hurricane

Just a note - Harry reiterated the open period in the other line of posts. Any number of interpretations will be accommodated in the 1675 to 1725 period... Again, it's in the other thread. -- Hurricane

I couldn't agree more Harry. The more we present, the more it will capture the imaginations of a wider swath of public. To many, pirates are pirate are pirates. It's our job is to educate and enlighten them through what we do. And the wider the period the more education we can do. Damned Compass. Damned fine name there and very KW. As long as it doesn't point north. - Hurricane

I like the foreshadowing aspect of the historical timeline in 1720. The growing distaste for pirates in the eyes of the British... Good idea!!! -- Hurricane

But how many of them will be going? There were a lot of "I'll be theres" from many here for this year, but it was left to three or four to do the work when others couldn't make it for lack of funds, lack of time or other reasons. I'm loathe to stick those who actually showed up this year and will definitely be there again next year with the decisions of those who may or may not, or will but then don't. I think more than 10 or so here on pyracy baled out in the last month or two before the festival... an abandoning ship if you will. Far better to make a decision based on what will happen at the fort for sure (the tryal is the centerpiece) than a convenient time period for those who find a time convenient and may not show. And don't get me wrong. I don't care. Just been part of PiP long enough to know (and I think Cascabel and others can back me up) that a lot of bold plans are made and then it's left to those who always go to make them happen... I remember three years ago painting signs for the grounds into a long hot afternoon because the person who said they'd do them and then cancelled. -- Hurricane

I think manpower would be a great problem introducing more into the mix. There simply isn't enough people already - the shortage of redcoats as an example. The firing of cannon can be a separate event entirely - giving even more to do. The advantage of creating the struggle inside the fort is that everyone will be aware of it and can participate at whatever level they want. The traditional battle happens beyond the walls of the fort. The idea is to get the people into the fort, to pay the admission and stay the day. Hence the expansion of activities in the fort to keep them there in 07. I think the cannons can be educational as well as fun. I saw we had a demo on how to load the cannon and such on Friday before it was hoisted to the ramparts. Why not do a who session each day about the different cannons, who they were loaded, etc. and then demo them. Same with the flintlocks. Schedule a time up where nothing else conflicts in the fort and direct everyone up top to enjoy some boom time. Cannon fire is just as enjoyable with or without a pseudo enemy... I'd like to see more historical games in the fort too, perhaps under the main tent - one year a mate of ours did some historical games, including some of those in the recent issue of Pyrates magazine (I'd be more specific but Diosa has my copy right now). When we had the Dread Pyrate game three years ago (not historical but fun) it drew lots of players, including the public and pirtes. - Hurricane

They tried to throw me off the Schooner WOLF instead of the iconic hurricane - I would have made a really nice ker-plub, loaded with weapons and such. My own crewe blames me as well for the heat... but I'm the one that has the problem taking it - a Northwest boy who hasn't gotten used to the tepid tropics. So the joke (and heat rash) is on me. -- Hurricane

That was often the case in the Caribbean (again, I know most about Port Royal). In some of the garrisons the standing troops were few - they were bolstered by the locals who were militia. This put some of them into compromising positions - imagine a merchant who serves as militia - who must be called on to quell piracy even though it is his lifeblood of trade. At Fort Charles, there were few troops - the militia handled all the cannon work there - imagine manning 140 cannon in a single place. So I think it has some good story to it and is fairly true to period. I think it also allows some of the "residents" to play various sides of the coin as well during an uprising or misunderstanding. -- Hurricane

I like the idea of the signage and other paraphenalia that will let visitors clearly know that this is a working exhibit - so they feel like it's OK to go over there and ask questions, watch demos, etc. Like I said, many of the people I came across there thought it was just a place where the pirates lived during the festival, rather than it being a living encampment. I think the fictional ship is the way to go to - much easier to develop a story to it and create crewe names and assignments. It also allows for more creativity within the context of history. I don't know if a sign saying the year is good, except perhaps in front of the camp - then I would go with a wood sign on a post with some explanation of what people are looking at. That way they don't have to start from scratch but ask based on what you're trying to portray. Nothing is more maddening than having to constantly explain to people the basics. Think akin to a museum where they have the little placard for each exhibit. This is, after all, a living exhibit. Reminds me of the photo of the beach in the Time Life book (pages 130/131) - where the wenches and pirates were mingling (not trying to portray that as historical or anything), playing dice, cooking and trading -- just an interesting scenario/visual. -- Hurricane

