hurricane

Hmmm crews don't really have to lose their individuality because they would still be operating under their own standards as well and be members of the foundation... the only way pirate crews might lose individuality is if the foundation's standards are not as high as their own or vastly different, or the foundation tries to set all the rules for all their members on how to operate... such as, there is a disagreement with the standards regarding clothing standards...where one member crew is wearing blends or cottons and another member crew is wearing correct fabrics..or where one crew allows children and another doesn't..bucketboots and fallfront breeches or no bucketboots and fallfront breeches...is the foundation going to step in and try to dictate regarding such specific issues? (Major nightmares!!) Or are we talking mainly about safety issues, how many events does each member crew need to commit to, and perhaps fringe benefits when and if they are ever available...etc, etc...etc... Therein lies the problem, at least for a crewe like ours. We already have a set of 14 articles about how the group operates. Some of these will inevitably conflict with the foundation's master set of rules - for example, our group follows my orders, no one else's. It is part of their requirement and is done for their safety as I am ultimately responsible for anything that happens to them. We have very different rules about handling weapons than some other groups - that's why you don't see us doing fighting... we abhor the very concept of roped off fight circles. I could go on and on. The long and short of it is that there are always arguments about why someone got a fringe benefit when X or Y didn't and by the very nature of being human, there is always some level of preferential treatment given, even if it is to the hometown team. For the freebooters, this is easy to go along with. But for the more formalized crewes, it is another layer of management that begs for trouble down the road. Like Michael, I've been there and done that too many times and it never works in the long run. Far better and far more fun to bring different groups together and let each run as they do - it is also more accurate in regards to how two or more crewes under different captains would operate historically. -- Hurricane

Thoughts? Been there, done that 26 years ago. Not wanting to get involved again with all the rules and more important, a small board telling the worker bees what to do. It has just never worked in my life - two pirate groups tried and failed to make this concept work well - there was always division, derision and power struggles. Plus resentment on behalf of the worker bees who don't like being told what and how to do things with their volunteer time. I wish you well and perhaps my two experiences where the exceptions not the rule. For me, work has enough rules and requirements - my vacation time should be just that - vacation from all the rules and regulations. I'd have to say I am with Mission on this one. Pyrating is not my job, it is my release from my job. I'm surprised Animal didn't cover this already. Guess his memory was erased on the drive north. :) muhahaha, says the pot stirrer. -- Hurricane

Searle's Raid is kind of like that - there's no pressure to interact with the audience. We establish the camp in town, we mingle with our own, run drills, eat communally, and then battle in the streets. It wouldn't really matter if there was an audience during the battle or not. It's a chance to fire in very closed quarters on a street that actually saw battle during the time. If the public wasn't there, I don't think it would really matter. The re-enactors all love the time to get together and play with one another, renew acquaintances and have fun learning. -- Hurricane

...... ..... ....... HAhahahahahahaha....hehehehehehe.hohohohohohhohohohoho...... Cold....(sputter).......January......(snort)........FLORIDA.....(spittle) Actually, it was in the 30s that weekend there in the morning. I couldn't believe it was that cold here. Felt like I was back in Seattle again. I think I saw... now what is it called... oh, ICE there. -- Hurricane

I would have to agree with that. As a mediocre musician (but a great entertainer) I attended my first ever jam session with some truly great musicians this last weekend. The unspoken competitive spirit caused each one of us to up our respective games - we all tried harder than we do when we're all alone... and yes, there were still some who were in the slow lane, but even their game stepped up proportionally. It's quite interesting to watch the dynamics of a group even where everyone is at a different level but learning from some real experts. -- Hurricane

This is one of those places, Mission. Went last year as a civilian and thoroughly enjoyed the experience, though I wished I had had the guts to enter the live fire event. http://www.floridafrontiersmen.org/Alafia.html It's all done on private property there were literally hundreds of encampments, from teepees and trappers to pirates and settlers. Amazing. The kids of the families even go to school there in period. They live there for roughly 10 days but only allow the public in on one weekend. It's a great place to learn, get ideas and experience a wide range of re-enactment periods and styles. It's on my never miss calendar since I went last year. Perhaps someday I will have the guts to go period there. And yes, they even endure the cold of January in Florida. -- Hurricane

This is really an interesting discussion, folks. I haven't seen such a good one here for a while. Refreshing and very fun and insightful to follow along and participate in. Kudos to all who are adding their own insights and experiences. Am learning much. -- Hurricane Mission - Port Royal had many famous episodes of one buccaneer or another brawling and then either shooting one another or offing them by sword. Many of the buccaneers were given a very wide birth during the earliest days of the town, before the prisons were built and law and order began to be dispensed. That is the time I would love to visit most. Port Royal in its prime. :) Unfortunately, I'm not tough enough to survive even five minutes if I transported there.

