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Valhalla Modern Gladiatorial League 9/30/2017 Monterey Fairgrounds
#1


I just got a press pass for this.  Been trying to hustle another for a 'photographer' (Know what I mean?  Nudge, nudge, wink, wink) but it's not looking like that'll come through.  Nevertheless, this seemed DOOMish, so I'm putting this out there in case any of you want to join me.  THERE WILL BE SWORD FIGHTS!  Cheap seats are only like $15.  

http://valhallamgl.com
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#2
I have no idea what you are talking about.

If I'm in the area at that time.....
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm

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#3
(09-13-2017, 03:07 PM)Greg Wrote: I have no idea what you are talking about.

[Image: GrandioseDelightfulHairstreak-max-1mb.gif]
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#4
I now have a 2nd press pass.  Seats 4 & 5 at the press table, which is likely ringside.  Is there any DOOMer that can shoot photos for me?  Snap snap, grin grin, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more?

srlsy, I do now have an extra and am offering it to DOOM first.  We have to take Tara's cat in for some shots and that is supposed to end at 12:30.  I plan to leave immediately from the Cruz to Monterey immediately after.  Let me know ASAP.
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#5
If it was the following Saturday, I could have been your boy,

But this Saturday, is pull the rest of my hair out and plan for a monthlong filming odyssey day.
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm

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#6
Well, if you won't be my boy, will you be my pony?

jk



Srsly, JK
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#7
This looks like it's going to be hilarious ultravi. That had to be the funniest weigh-in/press conference that I've ever been at. I'm going to wait out traffic here on Cannery Row then return to the bungalow.
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#8
You should go do the Steinbeck tour. I hear it's fabulous.
As a matter of fact, my anger does keep me warm

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#9
Can't I just go to Lynch manor again? Oh wait. Never mind.
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#10
i freakin own this venue. No one hear knows the Monterey pop stories. 

Ringside in a huge pit. Attendance is low. Hope they didn't lose too much.
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#11
As u prolly figured out already, I leave a lot of notes here.

Quote:Gladiator league, started by Salinas alum, to make pro debut in Monterey



By: John Devine (jdevine@montereyherald.com)

POSTED: Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017 - 8:47 p.m. 
UPDATED: 11 DAYS AGO 




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[Image: AR-170919746.jpg]
Contributed On Sept. 30, Monterey County will get its first taste of the Modern Gladiatorial League, which features athletes dressed in medieval attire battling it out.




It's athletes dressed in medieval attire fighting for survival in a 22-foot circle. Unlike a thousand-plus years ago, it's not a duel to the death. But on Sept. 30, for the first time in its modern incarnation, it won't be for fun, either.

Gladiator fighting - Game of Thrones meets MMA - has been an amateur sport since the mid-1960s. It turns pro when the new Modern Gladiatorial League holds it inaugural fight at the Monterey Fairgrounds next week.
Salinas High graduate Jeff Waters, who started the MGL, expects 3,500 to 5,000 people to come to witness the nine different battles on the fighting card for the event dubbed Valhalla I.
"I grew up in the area," Waters, also the event's promoter, said. "I still have ties there. I needed an outdoor venue where it doesn't rain in September. Monterey seemed perfect."
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Waters spent 24 years competing as a medieval fighter as an amateur in the Society for Creative Anachronism. The SCA is "an international organization dedicated to researching and re-creating the arts, skills, and traditions of pre-17th-century Europe," according to its website.
"The SCA started as a going away birthday party in Berkeley," Waters said. "I remember watching people beat the hell out of each other and not go to jail. I thought it was awesome."
As barbaric as it sounds, skill is involved when participants walk around with armor, a steel helmet and a bamboo sword, ax or shield.
Athletes with wrestling, jujitsu and fencing backgrounds have gravitated to the sport, where points are awarded for takedowns, submissions and, of course, contact with a weapon.
"When we created the rules, we took them from martial arts from every state," Waters said. "And we have armor and weapon standards to ensure our fighters will be safe."
The helmets weigh eight to 12 pounds, with no more than a one-inch gap anywhere. The body is covered in chain mail or plate mail armor, much like the Romans used.
The swords and shields are mostly are made out of bamboo, which doesn't break down or shatter. And the swords have a circular tip instead of a pointed end.
"Some compete with shields," said Waters, who played football at Salinas and Monterey Peninsula College. "Others will use a two-handed weapon like an ax."
The objective in the sport is a knockout, although Waters says those are rare because of the helmets the athletes wear and the safety equipment required.
Submission is an alternative.
"We allow some wrestling," Waters said. "If you do a takedown and execute a move in 15 seconds, you might get a submission. We don't let a fighter fight without a weapon."
The most likely path to a win is through a point system, similar to what boxing and mixed martial arts competitions employ.
Of course, with any combat sport, the goal is also to inflict pain and weaken the opponent. 
"We have throws and takedowns like wrestling or martial arts," Waters said. "When a competitor goes to the ground, things change. The fighter on the ground can block. The fighter standing up can continue to throw blows with his sword or shield."
The MGL also takes its cues from boxing and MMA when it comes to divisions, with six weight classes. Each fight consists of three rounds of three minutes apiece, with a 90-second break between rounds.
"For a lot of our competitors that have competed in other combat sports, this is a whole new world for them," Waters said. "Two minutes is like an eternity."
Waters says more than 100,000 people compete as amateurs worldwide. Yet, he said there's never been an outlet for people do to it professionally in most parts of the world.
"So I decided to create a pro league," Waters said. "I can't believe no one has done this before. We've evolved out of several groups. When I competed, I kept thinking we should be touring like a bunch of circus freaks."
Among the 18 fighters competing in the inaugural professional event, which begins at 2 p.m., is a challenger from Israel.
"The only other professional organization for this sport is in Russia," Waters said.
Waters competed for 24 years before stopping two years ago to focus on putting together the MGL.
"I don't fit in my armor anymore," joked Waters, who now calls Vancouver, Washington, home. "Most of these are athletes who competed at a high level in another sport. People love watching combat sports. Now the MGL has its own stage."
Contact John Devine at 831-726-4337.
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