Please join us this Thursday, October 11, for a Commons meeting and basic brewing solar!
This is our usual quarterly commons; topics will include the Cloisters demo post-mortem, site and Commons locations, and a possible holiday revel. If you have anything else you’d like to put on the agenda, please reach out to your humble correspondent.
Following Commons, please stay for a basic brewing class taught by Lord Þórfinnr Hróðgeirsson! Mead is the drink of song and poetry, from Beowulf to Queen Elizabeth. We’ll discuss what we know about historical mead production, how it relates to modern best practice, and demonstrate making a gallon batch.
Different venue! The Commons and the Solar will be hosted at Þórfinnr‘s: 165 W. 66th St., Apt. 4E.
The best way to reach the festival is to take the “A” train to the 190th St. station, then follow the crowds up the elevators and into the park. (This is the way many of the other 50,000 attendees will arrive, so the elevator up from the subway to the park can be fairly crowded, but it only takes a few minutes.)
When you reach the park, walk through the main gate and continue down the road for another minute until you see an open field on your left; our encampment is in a cluster of tents on the top of that little hill.
Alternately, you can reach us via a less-trafficked walkway by entering the park just to the left of the main gate, and then taking the first right, as shown in the map below.
Park Entrances And Paths
The M4 Bus
You can take the Cloisters-bound M4 bus north to its last stop at the entrance to the park. (Accessibility note: unlike the subway, this route does not involve any stairs.)
Intercity Transit
For those coming from outside the city via Amtrak, NJ Transit, or regional bus, you can transfer to the New York City Subway’s “A” train at Penn Station or the Port Authority bus terminal; from MetroNorth or LIRR take the “S” Shuttle from Grand Central to Times Square to connect to the A train.
Carpool
If you know several people who are coming in separate vehicles, it may be worth the effort to meet up somewhere just outside the city where parking is easy and then car-pool in from there to reduce the parking hassle.
Driving Directions
The event organizers discourage driving to the site because traffic and parking will be challenging, but if you’re bringing a significant amount of gear, or if you have limited mobility and can not climb the multiple flights of stairs from the subway station, read on for details about getting to the site by car.
The place within the park where we will be set up is just south of the “New Leaf” restaurant at 1 Margaret Corbin Drive.
If you’re traveling to the site by car, you may find police barricades directing traffic away from the site, but you can tell them that you’re a performer working at the festival and they should allow you through.
The map attached below highlights some areas to give you a sense of where we’ll be within the overall site area, and where the parking and transit options are.
Region of Cloisters Demo
Loading And Unloading
If you want to drive into the park to drop off gear, you must arrive before 9:30, as all vehicles must be cleared from the park by 10:00.
There is ALWAYS a traffic jam of entering vehicles. We are conveniently located just inside the south entrance, which eases our loading. Please take care not to block the roadway for others who are attempting to drive further into the park.
Alternately you can stop your car outside the park, unload on the sidewalk and have passengers walk your gear to the site while the driver stays with the car.
If you are delayed in transit, and arrive after 10:00, you will not be able to drive your car into the park. Instead, find parking and haul your stuff in manually. If you need unloading assistance, come to our demo location and ask for help.
Cars will be allowed back on site to load gear once the crowd clears, around 6:30 or 7:00. We must wait for the public to walk out before we start driving in. The festival ends at 6:00. It takes time for 60,000 people to exit the very large park.
Parking Passes
For a limited number of participants who contact us in advance, we might be able to arrange a pass for parking near the site. If you’re interested in a parking pass, contact the event steward ASAP: Mathghamhain Ua Ruadháin, at 231060@members.eastkingdom.org or via phone/SMS to 917-502-7795, and provide your full name, a description of your car, and your license plate number.
You do NOT need a parking pass to drive your vehicle on & off site at the beginning and end of the day. The parking pass also does not guarantee you a spot. It simply allows you to look for parking in the cordoned-off parking area nearby. Folks with parking passes should arrive early to increase your chances of finding parking in this area.