I'm with you Mission! I'd love to go to an event with lots of discharge of weapons in the streets, whoring, topless native women, smelly rogues and wine flowing like water. Man, would I love that. :) Unfortunately, there's no way for any of us to do a true buccaneer or GAoP representation these days without breaking some major laws (rape comes to mind). And that slavery thing in the Civil War is kind of distasteful. I don't think there's many hardcore African American re-enactors who want to be whipped just to be authentic. So we still pick and choose our level of authenticity, no matter what the event. It's great to represent living history and live the life, but there are still limitations -- can't exactly walk into a town near a re-enactment these days and break the windows, torch buildings, plunder treasure or take advantage of the governor's wife. Hurricane

I must say that I've stayed away from several events that were out of my period of capabilities, kit-wise. St. Augustine has Drake's Raid and I don't have the correct gear or weapons to do 1500s. If I had gone this year, I would have done what Hawkyns did and go mundane and learn from the experts there what works and what doesn't. With living history, there is a temptation to dilute the representation to accommodate everyone - when that happens the even loses its accuracy. It's OK to pass on an event because you don't have the proper gear and wait until such time as you do. I do that myself (as a relative newcomer to living history) -- for me, it demonstrates my respect for the work others have done. When I do the living history, I stick with the periods I can do well. Few people can do every period well. So I stick with Buccaneer era with a slight dabble in Golden Age. And if I am doing buccaneer, I don't want to see a percussion rifle during a demo. It makes no sense. Nor does a tricorn. So, I can see Hawkyns' point. There are plenty of opportunities to play periods you fit in or attend pirate festivals that have a wide interpretation, like PiP. But I think it's all about showing respect in these instances for those who have worked much harder than I to represent their craft well and appropriately. -- Hurricane

In Jamaica, that is the official story today as I've heard it. The official account is as such: "Mary Read died of a fever while in prison at Port Royal in 1720, her unborn babe with her. They are buried in Jamaica, as recorded in the earliest registrar of burials for the parish of St. Catherine." There was no prison in Port Royal at the time - there was only the Old Gaol there, which is still there now. However, I've also heard from historians in Jamaica that there that she died in child birth and that they were buried separately. Either way, Mary would have ended up on the outside of the church cemetery there. But no one knows exactly where in St. Catherine she's actually buried. -- Hurricane

That's basically it, Paisley. The cay is now underwater, but is still called that by the locals. He was actually hung at Gallow's Point with the rest of his crewe in Port Royal, then gibbetted on the cay. He hung there for years - in fact, there was a tale of a sailor who used the gibbet to get back to the spit Port Royal is on after a tempest many years later. Mary died in the Gaol in Port Royal. We've been to the cells. She was then transferred to Kingston where she was buried in an unmarked grave outside the church cemetary. It is assumed the baby was born inside the walls, since children are born without sin. Mary, on the other hand, not exactly sin free.

