Today was a unique day at Romper Room. It was YHC’s first Q at this fine location, and the decision was made to the fateful PAX back in time to the middle ages, with all the pomp, ceremony, and brutality therein. The call was made for each family to bring as many pool noodles as they could muster, to serve as spears, lances, and swords in our feats of valor. To help the mood, YHC donned his chainmail and gauntlets, and we arrived at that field we know so well. Things didn’t exactly go as planned. The faithful jambox full of medieval tunes lay forgotten at home. But Castaway backed his car up to the field, and filled the field with fine courtly music from his car speakers. There were also multiple worried inquiries from those who had reserved the field for a soccer game at 9, but the natural diplomat Knope assured them that we’d be off in plenty of time. With those setbacks taken care of, we began.
WARM UP: 12x SSH IC
12x Quintains IC
12x Good Morrows
12x Holy Roman Imperial Walkers The “Quintain” was a jousting training device that swung a sack if you hit the shield. Holding our arms out, we swung them from side to side.
THE THANG:
Our first activity was the hunt. Each PAX played the part of a wild boar, whose mode of travel was the boar crawl (like a bear crawl, only faster and more frightened). The 2.0’s played the part of the fine lords and ladies of the hunt, bunny hopping to simulate the trotting of their noble steeds. The weapon of choice was the spear, used to skewer the wild boars, who had to respond with 3 “boarpees” (like a burpee, but with arms forward like tusks).
After the hunt came the tournament, with the first event being the melee. PAX and 2.0s alike were armed with swords, and the penalty for being hit was to fall to the ground and do 5 LBCs. All were warned to maintain strict social distance, but the long reach of the dreadful swords still made for plenty of dreadful carnage. Those without weapons cheered from the sidelines (SSH, air thrusters, seal claps, overhead claps). At one point, YHC was assailed by the dreadful and bold Sir Cosmo. Thankfully, the dastardly knave Optimus came to the aid of his father, and shamelessly stabbed him in the back. Fatherly success or chivalric failure? You decide.
The second part of the tournament continued with the joust. The PAX played the part of fine noble steeds, with the 2.0s donning lances as gallant knights. The knights charged the lists again and again, and though none were unhorsed, YHC saw at least one delanced.
Finally, we were admonished by the Archbishop of Canterbury to abstain from these vain temporal pursuits and to take part in the pilgrimage. The more devoted among us traveled with protestations (traveling burpees), the slightly less devoted by kneeling (deep lunge walks), and the weak or undevout by simply walking.
MARY: No medieval lord or lady of piety could ABStain from ABSolute devotion to Mary. We presented our lady with pure heels, going down to our very core. Heels to Heaven x35 IC
Little Baby Jesus Crunches (LBJC) x33 IC
COT: We had a portentous sign this morning, as no less than three 2.0s had recently celebrated or were preparing to celebrate their ninth birthday. 9 birthday burpees were done in their honor.
Moleskin: YHC had a fantastic time, and judging from the pictures, so did everyone else. It was good to start games and let them play out for a while, without immediately moving to the next thing. I think the 2.0s really needed to have some all out wild fun in a big group, after all the heaviness and lockdown of this year. Truth be told, maybe we all did.