Even with a parking pass, be prepared for delays getting on and off site, because it can take a long time to get vehicles into the parking area, you may have to park some distance away from our field, and when the event is over and you’re ready to leave you will find yourself in the middle of a miniature traffic jam that takes a while to clear.
Public Parking
If you don’t have a parking pass, or if the cordoned-off parking-pass area is full when you arrive, you may need to drive several blocks away to find free street parking, or use a paid parking lot. Street parking nearby fills up quickly, but if you are early you may be able to find something.
Below is a map of nearby parking garages. Garage #3 is not as useful as it appears in this aerial view, because to get into the park from there you need to walk up a very steep hill (almost a cliff); the other two are an easier walk.
Parking garages near Fort Tryon Park
If you’re not carrying a lot of gear and you don’t want to deal with this parking hassle, you might want to stop at some distance from the event and look for on-street parking then take a taxi the rest of the way, or find parking near a station of the “A” train and take the subway for a few minutes to reach the site.
This Sunday, September 30th, from 11:30 to 6:00, the New York City chapter of the S.C.A. will once again be participating in The Medieval Festival at the Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park, the largest event of its kind in our area.
The best way to reach the festival is to take the “A” train to the 190th St. station, then follow the crowds up the elevators and into the park. Walk through the gate and continue down the road for another minute until you see an open field on your left; our encampment is in a cluster of tents on the top of that little hill.
Here’s a summary of some of what we’ll be exhibiting to the public:
The Society of Creative Anachronism will host a medieval village on the south lawn re-creating many aspects of life from the end of classical antiquity through the renaissance.
Learn how you can join our society, master these skills, and immerse yourself in living history, so you can experience “the middle ages as they ought to have been.”
Fine Arts & Practical Crafts:
Visit throughout the day for displays of fine arts and practical crafts, including calligraphy and illumination, spinning and embroidery, glass and metalwork, weapons and armor.
Performance & Pageantry:
Get an up-close look at the music and dance, clothing and ceremony of the middle ages.
• 1:00 Musical Performances And Medieval Sing-Along
• 2:00 Historical World Fashion Show
• 3:00 Medieval and Renaissance Dance
• 4:00 Musical Performances
• 5:00 Crown Provincial Court
Fighting Arena:
Armored fighters protected by steel and leather fight brutal battles with heavy weapons, while fencers engage in rapier duels that are more elegant, but just as deadly.
Youth Activities:
Discover the kinds of games kids would have played five hundred or a thousand years ago. Watch our trained child warriors fight to the (pretend) death, or let your own youngsters try some target practice with our foam-padded swords and spears.
Please join us Thursday, September 13, for a Commons meeting and post-Pennsic classes solar.
The Commons will chiefly cover the Cloisters demo on Sep. 30. If you have anything specific you’d like to put on the agenda, please reach out to your humble correspondent.
Following Commons, we’ll talk about things we learned & saw at Pennsic. Bring any handouts or details you’d like to share!
We will be at the usual location, 255 W. 105th St., #21. Commons will begin at 7pm, and the schola will follow.
Please join us Thursday, July 12, for a Commons meeting and a pre-Pennsic projects solar.
Agenda items for the Commons include requests for deputy officer volunteers; early discussion of the Cloisters demo; and reports on recent events. If you have anything specific you’d like to put on the agenda, please reach out to your humble correspondent.
Following Commons, bring your Pennsic projects that need help or encouragement! And if you don’t have anything to work on (lucky you…), help paint the Whyt Whey arms on our new sheet wall panel for EK Royal.
We will be at the usual location, 255 W. 105th St., #21. Commons will begin at 7pm, and the schola will follow.
Please join us Thursday, May 10th, at the usual time (7:30pm) and place, 255 W. 105th St, #21 for a class on Project Management for A&S Projects (as taught by your humble correspondent).
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the size of your to-do pile? Or stopped working on something halfway through, picked it up six months later, and had no idea where you left off or why? Or have to suddenly coordinate all the pieces of regalia for a peerage? Come learn about some simple, straightforward, and free techniques to help keep your projects organized and moving forward.