The best deal is the hostel there, $39 a night. The motel part is $75 per night. http://www.keywesthostel.com/ Here's a more extended list of economy hotels, which are always a good bet since it's a place to lay your weary head down at the end of the day, not to live it up. ALMOND TREE INN Phone: 305-296-5415 * Toll Free: 800-311-4292 512 Truman Avenue Key West, FL 33040 BUDGET KEY WEST Phone: 305-294-3333 1031 Eaton Street Key West, FL 33040 BLUE LAGOON RESORT Phone: (305) 296-1043 3101 N. Roosevelt Blvd Key West, FL 33040 BLUE MARLIN MOTEL Phone: (305)294-2585 * Toll Free: (800) 523-1698 1320 Simonton Street Key West, FL 33040 COLONY KEY WEST Phone: 305-294-6691 714 Olivia Street Key West, FL 33040 EL PATIO MOTEL Phone: (305)296-6531 800 Washington Street Key West,FL 33040 EL RANCHO MOTEL Phone: 305-294-8700 * Toll Free: 800-294-8783 830 Truman Avenue Key West, FL 33040 HARBORSIDE MOTEL & MARINA Phone: (305) 294-2780 903 Eisenhower Drive Key West, FL 33040 KEYSCARIBBEAN RESORT VILLAS AND MARINA Phone: 305-294-4676 5950 Peninsula Avenue Key West, FL 33040 OCEAN BREEZE INN Phone: 305-296-2829 * Toll Free: 877-879-2362 625 South Street Key West, FL 33040 OLD TOWN SUITES Phone: 305-296-5169 *Toll Free: 800-413-1978 1001 Von Phister Key West, FL 33040 SEASHELL MOTEL & KEY WEST YOUTH HOSTEL Phone: (305) 296-5719 718 South Street Key West, FL 33040 SPANISH GARDENS Phone: (305) 294-1051 * Toll Free: 1-888-898-1051 1325 Simonton Street Key West, FL 33040 SEASIDE-SUNRISE-SUNSHINE Phone: 404-580-4325 * 3625 Seaside Drive Key West ,FL33040 SOUTHERN CROSS HOTEL Phone: (305) 294-3200 326 Duval St Key West, FL 33040 SOUTHWINDS MOTEL Phone: (305) 296-2215 1321 Simonton St Key West, FL 33040 SPINDRIFT MOTEL Phone: (305) 296-3432 1212 Simonton Street Key West,FL 33040 SUNRISE SUITES RESORT Phone: 305-296-6661 *Toll Free: 888-723-5200 3685 Seaside Drive Key West, FL 33040 KEYS SUNRISE-SUNSHINE-SEASIDE Phone: 404-580-4325 3625 Seaside Drive Key West, FL 33040 TRUMAN HOTEL Phone: 305-296-6700 611 Truman Avenue Key West, FL 33040 I stayed at the El Rancho and it was fine - an easy walk to Duvall and a less easy but very doable walk to the fort. -- Hurricane

That's the cowboy way to do it. They get a brand new pair of cowboy boots, fill up the tub and jump in. Then they wear them till they dry. For minor changes in the fit, there is a silicone spray called Shoe Stretch that you can get in the shoe accessory area at Wal Mart. Spray it inside and it allows the show to stretch easily. Works great on a tight instep or a non-giving heal. Use it all the time. -- Hurricane

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2009/09/johnny-depp-says-hes-shocked-and-very-sad-about-dick-cooks-departure.html -- Hurricane

This is the final roster for The Pyrates of the Coast along with our tents: Hurricane/Dr. Vahine -- Tent: 18 x 25 Diosa -- Tent: 15 x 15 DB/Buxom Anne Marie -- Tent: 14 x 20 Red Handed Jill/Youngblood -- Tent: 12 x 15 Cutter/Io -- Tent: 12 x 15 Sully -- Tent: 10 x 12 Willie Wobble: He does his own thing there That should do it for us. 11 from our crewe! -- Hurricane

Here is our update - another member (the missing one) has chimed in. Here is our preliminary measurements: The Catt & Fiddle/Hurricane's Tent: 18 x 25 Diosa's Tent: 15 x 15 DB/Buxom: 14 x 20 Booty/Jill: 12 x 15 Cutter/Io: 12 x 15 Sully: 10 x 12 That should do it for us. -- Hurricane

I so forgot about Mead. Good catch, there! Smuggle some down and we'll enjoy it beachside. Too soon to know for sure, but I may be in Hawaii the days before and may bring back pineapple wine from the islands. And everything is palable, sir, after the first bottle. :) -- Hurricane

You'll love how Snickers are PC mission - it's an amazing tale of intrigue, confectionery, kidnapping and patriotism... :) The center of the story is one Count deMars, a Frenchman on his mother's side who was abducted and held captive in Holland by the chocolate barons who wanted the secrets of making nougat, which was in short supply in Holland at the time, as it all had to be imported from France. But due to ongoing hostilities between the two warring countries -- well, you can imagine how that story pans out and give us the Snickers bars we know of today. I believe it all happened in 1715, unless I'm doing buccaneer, then the date was, uh, 1669. On another note, rum was in use in Port Royal during the buccaneer era - it was vile stuff - the closest we can come is bottom shelf white rum, such as Ronrico. I use it to use the period rum punch it do for re-enactments - very popular stuff by the way. Interesting about the history of tequila - thanks for digging that up. -- Hurricane

