Lonnie crosses lances with Raven Eastwood during the afternoon jousting demonstration, © Winston Henvey 2022.
I was invited by Steve Hemphill to join the a'Plaisance, Ltd., team in a jousting demonstration at the 19th annual PumpkinFest held on Saturday, Oct. 15 from noon to 5 p.m. at Paschall Park, 1001 New Market Road in Mesquite, Texas. It is a family-friendly event that features a community stage with performances, kids’ activity area, Birds of Prey shows, vendor booths, contests, carnival food, trick-or-treating, and, best of all, the public jousting demonstration.
Skills at Arms
The demonstration opened with a friendly skills at arms competition in full armour. Each rider took a turn at throwing a javelin at a small circle on a hay bale. They then tried their hand at cutting apples in half that were mounted on posts.
Joust a'Plaisance
The jousting demonstration was in the form of a Joust a'Plaisance, or "joust of peace", which is the form of jousting most recognized by modern audiences. The three competitors each took several passes against one another.
