The American Jousting Alliance now offers a complete Jousting Training program. This course is open to riders of all ages and skill levels - men, women and youths!
Come train with us at our headquarters in beautiful Lockwood Valley, California. Nestled right in the middle of streams, majestic mountains and thousands of acres of the Los Padres National Forest, the ranch provides the perfect atmosphere in which to learn this exciting sport. Miles of hiking trails, several camping sites, areas for off-road vehicle recreation, unique shopping and even a 9 hole golf course are nearby which offer additional opportunities for even more adventurous fun or a little time to relax.
James Zoppe, founder and director of the Alliance, has been training people and horses for more than 30 years. He has been jousting and training people to joust for more than 25 years. He has worked with actors from Universal Studios and Circus of the Stars. He also trained the percherons used in the film The Fisher King, among others, as well as presented hundreds of live performances.
Training is customized and tailored to fit the goals of every student, however here is a general idea of what we teach:
- Basic riding skills, if neccesary
- The importance of understanding the horse and maintaining a good relationship through proper knowledge of when to praise and when to correct
- Controlling your horse while handling a ring lance, tournament lance and after a time, both lance and sheild
- How to accurately spear rings with a lance at a trot and gallop
- How to accurately and safely throw a spear at a trot and gallop
- How to accurately and effectively hit a sheild quintain with a tournament lance
- Medieval swordfighting, both on foot and on horseback, including various maneuvers that the horse can do to give a sword battle both excitement and diversity
- Running various jousting courses with weapons such as a sword, axe or mace as well as a lance and sheild
- Jousting! First courses will be run without weapons, then build towards a lance or sheild then both
- Hits on a live target with only the lance, then taking hits with only the sheild, then both simultaneously
- Knowing when to go for the hit and when to "pull your punch"
- Choreographed jousting - what makes hits look dramatic, which areas to hit on the sheild and how to safely take a fall
- If and when a student is ready, engaging in a full contact jousting match with another Knight
- Last but not least, and definitely most important, each student learns how to earn and keep their war horse's trust and respect
One of the most important concepts in our training, whether for skill-at-arms or jousting, is to learn what to do in a situation should things not go according to plan, or should something unexpected happen. The safety and well-being of both the horse and rider are our priority. The thrill of the sport and fun you'll have learning it come naturally.
We have a fine group of horses at the ranch. Each has a distinct personality which we match to riders depending on experience and skill level. On occasion, we also offer trained jousting horses for sale. We work with horses of many different breeds and have found that the heavier draft breeds and draft crosses make the best jousting mounts. Their strength and size provide a means to more easily withstrand the challenges presented by the hard, solid impact of lance on sheild. Lighter breeds and crosses prove better suited for maneuverability and speed in skill-at-arms games (there is always an exception to every rule and certain horses may excell where we don't expect them to).
Students are always welcome to bring and ride their own horse! We have plenty of room to accomodate a trailer during your lesson, however for longer term sessions boarding is available at an additional fee for your convenience.
Please contact the Alliance at redknight@jameszoppe.com or call (661) 245-4000 for training times and to reserve your space.
Training Rates
Lessons
Horses
Individual Lessons
Approx. 1 1/4 to 2 hours in length
$50Jousting Training
Daily (per horse)
Weekly (per horse)
Monthly (per horse)
$50
$200
$500Jousting and Skill-At-Arms
Morning and afternoon lesson
Lunch break, approx. 3 1/2 to 4 hours
Daily Training for Individual
Full 12 Day Course
$100
$1,200Boarding
Only for horses in training.
Daily (per horse)
Weekly (per horse)
Monthly (per horse)
$10
$60
$200PLEASE NOTE OUR PAYMENT POLICY: A 25% deposit is required to book 4 or more consecutive days of training. All deposits and payments must be made with cash or a money order made out to The American Jousting Alliance. Personal checks or credit cards will not be accepted.
Members of the Alliance may apply a 10% discount.
The American Jousting Alliance will furnish all equipment and weaponry necessary to train, however, it is advisable to bring your own helm.
Camping and Lodging Information
Our training headquarters is located in Lockwood Valley, about 15 minutes west of Frazier Park, California, just off the Interstate 5 between Los Angeles and Bakersfield.
Lodging
Koko's Motel - 10 miles
3225 Mt. Pinos Way
Frazier Park, CA 93225
(661) 245-3788
Best Rest Inn - 14 miles
51541 Peace Valley Rd.
Lebec,CA 93243
(800) 766-9009
bestrestinns.comPine Mtn Rentals - 25 miles
(661) 242-2571
pinemountainrentals.net
mountainproperties.org
Ramada Limited
9000 Countryside Ct.
Lebec, CA 93243
(661) 248-1530
ramadacalifornia.com
hoteltravelcheck.comBest Western Liberty Inn
5521 Dennis McCarthy Dr.
Lebec,CA 93243
(800) 237-8750 / (661) 858-7777
tripadvisor.com (click "Lebec")Camping:
There are many campgrounds in the Los Padres National Forest, some just minutes away from our training site. For more information on camping contact the U.S. Forest Service:
Chuchupate Ranger Station
(661) 245-3731
fs.fed.us