[Regia-NA] Event Announcement - Norstead Grand Opening Weekend

[Peter James]

Hi

I suspect this is more of interest to those in the central US but if you
have the time and money, you are welcome to attend :

-

Event Announcement - Norstead Grand Opening Weekend

Greetings

I am pleased to announce the Grand Opening Weekend Event of the Norstead
Viking-Age Farmstead -  October 26th - 29th, near Kirksville Missouri.

Site fee - Adults (18+) $50 (VNA members get a $10 discount), 17-10=$20,
under 10=free,  Family cap of $120 (see combat for additional
information of  non VNA member combatants).

Meals - Breakfast each morning and a feast on Saturday are included in
site fee.

Information on the feast and what will be served is being put together.
Stay tuned for more information

LH - Public hours are in effect from 10 am to 5 PM everyday

All participants in the village are expected to comply with the Rules of
The Vikings as regards clothing and other equipment. Acceptable kit is
expected every day, and the Authenticity officers reserve the right to
ask people to meet these standards throughout the event.

Saturday will be open to the public, craft demonstrations are highly
suggested on this day. Please contact the event organisers if you need
anything special for your demonstration.

It is our intent to make the longhouse and farm a full time LH
environment when it is being used. We will ask our guests to please make
every effort to remember this when enjoying it. Please hide (or leave
behind) all modern conveniences when joining us in the hall. We realise
that some exceptions will be necessary but want to keep these exceptions
to a minimum. Village officers and Authenticity officers reserve the
right to ask people to meet this standard throughout the event.

Combat - all combat will be to Vikings rules, using rebated steel
swords. Based on something tried earlier in the year in the UK we are
trying something new to NA at the Norstead event. There will be 6 trials
to compete in. The competitions are:

Trial by Knife (Knife fighting!) this is open to any one who has passed
their basic combat test.

Trial by Spear.  This is Open to any one who has passed their basic
spear or Advanced  spear.

Trial by Axe. This is open to any one who wants to use a hand axe and
shield, two axes or a Dane Axe and has passed the relevant tests to use
them.

Trial by Sword.  Open to any one who wants to use Sword and shield, two
swords or sword and knife, and has passed any tests to use them.

Trial by Warband. (3-5 a side.) A melee competition. Any weapon
combination that the warriors involved like, as long as the have passed
the expected tests.

The winners of each competition (except for the Warband and Archery)
will the fight it out in a circle of treachery at the show on Saturday.
The winner of that will be the Norstead Champion for the year and will
receive something marking his/her achievement.

While the above will be competitive fighting we expect folks to fight
with the same level of calibration we use in show fighting. While it
won't be integral, active marshalling will be in use. We want this clean
and fun for everyone.

For non-coms there will be a Trial by Bow involving Target Archery for
bows up to 60 pounds only.

Due to insurance concerns, all who wish to participate in combat will be
REQUIRED to :

A) pay an additional $10 fee to cover additional legal/liability costs

B) pass a Combat Assessment per The Vikings Training Officers Handbook
and be subject to those guidelines

Norsa reserves the right to waive these requirements on a case by case
basis.

Equestrian - the site is horse friendly but no organized activities are
planned at this time, more to come on this as the event draws near.

Camping - There is limited sleeping inside the longhouse. Please RSVP
EARLY if you plan to sleep in the longhouse. Space will be issued on a
first come, first serve basis, so pre-registering for this space is
HIGHLY recommended. 

Please note that the hall may not be 'family oriented' at times. Loud
singing, libacious story telling, and lots of beer will be consumed over
the course of the event. Please consider this when weighing the option
of choosing the Longhall as your primary sleeping area.

Authentic tents are encouraged for those not wanting to sleep in the
Longhall. Authentic tents are limited to Viking wedges, Anglo-Saxon
Getelds, lean to shelters and shadeflys. There will be ample space for
authentic tents right outside the Longhall.

Non-Authentic camping is available but will be out of sight a short walk
from the village site.

For those that can not bring a tent we have also limited housing
available within a short walk from the village. Bedding will not be
provided unless arrangements are made before hand. Please contact the
event organisers for more information about this.

Vehicles will not be allowed onsite after 9:30 am each day (this
includes staff vehicles). On arrival they must be moved to parking
immediately after unpacking. Even before 9:30 am vehicles will not be
allowed past the wattle fences that will enclose the farm. Strong backs
will be available to help folks pack their stuff from the fences to the
camping area if needed (a very short distance). Parking will be out of
sight but within walking distance.

Facilities - At present there is no running water or electricity on the
farmstead. Both of these things are available within walking distance.
Drinking water will be provided by the event organisers.

Showers are a short walk from the site. As are cooking facilities and
electricity.

Port potties will be available but concealed as much as possible

Special - There is a live boar hunt scheduled on the Friday and this
will be in normal Vike kit with period weapons - sharp spears - ONLY.
This will take place on private property that borders a public land
where true "wild hogs" are a problem for the conservation commission.
These are not hogs raised and penned in for hunting on a game farm.
They are born and living wild.  Because of that there are no bag limits
and no restrictions that we are aware of as far as baiting, type of
weapon used, or dates of season. 

The hunt will be done under watchful eyes of a professional hunting
outfitter. Web page is here: http://users.marktwain.net/backwood/  No
one (other than the guide) will be  allowed to carry a firearm. With any
luck the fruit of this hunt will be  served at the feast on Saturday
evening. Modern footwear will be allowed for  this, but otherwise Vike
kit and costume rules will apply.

*Please note that while this is a Nyr Heida/VNA event, it is being held
on a  Norsa, Inc site. While Norsa, Inc supports the standards and
guidelines of The Vikings and The Vikings-NA there are cases where
Norsa,  Inc rules may supersede them. We will try to keep these
exceptions to a minimum but in cases were the BoD deems it necessary (to
protect its members, the group and or the NFP org) we will make these
exceptions know well in advance! Please make sure you and your group
members read the event flyer and understand these rules. The BoD members
are always available for questions.*

Places are limited, so please contact the organisers off list <
schusterrl at gmail.com > for more information.

*******************

More Information

This is not a small project. http://www.vikingsna.org/norsa/vafp/
planned  for a couple of years, the building work started in May, and
has been growing steadily since.

A photo log of the building progress work is visible here : 
http://www.vikingsna.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=4273

The site is on private land leased to a NFP body established for the
purpose of building and managing the project. All the monies raised are
used to further the development of site.

For more details please contact myself or the organiser above

Pete - Guthroth