WELL ARMORED — Members of a medieval reenactment group discuss the strengths and weaknesses of a hand-to-hand combat simulation during an event held last Saturday at Piney Creek School.

Piney Creek gets taste of Middle Ages

About 100 lords and ladies of all ages gathered at Piney Creek School last Saturday to celebrate the Polar Bear Ball, a celebration hosted by a medieval reinactment group.

Putting on the event here were members of the Shire of Crannog Mor, a group within the nationwide Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA).

“We are a world-wide organization that basically re-creates the better part of the Middle Ages, anything from the fall of the Roman Empire to about 1600,” explained the group’s herald, Gracie Boone. Boone’s SCA name is Lady Gracela Esperanza de Sevilla.

Cathy Gates, a teacher at Piney Creek School, served as the event’s autocrat, or in layman’s terms, coordinator. Her SCA name is Lady Allegranza Marcovaldi.

“Our device in the Shire of Crannog Mor has two polar bears rampant on it,” Gates said explaining the idea behind the ball. “We thought the title would be a neat connection to the shire, to the winter setting and time frame. It is not currently an annual event, but it looks as if it may become one.”

Explaining that a shire is a geographical subcategory of a kingdom, she stated she was “thrilled” with the response to event.

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