As a long time SCA member who has spent two years fighting just to be allowed to study documented medieval martial systems in my area of the SCA, I can understand your criticisms. The best answer has already been given:
"The SCA is what it is."
That said, let me offer a few ideas that might soften your viewpoints.
1) SCA combat has no stated purpose. The only purpose that can vaguely be attributed to SCA combat is the stated purpose of the SCA as a whole: to recreate aspects of the Middle Ages. Each participant is free to choose which aspects they are recreating, which allows for tremendous flexibility while creating situations where the man in the hand-sewn museum quality replica clothing climbs out of a nylon dome tent. When you look at the rules of SCA combat it can be argued that the intent is to allow members the opportunity to demonstrate chivalric behavior in a martial environment. *IF* this is the case (my interpretation is no more or less valid than any other interpretation) then the lack of historical accuracy in combat techniques is a little more understandable.
2) The SCA has 12,000 authorized armored combat participants. This is the case because there is a very low barrier to entry. This creates a situation where a lot of the material that could be used *if we had an initial training progam* cannot be used. It's a compromise the SCA chooses to make.
3) The 12,000 participants makes it hard to change. But changing we are. I was approached the other day by a couple of knights who want help in setting up a combat with rebated steel. A proposal to allow cut and thrust combat with metal weapons is reportedly close to presentation to the Board of Directors. The SCA's single historical combat event (Known World Academy of the Rapier) continues to expand it's historical combat tracks.
As the man said, "The SCA is what it is." And I would add that sometimes it doesn't know what it is or what it wants to be. <img src="/forum/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" />
Best.
