fully armored Warriors and more. There was a fast draw contest whereby anybody could participate as long as they had a working arm/hand combination. It was based upon the Lazertag technology so it went fairly quickly, smoothly, and was perfect for anybody that wanted to have fun, but did not want to participate in a full contact contest. Even though this would have been great for kids, most of them were off playing and I don't remember any of them trying. The tug of war was the first event and given that we were going to fight in a soon to be muddy ring, it was a good method to become mudded (blooded?) to the forthcoming mud. Did I mention some really good smelling brisket? The combat in the Ring was very good. The fight fast and furious with no real injuries this time. Even the smacked fingers were down. Our main worries turned out to be the work related injuries we brought into the Ring. (Nose, knuckles, thumbs, limps) All in all, this was a very good Tournament from the medical perspective. (Medical casualty= RotokQ apparently found something that he is allergic to and was laid up at home for the weekend.) There were some very awesome moves introduced and others occuring in the heat of battle. Ballet training paid off for some of the Warriors, or at least it appeared that they had been to dance school. K'lvar's real world gymnastics work prevented him from taking injuries repeatedly. He did the splits like Jean Claude van "Damn" on numerous occasions and still walks. It is amazing how resilient he is. But at 15 he is still young and immortal. Person2 should have had a bawdy house band behind him as much as he was peeling clothing. That smoker sure smelled good all day... A newcomer to the Ring survived his first Batleth Round to have to face another opponent. Dr. Gizmo did quite well for his first Tournament. Being hand2hand and not paintball, he was kind enough not to take First Overall on a first visit. He decided to save his Jem'Hadar skills for later and to let y'all off easy this weekend. However, he still gave a good showing in the Ring. Then the battle that I personally liked the most... Kmok arrived in full armor. Head to toe armor. We again drew each other for Free Style and by facing him, I had my first truly armored opponent. This was the first fully armored combat in the Ring. I was also debuting my Lirpa for the first time. The security of knowing that I am fully armored allowed me to accept more risk and be more aggressive. As his heavier batleth (than my lighter Lirpa) struck armor and helmet, it was shrugged off by the armor and helmet. I found that the hits were very acceptable and not a problem. In debriefing later, he had the same opinions and beliefs. We therefore had a wonderful time of serious combat. It obviously attracted the attentions of the judges who requested that we reduce power. We fought a very close battle I thought that I would take him in Free Style, until I screwed up. I needed a full point to win and the Lirpa favors halfpoint hits. I did not think it through to use the full point end for my final attack. DUH? >> Conduct rectocraniotomy here. << Kmok won fairly and gloriously and I learned a lesson about my Lirpa. I also learned about fully armored combat. We both felt in retrospect that our respective armor sets were proof against what we were doing and actually look forward to more fully armored Warriors and each other. The fully armored Warriors will have somewhat of an advantage knowing that they are virtually proof against injury. Still thinking about that brisket. This was a first time for there to be a Tie in the Win / Place / Show scorings. There was a tie for Place so a second trophy will be constructed for Place and awarded to the co-victor. The trophies themselves were works of art. Period. Various awards and promotions occured at the Ceremonies: Of course Win, Place and Show were awarded as were the Class Winners. Kbubbles and Art received a humongous basket in recognition of their allowing us to use their property. Kbubbles also received a Hostess Pin for her uniform sash. Krell was tapped as Security, IKV Melota. Gizmo was tapped as 2nd Lieutenant for completing his uniform. Krell received his "posthumous" First Blood award for the Deliverance Wars. Captain3 received the First Blood award for the Tournament. I wound up getting a "Double Header" award for the dual head shots I received at the Deliverance Wars. Campaign Ribbons suitable for dress sashes were handed out. Oh, and there was brisket. Strength and Honor Lt. Cdr. Salek Sutai the SORE Ship's Brewer 
AER's Page Home |