How did you get started?

[Mike_McGurk]

I fully apologize if something along these lines has already been posted, but my horribly defective attention span (isn't ADHD fun?) has prevented me from perusing the titles of all 1300 something posts.
My question is this, what brought you to historical fencing?

For me it was somewhat serendipitous. Back when I was 14, I enjoyed banging wooden dowels together and called it sword fighting (it's almost enough to make you vomit). Fortunately for my next birthday my parents got me a book about medieval swordsmanship - by John Clements. The rest is as they say, history (forgive the horrible cliche).

[Shane Smith]

I was(and am) a papered Asian MA Instuctor and had just gotten into Asian Swordsmanship as a natural progression to my unarmed work.I was being taught Kumdo and after some time, I came across WMA in the form of ARMA by accident while doing research on swords in general on the 'net. I contacted the local study group to see just what kind of things they were making up(as I supposed must be the case at the time).

I went down there to show them the error of their ways and the superiority of my "real" martial art. I was completely and thoroughly bested in freeplay to say the least. My highly structured and rule-guided, yet low-impact training to that point had simply not prepared me to protect my hands from a highly motivated and skilled Swordsman. Not only were these men able to out-perform me by a huge margin, they were able to likewise show me the historical sources from which they worked. I was blown away and immensely impressed. If you want to make a believer out of me, best me. At that moment, I knew that ARMA and the WMA had something I needed.I've never looked back.

[Mike Cartier]

Been a martial artists my whole life, i forget how I found the ARMA site but I watched one of John's videos (the cut & thrust i think ) and i knew immediatly from my Kali/Escrima training that what he was doing was martial and it blew me away that the lost European arts could be resurected.
Several months later I drove from fort lauderdale to Atlanta to a seminar. Then again the next year also.


Funny thing is I just ran into an old Kal/Escrima buddy and was telling him about German swordsmanship (he is of German descent). And he says to me "wouldn't it be great if they really did have martial arts" and I said "they do, did and they wrote it down for us"

The existence of the manuals is the real revalation i think, once i realised how much had been penned on tyhe subject I knew this was a whole world openeing up that few people even realised.

[Jonathan Scott]

I've been interested in Martial Arts, particularly the swordplay iaspects, ever since the backyard stickfighting days. My first year in college, I got involved in the aikido club, and thought that was cool, but it wasn't satisfying in that I knew what I was doing was not that practical in self defense (and if it was it took too long to learn the "deadly" moves), and the aikiken (what little the instructor would teach since "weapons are for advanced members") left me wanting for more.
Anyway the summer after I'm in a local library in Calhoun GA (a small town of only about 10,000 or so), and I'm looking for books about martial arts. I find one that's "Jujitsu: Japan's ultimate Martial Art" which I found to be extremely biased and not that helpful (though illustrations are worht a re-read I suppose). And the other one that caught my eye was none other than JC's Renaissance Swordsmanship. I discovered what I thought I knew were misconceptions (especially edge vs.flat blocking), I was really interested, and I visited the forums and met Jay Vail, whose demonstration was impressive cause I realised "Holy S***! The INTENT!" which I had been lacking in aikido. I've been hooked since, though I have ever so much more to learn.

[philippewillaume]

I started as eastern martial artist Muy thai when I was young, “real-warrior-me-no paint” state of mind and fit and air force combative and then wing shung and aikido. (I stupidly though it would be less painful, silly me)
I rode a lot hand had to do stuff parade in Armour and American footballs jousting, extra and some stunt work plus of course competition. (Jumping and dressage)

After I arrived in England, in exchange of me not playing American football anymore, (amd bugger of all week-end to tray or to play) my wife authorized me to joust instead. And there was a fencing group attached to that. No particular style just the will not to do it re-enactment way but as a martial arts.
After a while, I was not happy with the double kill finger of the dead and the general randomness of the all thing.
Picked up published book (not an arma one), not too happy with the content but it told me where to look, so when on the web to find the original text bought a Geman medieval grammar (from 1881 that the most recent I have found) and BZH (online medieval German dictionary).
And here I am

One Ringeck to bring them all and in Berkshire bind them,
in the Land of Windsor where phlip phlop lives.

Ps Jonathan, for my experience aikido really depends what school you end up in.
Some tend to introduce it as you describe and some other you practice the ruyai. (ie heavy inheritance from the jo and bokken for the open hand) system so you are introduced to boken and Jo from the beginning really. And tanto, jo and ken dori about 4th to 3rd kyu . Some school as well a more centered on make it work fist and then flow whilst other focused more on the spiritual aspect.

