Let's discuss: Reenacting!

[Mr T]

Night Fever? More like Knight Fever!

Hiyooooooooooooo!

[Olafson]

That is because you got something to do.
On a normal day at home you are spending large ammounts of time with doing nothing. You are just sitting there, you are not moving at all. That makes you tired really quickly.

Don't ask me why, thats what I think is causing that "problem" I have the same thing. When I have something to do I usually end up sleeping very few hours.

[Millander]

I get what your saying. On a different note but the same topic I notice the same is for eating and hunger. When at home or school I normally feel the need to eat something once every three hours. At my last event I ate barley anything for two days and it didn't bother me at all. Its really how active you are and engaged. If your engaged in what your doing you wont feel as tired or hungy or many other feelings.

 I myself go to bed as late as there are other people up.

[joer5835]

About the eating thing, yeah I have that as well.

[Captain America]

First Soviet day I lasted off a handful of staleish bread and my kindly issued 100g vodka ration in the evening, second day the Starshina realised I hadn't really brought any rations and dug a cheeky tin of corned beef out of his tent for me. Never do 1941 rations folks!

[Ililsa]

I don't eat much, but I definitely still snack during events. We lay out stuff like cheese, bread, meat and some fruit out around lunchtime, so once everyone's had a bit, there's always plenty of cheese, meat and apples to snack on.

Sometime's there's even bread left, which means extra bread and cheese.

Dinner is usually stew of some kind, but only with ingredients we'd have had available in northern europe. No taters, precious.

[joer5835]

I'm a very picky eater though, always have been and always will be. During reenactments however I tend to make sacrificies, I adopted a policy that I'll eat anything during events, for the sake that it wouldn't be polite to refuse towards our cook.

[Ililsa]

Same here. Last event I had a stew with beef and lamb in, even though I barely eat beef unless it's processed to mulch and I never eat lamb.

[joer5835]

Last week at Bathmen I had some kind of stew with potatoes, beef, carrots, onions and mushrooms. I only ate half a plate, I detest mushrooms but this guy's wife had been cooking the thing all afternoon and I didn't want to be seen as an ungrateful jerk.

[Devmc99]

Just came back from the event, I had a great time. Saw Evil Irish there too, he is a pretty cool guy. Hopefully I get to go to a battle around mid July.

[DeoVindice61]

Most excellent to hear Mr Devmc99. Most excellent.  I too just returned from a ACW event. Pretty damn rough event, it rained from 8pm to 4 am. To those guys who only sleep under shelter half and improvised gum blanket side mean kiss your leg room and sleep goodbye.  Thankfully this time my rifle escaped the rain. Last time it got soaking wet and rust took over within hours. :c 

[Captain America]

Trick I learnt from when it pissed it down so hard it went through the shelter half it to abandon personal dryness and concentrate on warmth, you can sleep so long as you're warm.

[Nipplestockings]

Is hypothermia in the winter and heat exhaustion in the summer a valid concern for reenactors? Are the supplies and rations you guys are issued ever nudged a little bit to account for person safety and well-being? I can totally see food being ignored in interest of realism, but not anything more than that.

[Duuring]

Is hypothermia in the winter and heat exhaustion in the summer a valid concern for reenactors?

Yes. It happens. Especially heat exhaustion because they are generally not that many events in the winter. And when there are, organizers take precautions.

Every hot event, you have a few people falling out, getting badly sunburned or simply fainting because of the heath, and once in the while someone needs a hospital visit.

[Nipplestockings]

By "precautions" I assume you mean medical tents and supplies on hand. Is there anything provided on the field for reenactors to have access to? Extra water that might be historically inaccurate? Some farby energy food that could keep people going for longer than they might be able to otherwise? Or is that considered unacceptable, with realism in mind?