The Sport of Knights – Jousting

Little girls everywhere have dreamed of a knight in shining armor astride a great steed. Modern day riders can enjoy the traditional and historic display of skills and horsemanship in the modern form of Jousting. Spectacular Pageants can be witnessed at the many Renaissance Fairs around the country.

Two knights carrying 10 feet long wooden lances and a shield, ride their horses at a full run towards each other. A clean hit to the center of a shield, shattering the lance, or unseating the opponent knight scores points. These tournaments are enjoyed by the crowds and are extremely dangerous for the participants.

Practice Tournaments are popular today, where objects, rather than another rider are the target. Practice targets are provided by either a quintain or rings. The quintain Tourney is a wooden target mounted on a horizontal pole at which the knight aims his lance. If the target is struck accurately, it will swing harmlessly aside; if struck off center, the weighted arm swings around with enough velocity to unseat the knight.

The other form of jousting in the practice tournament is "riding at the rings". A ring is suspended on a cord, which is to be carried off on the tip of the knight's lance. Both the quintain and the ring joust are exercises that develope accuracy skills. These skills become increasingly important as individual jousts gain popularity.

Jousting today is now enjoyed by men, women and children from all walks of life. Classes of participation are based strictly on skill level, without regard to gender or age, making this an ideal sport for any backyard horse enthusiast or family. Usually tournaments are divided into four classes; Novice, Amateur, Semi-Professional and Professional.

In the mid 1800s it was popular to emulate a medieval knight, complete with plumed helmet, horse trappings to the ground and banners flying from the lances. While this is no longer practiced during competitions, it does have a place in the opening ceremonies as a tribute to the romantic history of the sport.

Today's rider adheres to no written dress code. Riding boots, britches, and a polo-style shirt is the most common and comfortable attire. The outfit is usually decorated with the rider's title or maybe a heraldic emblem embroidered on the shirt. The use of heraldry in emblems and colors is a remnant from the medieval period when most knights were illiterate. This practice developed into a very complex, elaborate display for the purpose of identification. Today's competitors can rarely trace their lineage back to the great houses of Europe. So, being the resourceful Americans that we are, many design their own family coat-of-arms and colors. These may also be used on a sleeveless tunic called a gipon (pronounced gee-pon). Brightly colored sashes are another favorite rider embellishment. Hard hats, or safety helmets are not required at this time, but are highly recommended for obvious reasons.

The object of this sport is to gallop your horse down the track and attempt to spear small rings with the use of a lance. Tournaments have few rules other than those that govern the scoring. Riders are without restriction as to the type of horse they may use. Types range from Shetland ponies for the smallest children to Quarter Horses, Arabians, Paints, even imported draft-size Friesians. Experienced jousters on the circuit today concur on several desired characteristics: a level-headed, mid-size to small horse with an extremely smooth canter works best. The riders can then raise their stirrups and assume a position similar to that of a jockey. This allows the motion of the horse to be absorbed by the rider's knees and lower leg. The upper body becomes virtually motionless. This position, combined with a steady hand greatly increases the rider's likelihood of spearing the rings with his lance.

Most tournaments permit each rider three "charges" at a specified size ring to determine the winner. If two or more riders have a tie score, the ring size is reduced until a winner is determined. Most states have a standardized set of riding rules with a few technical variations between the states. During events sponsored by the National Jousting Association, all riders agree to abide by the rules of that Association.