Many are the sports in Sudbury that enjoy a rich, steep tradition, with tales of the battles of yesteryear that are as old as the day is long.

When those stories are shared by the practitioners of Full Armour Combat – or Buhurt, as it’s known on the international stage, the setting for those battles is likely to be Medieval Europe.

This past Saturday, Le Dogue de Montreal were in town with some friends from Toronto, joining local Andrew Crosland in putting on a demonstration that assisted with the Rock Harley Davidson festivities in support of the Greater Sudbury Animal Shelter.

Participants typically enjoy a background in any one of the range of combat sports, though the likes of judo and wrestling are near the top in terms of most beneficial.

“After that, it’s all about learning how to use your sword, learning how to use your shield, learning how to use your axe,” noted Dominic Patry-Sauvé, voted best fighter by the assembled crowd in Sudbury.

Captain of a team of 20 or so members who will travel near and far to engage with other Buhurt warriors, Patry-Sauvé sees the actual combat as being something akin to the Game of Kings, albeit with pieces that are mobile and yielding weapons.

At least that was kind of the sound of things as we discussed team strategies.

"I will go for the biggest guy (a quick glance at this behemoth made that option fairly obvious) and two of my teammates will wrap around and hit them from the side," he explained. "We're going to do that and it's probably going to fail - but now the scuffle has started and it's a question of: what now?"

"This is like playing chess - but with the end goal of twisting someone into a pretzle," Patry-Sauvé added with a laugh.

For as much as Patry-Sauvé enjoyed a size advantage when it came to the bouts in Sudbury, what most impressed the crowd on hand as well as fellow competitors was his technical skills - which he suggested are very much a learned trade.

"It's usually a matter of capitalizing on their bad moves," he said. "For a newcomer, maybe all of their moves are bad. But ultimately, that's how you get better. Suddenly, some of your moves are good - and then, eventually, most of your moves are good."

"It takes about two years."

Anyone seeking more information on Full Armour Combat in Sudbury is welcome to reach out to Andrew Crosland at a.k.crosland@gmail.com.