Our crewe brings the curse, I think. Our recent travels Bald Head Island in NC - it was 106 Fort Meyers Beach festival - 100 Puerto Rico - just damned hot Clearwater - 90 Each time the weather forecast was for cool - in the 70s (outside of PR)... and it turned out damned hot each time. Thank god for the drink of period pirates everywhere - beer. -- Hurricane

Sorry there were no photos - I was on a dead run across the parking lot right after she launched - so I didn't have time to grab the video camera. Damn! -- Hurricane

As I said, that works for our crewe. We will simply camp over on the other side, near where the British were and where our booth is. Our crewe plays fast and loose on the dates and that works for us, as much as a single date works for your camp. I think that's cool. I simply didn't understand that everyone was talking about just the tents on the far end, rather than the dates for the entire festival. In contrast, even with Harry's time period, if Morgan had been still alive he would have considered all of you to be pirates and summon the militia to have you arrested and strung up in the morn. So be glad he'd be a ghost to you... he never had a taste for pirates. :) As for the time warp issue, Morgan is sleeping with Mary Read at the festival... Egads! (And yes, just having fun - my wife Diosa plays Mary in the tryal - I liked her better in the jail though). I'm looking forward to the representation you're putting together - I think it will be fabulous and of great interest to the public! -- Hurricane

I just saw my first night launch of the shuttle - wow! I'm inland, just north of Orlando and the thing lit up the sky. You could even see the boosters falling away for some distance. Thanks to my DVR, I know that I would see it almost 50 miles down range before it disappeared from my view. Wow! Nothing like it... -- Hurricane

I think Patrick has a good nugget there - perhaps though, there is an uprising because the governor has gone back on his agreement with the pirates to accept their presence in exchange for payments of goods and coin. He plans to hang one of the pirates to show his displeasure with the current arrangements and the pirates are out to rescue their own. The redcoats are there to prevent this - there is a skirmish - the pirate is freed, but only when the governor steps in to stop the street brawling (I see wenches and ladies whacking each other too in a free for all). The lieutenant fires a round, the governor agrees to a new cut of the trade and the prisoner is released. He then invites all to retire to the "tavern" for a round of grog to quell the rioting. Just another approach... -- Hurricane Just like I thought we should have one skeleton already hanging from the fort as Ann and Mary are tried - or have the ropes lowered down behind them before the verdict is read and they plead their bellies. Adds a little humor but also demonstrates the resolve the ruling party had to rid the island of pirates once and for all.

My apologies. I didn't know there was anything over there except people camping. I visited Bawdie Be's place -always a trip and saw the tents in the corner but figured it was just a place where pirates hung their hats at night. So I didn't bother heading into that area, wishing to respect the privacy of sleeping pirates. Our crewe will be on the other side more than likely, near where we're selling. So we'll particpate in the wider interpretation (1675-1725) - so we don't interfere with what you're doing over in the corner. I do think some signage needs to direct people over there since no one I had met with knew that was a place they could visit. -- Hurricane

We plan to have a large contingent but not if it's a specific period. We don't represent a specific year and we bridge between the two periods. So some of our crewe won't camp with a finite date. There are much largers stories to share and history to tell than a small snapshot of a single year. For example. I am a bit Port Royal centric, as most of you know. In 1720, Port Royal was nothing - a mere shadow of its former self. The far more interesting story is its role in commerce, trade and expansionism up to the point of the earthquake (1692). When we were doing our mini-museum presentation in our space, people were awestruck to learn what kind of town it was - that it rivaled Boston. And that 2,000 people died within a two minute period by three earthquakes, the intensity of which the modern world has never experienced. Our goal in the mini-museum project is to separate the fact from fiction - that the movies portray Port Royal in GAoP as a bustling seaport town as it was in the buccaneer age. It wasn't. Our interpretation covers what it was like to live in the town, the bars there, the people, the merchants, the buildings... none of which existed after the quake.... Tizzy's couldn't even be on Queen Street - it was sunk in the quake, leaving High as the main street there. My point isn't to dwell on Port Royal. But picking a specific year limits portrayals of other key figures in history - Captain Kidd can't be represented by anyone - or Morgan or Blackbeard. If Harry's main interest is to grow the event, limiting the year (and hence the interpretation) limits crowd interest more than a wider time when there can be greater latitude for education and such. It may be more fun for the geek pirates (don't take that wrong, but some of us are more interested in doing an inwardly turned pirate appearance) than for those that are there to educate and entertain the public. That, in its final analysis, is why this event is held - it's not a private pirate event, it's a public event, meant to raise funds for the fort. The wider time period I think, fits the fort's education goals more closely. And I don't really think we need to second guess Harry's decision regarding the time period -- it will bring more crowds and more re-enactors to bring the thing to life. If specific people want to represent specific years, so much the better. As I said, I will be doing Sir Henry Morgan in his prime - but I don't think it's wise to force everyone to adhere to a specific year, outside of Harry's broader dates which work so nicely. -- Hurricane

