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Meet Leeds's own real life Knight
Forget football and rugby, medieval jousting is the real man's sport of choice. As the new season gets under way, Grant Woodward gets the inside story from one of Leeds' finest.
"For 40 seconds it's the most exhilarating feeling in the world," says Andy Deane, talking about his less than ordinary day job.
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"You're sitting on half a ton of horse with 80 pounds of replica armour wrapped round you and at the other end is a bloke fired-up and holding a 14-pound lance.
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"When you come towards each other both horses really take off and it's like having a car crash at 50mph." He pauses for dramatic effect.
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"The only difference being of course that the bloke in the other car has a massive great lance aimed at your heart."
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While the biggest risk many of us face in our working lives is braving the lasagne from the office canteen, 44-year-old Andy tweaks the nose of danger on a regular basis.
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As the most experienced jouster at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, he's made a career out of trying to knock seven bells out of steel-clad opponents with the aid of a 12-foot wooden pole.
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"I love the excitement and the unpredictability of jousting," he says, when I ask why on earth he does it.
"It can be quite glamorous as well. At the upcoming Easter tournament there will be a dozen knights strutting their stuff and there's a lot of showmanship that goes on.
"It's a great spectator sport because it's a bit like two boxers squaring up in a ring trying to hit each other as hard as they can.
"You know that the only thing that's going to stop that from hurting is hitting the other guy in the right place at exactly the right second.
"You just have to accept that the chances are you're going to be hit at the same time." Another pause.
"Actually, come to think of it you're right. It is a silly sport, isn't it?"
Not surprisingly, it was an unusual career path that lured Andy into jousting.
As a lad he marvelled at the skills of Ben 'Son' Johnson, a rodeo cowboy and stuntman who starred alongside the likes of John Wayne and Alan Ladd in classic westerns such as Rio Grande and Shane.
He became an accomplished rider and found it came in handy when he pursued an acting career, landing him an audition with top Hollywood director Ron Howard for the lead role in 1988 fantasy adventure Willow.
The part eventually went to Top Gun star Val Kilmer, but Andy still ended up in the movie and passed on a few tips along the way, courtesy of his own tutelage under acclaimed stage combat teacher John Waller, whose archery skills adorned the Strongbow ads and hit film Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
""We were on set one day and the fight coordinator was teaching Val Kilmer some moves for the final scene where he fights a dragon," Andy recalls.
"He couldn't get them right so I showed him a couple of moves I knew and was chuffed when I saw them end up in the final version."
Andy joined the Medieval Society founded by John Waller and took part in re-enactments at castles and stately homes up and down the country.
It helped land Andy the gig when the museum opened in Leeds in 1996.
He was one of the first members of the live interpretation department established at the museum by John Waller, playing the part of various historical fighting men to tell visitors the stories behind the weapons on show.
But the bit that really gets his pulse racing is the jousting, which takes place every Saturday and Sunday between now and October at the Armouries' purpose-built tiltyard.
Jousters from the museum and around the world also compete for the Sword of Honour at the annual International Team Joust held in Leeds over the Easter weekend.
"I was one of the first to joust at the Armouries and 15 years later I still haven't found a proper job," Andy chuckles. "I'm a lucky so-and-so because I get to do the most wonderful things.
"To see the joy on the young kids' faces and the interest of the parents is fantastic. The truth is I love to show off so it suits me down to the ground."
Andy – who helped advise the makers of box office smash A Knight's Tale, starring the late Heath Ledger – says the secret to good jousting is timing, courage and a steady hand.
"You have to try to relax," he says. "If you twitch at one end of a 12-foot long lance then that's going to be magnified at the other end and you'll find yourself jousting thin air.
"The other key is to keep your eyes open at the moment of impact, it's the only way to be consistently good, although a lot of people have trouble doing it."
Injuries are not uncommon in jousting, but so far Andy has escaped relatively unscathed.
"I suffered a prolapsed disc when a horse I was training threw me off into a fence and I landed on a steel bolt, but I've seen a lot worse.
"I've seen guys have broken lances spear them through the thigh, impaling them on their saddle, and a few helmets have been knocked off by the force of the lance.
"But it's a contact sport so you've got to expect that. The only thing I can liken it to is lying in a metal box which is being hit by a huge lump hammer. Your entire body rattles."
But despite the heavy physical toll, Andy's definitely not giving up the day job in a hurry.
"At the end of a season, when I'm broken and worn out, I tell my wife that I'm calling it a day but I can't help myself.
"On my day I still think I'm untouchable. The only trouble is that at nearly 45 I don't have those days very often."
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Weather for Leeds
Thursday 24 May 2012
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