As you know, The Catt & Fiddle is moving beachside. And in the spirit of the move there, we are working on this year's period drinks. As you know, we make powerful good toddies - but to expedite and enhance your experiences this year, we have found a great new period device to use. Check it out! As captain I have declared it period, right up there with Snickers. Ask Mickey and Kate about that fascinating history... http://www.margaritavillecargo.com/Product.aspx?pid=6791 -- Hurricane

Hey everyone! I think there's a lot of overreacting here. For those who've been here only in the last three years, there have always been massive changes in the off season for the seven years prior. The first years, the event was in Marathon, then split between Key West and Marathon. Then there was no encampments, then a few at the Historic Seaport, where the entire festival was. Then it was moved to the beach in 2005 and no one camped, except two of my crewe who hammocked there overnight to watch the vendor booths. All the shooting and battles took place on the beach there. So it has always been changing. The sword issue only came to a head during the parade because someone pulled one on the crowd. I have always had my sword and gun when I walk the streets of Key West, not only during PiP but other times when I'm down there. I never have a problem with the police. But as soon as we get people who think they can do what they want in town and pretend they don't have to follow the rules is asking for trouble and will ruin it for all of us. Never pull a weapon out in the streets of Key West. It's just common sense, folks. You are all visitors - not locals and not real pirates. If you freak out a tourist and they tell the cops, the cops are going to err on the side of protecting the town's revenue stream - tourists! The folks camping at the fort don't bring a significant revenue stream to town - not compared the 5,000 people that pour off cruise ships and the people who stay at hotels and inns in the area, do. They spend lots of money compared to us and their interests will always come first. The fire pits have always been restricted. Nothing new there as others said. We all need to remember we are using a state park - a place where most of what we do is prohibited by various Florida State laws. That includes drinking, camping there... the list goes on. The fort has been very good to us in allowing us to do what we do there while bending an awful lot of rules. Stop biting the hand that feeds us and learn to live with change. It has been part of this event since it was created 10 years ago. Get over it and roll with it instead. If you don't like the changes, don't go. -- Hurricane

YEAH!!!!! It wouldn't be the same without you! -- Hurricane

I guess I'm not surprised. It's New York after all. Here in Florida we can rack off all the rounds we want in the backyard - it's a noise ordinance here. Of course, I live in a state where you can shoot anyone who threatens you or you even feel threatened you, even if it's on a sidewalk or in a store. That perhaps explains why I would never live in New York or any other state with their panties in a bunch over such nonsense. -- Hurricane

I'd have to agree on Blue Heaven as a great place to have breakfast. I also like Camilles, but not as much since they moved to new digs. But I'm more to the liking of true Key West experiences that harken to the pre-tourista days. And for me, $15 is a dinner budget when I'm there, so I plan a bit differently. LUNCH - B.O.'s Fishwagon. Caroline Street. Don't let the place fool you, the shack is home to some of the most delicious seafood in the island as well as great burgers and fritters. An institution in KW. Burger, $7.75. Oyster PoBoy $8.75. http://www.keywesttravelguide.com/bos-fishwagon-menu.html BREAKFAST, LUNCH or DINNER - Pepe's Cafe on Caroline Street. The oldest restaurant in town, opened in 1909. Can't beat it for authentic Key West. Pancakes, $4.45, Western Omelet, $9.95, Burger, $10.10 -- Dinner is more elaborate and more expensive. Stick with lunch and breakfast for budget minded folk. Free pickles to pregnant ladies. http://pepescafe.net/ BAR: I have to always go with the Schooner Bar as my favorite. In the historic seaport, great music and good food. Lots of characters to watch. I'm not a big fan of Sloppy Joes or the other touristy bars. Been there, done that. Like the local flavor and a lot of the boat captains hang here, so it has an additional level of authenticity. KARAOKE: Two Friends. Great karaoke featuring locals, including a couple boat captains that are absolutely awesome. Good food here too. -- Hurricane

No offense, Patrick. But we did the buccaneer period two years ago in the fort, right down to the type of food, drink, games and even how sugar was pressed. We did full education to the public about the buccaneers... the politics of the time, the fashions, the difference between pirates and buccaneers. We were all portraying characters of the time, from the commander of Fort Charles to the ordinary seaman who was whoring for doxies. The only thing we didn't do was boucan a pig. I guess you didn't stop by to see us then. -- Hurricane