Such disparity is really a pity because all Ringeck arms break are shiho-nague (or archaici form of there of) and the sacred wrestling is nikkio galore and the wrestling at the sword or the armored fighting. Have a lot to do with the body and sword variation you do with the ken and or the jo.
As well when you have seen where to put koshy nague in the basic aikido technique medieval wrestling is much more simpler.

[Stacy Clifford]

When I was in college I did a little sport fencing for a couple of years. In 2000 I decided I wanted to get back into it after a few years away because it was fun, and I started looking for fencing clubs in Houston. I stumbled across what was then HACA in the Leisure Learning catalog offering a class in Medieval Swordsmanship. I thinks to meself "swords and history, can't beat that," so I looked them up on the internet and found out when class times were so I could go check it out.

I could immediately see in my first class that John Clements was a teacher who was confident and knowledgeable in his subject and not afraid to demonstrate how things worked. We did some sparring with padded weapons that same day and before I knew it I was standing there with a weapon in my hand and JC taking shots at both sides of my head. I had loved the athleticism of sport fencing, and this quickly convinced me I'd find what I was looking for in HACA as well. By the second week I went home with nicely bruised knuckles and a growing desire to get good at this. I've never looked back.

[Tim Merritt]

Archery.

Just in from some lunch hour archery practice and thought I’d cruise the forum—post because my story is a bit different than above.

US military stationed in UK, became interested in history of the “old stuff” around me, in the village I lived, etc. Picked up a longbow to experience the English Longbow Cliché first-hand. Wanting the “real” experience. Moved back to the states and was lamenting the lack of traditional archery (called self bow around here in CA) opportunities while shooting one day, and recalled a web site I’d surfed earlier claiming real deal swordsmanship. Thought, why not—expand on the medieval experience, and searched it (and other sites) and determined this was the best bet for information on “the experience”. Currently expanding more into 14th century North Europe construction/carpentry. Just got a nice Gransfors Bruks axe and a few other 19th century tools that pass for older versions. Wonder if there’s a fight book for axe and adze, hmm....

[Randall Pleasant]

Several years back I was looking at Eastern sword schools in the Dallas area. Everything I saw I did not like, just too much formality and spiritality and not enough combat. Then I saw John Clement the first time he was on the History Channel. I jumped to my feet and yelled, "Jeff Cooper" (A combat pistol teacher who made the same type of impact on me back in the 1970s). Within minutes I found the ARMA web site and soon sent an email to John. John put me in contact with three other people who had seen the show. A couple of weeks later we took our first training with John and formed the ARMA DFW study group.

[Jake_Norwood]

Agh...me like swords.

I've always liked swords. I did SCA for about 3 months in high school, then boffer swords for maybe 4 months in high school. I kept on getting in trouble. I hit too hard. I cheated, I wanted to throw my weapon at people at tackle them...I didn't mind bleeding a little. And I was obsessed with doing it "right."

Then I gave up on it for years. Following two years in Poland I found myself with some minor anger management issues. I was cranky all the time, etc. I tried some Tai Chi or whatever, but no luck. To "happy."

I had been researching swords and fighting for a book I was working on (TROS) and came across the HACA page. The next day a mutual friend introduced me to Robery Hyatt, who just happened to be running the HACA group at BYU at the time.

I went to one practice session thinking I was pretty hot stuff. Rob was non-judgemental. He showed me some stuff and sparred me.

I was blown away. I borrowed a waster that night and trained every day for the next month. Pretty much every other hobby or passion I've ever had was swallowed up or integrated into the ARMA. I love this stuff.

And I'm not angry anymore!

Jake

[Mason Pluzak]

<img src="/forum/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" /> I'm just getting started. Currently I'm in the SCA though I've only been in it for a few months. I found the ARMA because my friends like eastern martial arts and he was convinced that he can beat my shield with his katana and he google'd it and ta-da! An essay on the ARMA website.

Anyway, at the moment I'm looking into i) getting a group up here in Canada started and ii) making ARMA certified practice swords (I always hated how boffers weren't sword shaped)

Anyone have any advice/help/ideas on how I can learn more and get a group started?

[Nathan Dexter]

Well...
I am just getting started as well, but back when I was about 7ish, my brother and I used to hit each other with sticks. (We had to create elaborate plots because he always wanted to be a samurai and I a knight) then a few years back, I picked up "Medeival Swordsmansip" and became hooked.
And thats what happened.