Blessi Jousts for the first time

Blessi and I have been attending SCA tournaments for two years so Blessi has experience competing at the quintain and other games that lead up to the joust.  I always ride Blessi at a walk.  Lord Ivan rode Blessi in the Empris, a tournament set up under the rules of a treatise written by Rene D'Anjou.

Here is Blessi's first attempt at a joust and his first attempt at carrying a rider wearing armor after a 5-minute prep time.   Blessi is such a good pony and Lord Ivan rode him well against the much bigger horses.  Lord Ivan was able to shatter 5 out of 6 tips.  Note the lance tips are made of styrofoam.

Here is a link to the Barony of Madrone Jousting Guidelines.
http://madrone.equestrianguild.org/dynamic/Jousting/Jousting

A critical attribute of the jousting horse is that the rider can rate the horse's speed so that the opponents meet at the center of the list.  The horse must be calm enough to slow down after impact and willing to turn around the list for the next run.  Lord Ivan was very pleased with Blessi, who often gifted Lord Ivan with a tolt as he slowed down from a canter to a walk so Lord Ivan did not bounce. An associate of the Seattle Knights, a professional jousting group, even complimented Blessi on his performance.  Go Blessi!  Go Icelandics!