Harry's broader date range works far better for those who wish to participate. Not everyone does the Golden Age first off -- I will be there as Sir Henry Morgan and I'll hardly be dead. And I plan to present the history of Port Royal during its prime (pre-earthquake) instead of its lackuster GAoP era. The latitude in dates allows for a wide range of interpretations within the bigger theme. I think that's a good idea, Harry. I would hate to see this become more exclusionary rather than inclusive. The idea I believe is to expand the reenactment potential rather than limit it. And it the selected dates encompass the end of the buccaneer era as well as the GAoP, plus the tryal, which is a good draw. -- Hurricane

Thanks for sharing the photos. I snagged a couple of me on board the Wolf with the Hurricane during the Walk the Plank Championships. Amazing how we all managed to have so many different experiences at the fort. -- Hurricane

Ah, tis a grand period indeed, Harry. I can definitely see where you're going with this and as you know, my crewe is already in the planning stages to help out with entertainment and some historical presentations. Since the period is a good one for me, I'll probably be doing a bit of Sir Henry Morgan down there next year at the fort. It'll be great fun portraying a man who was still deep in the "trade" while being a part of the governments of the Jamaicas. Should be fun and can't wait! -- Hurricane

Some initial photos are at http://pyracy.com/forums/index.php?showtop...=0entry234316 We're not going to bother reposting them over here. We have several hundred photos our crewe shot and I'm awaiting the others to come in from other crewe members, so we should end up with about 400 total. Good times. -- Hurricane

I was in Key West pillaging and plundering my measly black guts out at Pirates in Paradise. -- Hurricane

Ahoy! You can see our online store at http://www.piratesofthecoast.com/shop - my wife does the designs for most of it. -- Hurricane

Great! Our company will be registering as a vendor and we're anxious to stake out our claim. -- Hurricane

You couldn't pay me to go to the Dominican Republic - it's on the absolute bottom of my list of places to go in the Caribbean - might as well book a vacation to Haiti. I would choose instead (if I had options): Puerto Rico (Paradisus is a great all-inclusive there) Jamaica Grand Cayman St. Thomas Martinique Of course, I would choose Moorea and Bora Bora hands down of any places I've been. If I had a cruise choice - it would be a Windjammer cruise, not a big cruise ship. If I did have to choose a big cruise ship, then stops in Jamaica and Cayman are good stops. -- Hurricane

Listening to our own band - getting ready for PiP this weekend. Ah, rehearsals suck! - Hurricane

Actually, there was just a program here in the states that showed the ark could have been built as stated. It was either on National Geographic or the History Channel. They put today's naval architects to work on the issue and they demonstrated using computer modeling that tha ark could have been constructed and would have floated just fine. Wish I could give you the link, but I have to get back to work. It was an interesting show though as I was a true doubter of the ability to build the ark with the tools of the time. -- Hurricane Or look at Noah's Ark. The Bible tells us that it was 450' in length, yet scientifically wood does not have the inherent strength required to support its own weight in such worked lengths. The largest wooden vessel ever built (outside of Bible stories) was only 350', a clear 100' shorter. It required iron reinforcement, was built using technology far in advance of anything known to the ancients, and still warped drastically under its own weight. Even assuming that Noah was able to build a wooden vessel of such megalithic proportions, it still could not possibly have housed two of every species (fourteen of "clean beasts", and fowl), let alone enough food to last them all 5 months (15 days).