Full Metal Jousting (HIST)

[MiaT2]

I don't really know too much about the armor design. I guess there's a fine line between protection and hampering one's mobility. I could see maybe a mail skirt to go over their lap while riding to protect the dangly bits. The helmet I'm not sure - when they show the riders between jousts, when the coach is talking to them and they have the visor up, it does sort of seem like there is some padding around the jaw area. And I have noticed some of the guys with a stocking cap over their hair.

I was very surprised at the semi's results. Rope and James were front runners for sure. I was most disappointed in James because as someone who competes for a living (professional show jumper) to let the pressure of the competition get to him to the point where it affected his performance was a letdown. If he expects to get to the Olympics, he needs to get past that and focus better.

The Nathan v Matt joust was beyond boring. If either of them win it will be a travesty.

I guess I'm pulling for a JoshX2 Finale with Josh K winning it all.

[pikachu]

The finale was last night. First they had the match for the 25,000 prize. Instead of the coaches picking which guys would match up, they had each team (red and black) select one guy. The black team chose to flip a coin to pick between Rope and Jake. Jake called tails and the coin came up heads so Rope won. The red team did a secret ballot. David got two votes, Josh Avery got two votes and John got three votes so John won.

The match between Rope and John was pretty uneventful. There were a lot of misses. The end score was 6 to 2, with Rope getting 1 broken lance, and 1 touch. John only got two touches. Rope won the $25,000.

I wish the coaches had picked the guys to joust for the $25,000 because they might have picked better contenders so this might have been a better match.

The final match between Josh Knowles and Matt wasn't a disappointment, however! Nobody got unhorsed but there was plenty of lance-breaking. Josh started out ahead, then Matt took the lead, and on the very last pass, Josh broke his lance while Matt missed. The final score was 17 to 16. Josh won the $100,000.

I thought it was interesting that both guys that ended up in the finals were ones that got injured by Tom in the same episode. Maybe him hitting them in the crotch was good luck!

I really liked this show and hope it continues. I'd watch it again in the future. I wonder if women ever do tournament jousting? Maybe not because men have more upper-body strength than women and I think it would take a lot of upper-body strength to hold and control the lance.

[pikachu]

What do you know? I answered my own question after doing a Google search. I found an article about this show that mentions women DID apply for the show but none of them got picked this time.

***

Jousting hits the small screen with new reality show

Full Metal Jousting takes 16 amateurs and trains them in competitive full-contact jousting

If you think jousting in the 21st century is only for Renaissance festivals and dinner theater, you're wrong. The Medieval sport is making a comeback and is now the subject of a new reality competition show on the History channel called Full Metal Jousting. The show premiered Sunday, February 12 in the United States to 1.9 million viewers.

Jousting was hugely popular in the late Middle Ages but that ended in 1559 when a French King Henry II was killed during a jousting tournament. The game involves two knights mounted on horses and using lances. The jousting lance is used to unhorse the other by striking him with the end of the lance while riding towards him at high speed.

Full Metal Jousting takes 16 amateurs and trains them in competitive full-contact jousting. Traditional armour is replaced with modern suits of steel weighing 36 kilograms, and 3.3-metre-long, solid fir lances are used as weapons. The last man standing gets a US$100,000 prize.

Shane Adams is a professional jouster, coach and trainer who hosts Full Metal Jousting. He says a lot of people don't realize just how difficult it is to joust while wearing the metal suits.

"That's where the true athleticism of the actual sport is realized. You know it's one thing just to ride a horse. It's another thing to ride a horse wearing 85 pounds of 14 gage stainless steel and then you put in your right hand an 11-foot long, solid wooden pole and charge headlong at another opponent in the intention to unhorse him from his horse. It is a truly difficult thing to do and that's why the rules are simple the execution is not."

The competitors on Full Metal Jousting are all men but Adams says it is possible for women to joust.

"There were probably over 200 women that applied for a position on this show but there was also you know that many more men. Can a woman become a full metal jouster? Of course. Unfortunately no woman made the cut for this year but it's not to say that in future seasons we're not gonna see a woman up on a horse charging at one of these men."

Jousting hits the small screen with new reality show - Story - Entertainment - 3 News

[MiaT2]

Okay - so I finally got to see the finale of FMJ (I was hiding from this thread all day yesterday!). I agree - the "runner up" match between Rope and John was a major let down. I was really pulling for an Avery/Jack matchup. I felt that Josh Avery was right on when he said he should have been chosen because he had scored so many points in his match. It also seemed kind of sucky that Rope got $25k for that horrible display of technique yet Matt who made it all the way to the finals because of his skill got nothing.

I am very happy that Josh K won. I've been rooting for him since the beginning.

I hope that there is another season of this show and if they do have another, I think they should retool the rules. Specifically the rules about who is allowed to come back as an alternate in case of injury or expulsion as well as who is chosen for the runner-up match. I think that instead of the coaches deciding who gets to come back or the teams deciding who jousts, it should be based solely on points scored in the matches. If you only score a couple points in your losing match, you should not be given preference over someone who scored 15 points or more.

As far as the women jousting, I'll admit, I found myself wondering if I could do it. But it would have to be an all-female show. I do not think that a woman should joust against a man. The mass and strength differential gives too great an advantage to a man.

We were wondering - so now that Josh won, does he go back to "theatrical" jousting at Medieval Times? I would think that would be hard to do.

[pikachu]

The part about redoing rules based on scoring is tricky. I felt that Mike was at a disadvantage because he lost the very first joust, when they all had very little training. I was glad he got a second chance later on in the show. Maybe each of the guys left to compete for the second-place joust should have to do a skills test, with the two-highest scorers getting to compete for the $25,000.

I think Matt should have won $50,000 for coming in second, or give him $25,000 and the person who wins the second chance joust a lesser amount, like $10,000.

[MiaT2]

I felt that Mike was at a disadvantage because he lost the very first joust, when they all had very little training. I was glad he got a second chance later on in the show.

Well, Mike's second chance joust didn't do much to convince me that a) he wrongly lost in his first match or that b) he was the most deserving contestant to get a second shot.

Was the final joust the first time we'd seen Navarro chosen as one of the mounts? He seemed like an excellent choice. And as much as Crispin is an affable (and comfy looking) horse, I wouldn't choose him as my joust mount ever. He has a terrible habit of fading out right when he nears the opposing horse. I think it'd be impossible to maintain my aim with him. He doesn't seem to respond to the leg aid either. I heard Matt's coaches telling him "right leg" to try to push Crispin back on target.

I think Matt should have won $50,000 for coming in second, or give him $25,000 and the person who wins the second chance joust a lesser amount, like $10,000.

That is a very equitable idea.

[pikachu]

Well, you're right that Mike didn't do much better when he came back after weeks of training. lol!

For all the hype given to James and Rope, I didn't think either of them were outstanding jousters. They must have done better in practice than what we saw on the show.

I agree that Josh Avery and Jack should have been chosen for the second-chance joust. We would have gotten a much more spectacular joust from them!

Thank you for posting about this show, Mia. I don't routinely watch the History Channel so I would have missed Full Metal Jousting if you hadn't brought it to my attention.

[pikachu]

I keep wondering if there's going to be a second season of Full Metal Jousting. I tried searching online and haven't seen anything about casting or if the show has been renewed or not.

I wouldn't mind of they used all the same contestants for the second season (except for the guy who punched his horse). They still had a lot to learn and I would prefer to see them advance in skill rather than watch a whole bunch of new people start from scratch.

I get so tired of social reality shows that are all about drama. I really like ones like this show that are about an industry or a skill.