Swords Against Humanity Podcast

In HEMA we often see and hear people talk about their training routines, drills, and general preparation for tournaments and classes. However, we seldom hear about what one can do to maintain their well-being mentally and emotionally in high stress environments such as tournaments,in-club sparring, and partnered drilling. This series aim to provide resources and community support for both beginner students and their instructors for tackling the mental and emotional aspect of participating in various events and activities in the HEMA community. Katie Zold is a Special Education teacher with a masters in Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. She has a passion for HEMA, all things spooky and mental health. She has been a part of the HEMA community for just about 7 years as a proud student of Christian Tobler (Selohaar Fechtschule) and enjoys helping others in need.  Fran Lacuata began historical fencing in Bolognese sidesword and rapier rather than longsword because those were the only systems available, learning at The School of the Sword in Frimley, United Kingdom. In 2014, she inherited the school, opening the Godalming and Reading chapters. Lacuata also helped establish the competition community in the UK, assisting in founding the Waterloo Sparring Group in 2012, the Wessex League, and the Albion Cup. Additionally, she also founded a women’s and nonbinary seminar entitled By the Sword, where women and nonbinary folks are instructors as well.  Kimberleigh Roseblade is an Italian longsword instructor and coach who specializes in the fitness needs of HEMA practitioners.  She has taught classes and workshops at various HEMA events and symposiums across North America and won a bronze medal in Women's Longsword fighting in her first tournament at the PNW HEMA Gathering: Swordsquatch 2016.

This episode is a recap of our experience competing at Valley of the Sun Cutting Tournament 2023 in Mesa, Arizona with my guest co-host Josh Barnett of Bold City Longsword. I also interviewed the two other women who competed in the open, Irene Yang and Harriet Coates, as well as VOTS 2023 open longsword bronze medalist Kevin Spencer.

In the final installment of the series I chat with a couple of fellow Filipino-American HEMA practitioners. Chris Vivo has been fencing and coaching for over 30 years while my friend Swan is a new practitioner. Chris discusses the importance of having a good mindset while having fun as the key to a good tournament experience while Swan shares his experiences as a beginner and the things that keep him in the community.  This episode was recorded 3 April 2022. 

In the continuation of this series, I talk to instructor Joe Cantore and some folks from Einhorn Los Angeles. In this episode I get to know some of the members of the club as we chat about the importance of free play and what it means to be the best swords person one can be. 

In this episode of Swords and Mental Health, Janna travels to California to spend time with HEMA folks to free spar and ask the question, where do you find joy in this hobby? In this first installment, she meets with folks from Wednesday Nights In the Park. They chat about common fencing, special interests and a special audio appearance of a pack of coyotes in this episode. This episode was recorded 30 March 2022

This episode was recorded, 19 June 2024.About the guest:On or off the piste, Christian 'Xian' Niles has had a lifelong love for martial arts. Starting with Shotokan Karate at a very young age, graduating to MMA and Kickboxing. A former international Epee fencer, Xian’s fencing career spans over 19 years. He has represented his home country of Barbados as a two-time Pan-American Championship athlete; and a Pan-American Cup competitor. He has also achieved multiple time medal recognition while fencing competitively in Nova Scotia.Founder and former leader of SPADA, the only recreational Bolognese fencing study group in Maritime Canada. Former facilitator of the Dalhousie Historical European Martial Arts Society. Xian’s historical fencing journey started in 2013. He is a certified Level 1 Longsword and Rapier instructor through Academie Duello based in British Columbia. He has also achieved a Level 3 Instructor rank with the Cateran Society. He is an Oak level fencing coach in the Storica Defensa program.

In this episode I chat with Jay Maas, the owner of swordshop.ca, a founding member of Storica Defensa, and head instructor of Wolves Den Historical Fencing. Jay and I cover quite a few topics, from silly fencing debates online to more serious topics such as creating intentional balanced spaces for both competitive and recreational HEMA, and what it entails to run a HEMA gear shop that strives for inclusion. About the guest: Coach Jay has been a dedicated HEMA instructor since 2011, beginning his journey in 2010 at Valour HEMA where he studied rapier. A member of the Cateran Society, Jay has achieved the rank of Cateran and contributed to producing seven instructors through the program. As a founding member of Storica Defensa, a prominent coaching program and fencing league, he holds the prestigious Oak Rank Coach certification. With a background in boxing and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Jay brings a diverse martial arts experience to his role. He is the head instructor at Wolves Den Historical Fencing and a five-time broadsword and smallsword champion at the Glengarry Highland Games, the Canadian Championship. Jay also organizes major events such as the Manitoba Highland Gathering and trains in Olympic-style fencing under Steve Symons at Phoenix Fencing Club. A passionate advocate for the growth of HEMA across Canada, Jay has helped establish numerous clubs and remains actively involved in various HEMA weapons. In his professional life, Jay is a full-time Mental Health Therapist and Registered Social Worker, and his therapeutic skills profoundly influence his coaching approach. Jay's dedication to both his martial arts practice and professional career reflects his commitment to empowering and nurturing the HEMA collective.

In this episode we chat with Olive Nuttall — a biological catgirl engineered in an agricultural laboratory on the outskirts of Kirikiriroa. She likes writing books about transsexuals, boydykes, girlfags, queers, and other angels. Olive trains in historical fencing with longsword and sabre.

In this episode I interview Ashanti Ziths, a HEMA fencer who also specializes in designing products for HEMAists. We discuss historical fencing interpretations, HEMA injuries, and lots of gear talk.

In this episode we discuss safety through communication and what a physical and emotional safety-focused force calibration should look and feel like. John "Pax" Crum has been practicing martial arts for 35 years. His focus has ranged from competition to combatives and self-defense, and has settled on training and ethics. For 12 years, Pax has studied HEMA, specifically Liechtenauer's Zettel and the glosses. He plays with anything and everything in HEMA, and has been giving his talk, The Speaking Window, since 2018.

In this episode, I chat with my friend Gabriel Pottebaum about their experiences as a differently-abled athlete and the difficulties that arise in acquiring gear for historical fencing. This episode was recorded 27 of February 2024 in Utah, USA

In this installment of the Toll of Tournament, Fran Lacuata, Kristen Argyle, and Thierry Flekier-Wathen spill the tea with me about our experiences in the HEMA community. We also discuss our thoughts on light swords and tournament culture.

In this episode, HEMA fencers Camilla Fraizer, Arly Ord, and Clara Elliott talk about their transition experience, some history of trans women in the early days of HEMA, what it's like to be a trans athlete, tournament and in-club experiences on safety, belonging, and inclusion. The 3 episode guests also offer advice to fencing clubs and individual fencers  on how to foster a welcoming and inclusive space for racial and lgbtqia+ communities.