Trial by Fire- Arts, Food and Fighting!
(2026-09-25 - 2026-09-27 - Site opens at 5pm & Closes at 12pm)
Bright Hills
Event Info
Name:
Trial by Fire- Arts, Food and Fighting!
Website:
No Website on File
Date(s):
2026-09-25 @5pm to 2026-09-27 @ 12pm
Group:
Bright Hills
Virtual?:
No
Site Info
Site Name:
Baltimore Bowmen
Address:
10301 Harford Rd , Glen Arm, MD, 21057
Directions:
From the north and west: From I-695 E, take Exit 31A for MD 147/Harford Road towards Parkville. Turn left at the light at end of ramp onto Harford Road N. Continue on Harford Road approximately 2 miles to Graham Memorial Park entrance on right. Go past the equestrian center and through yellow
gate, downhill to parking.
From the south and east: Via I-695 N, take Exit 31B for MD 147/Harford Road towards Carney. Turn right at end of the ramp to Harford Rd N. Continue on Harford Road approximately 2 miles to Graham Memorial Park entrance on right. Go past equestrian center and through yellow gate downhill to parking.
From the south and east: Via I-695 N, take Exit 31B for MD 147/Harford Road towards Carney. Turn right at end of the ramp to Harford Rd N. Continue on Harford Road approximately 2 miles to Graham Memorial Park entrance on right. Go past equestrian center and through yellow gate downhill to parking.
Please note, the entrance to the Bowmen is obscured until you are right on it, and you will need to slow down to make the right-hand turn into the driveway. The driveway is gravel, filled with potholes and shared with the equestrian center, so please observe the 10 MPH speed limit.
Restrictions:
Site restrictions: no alcohol is permitted on the archery range.
Pets are permitted but must be leashed and waste picked up.
No smoking or vaping in public areas.
Accessibility:
Site is primitive, unpaved and hilly.
Handicap accessible parking and porta-potties.
There are no charging stations available.
Please be mindful of Large Rock located near the Shed, close to Reserved BHB/B
Event Steward
SCA Name:
Email:
Description:
Trial by Fire this year will be the traditional cooking competitions (details below in A&S section) along with plenty of room for fighting (armored and rapier) and archery and throwing weapons!! Camp all weekend for free!
Cost Info
| Day-Trip | Feast | Camping | |
| Adult, Member Discount Event Registration | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Adult, Event Registration | 30 | 0 | 0 |
| Youth (5 - 17) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Child (0-4) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Reservationist Name:
Clara von Wonsiedel
Reservationist Email:
Checks Payable To:
Barony of Bright Hills, SCA-MD, Inc.
Cost Notes:
Pre-registration - cut off is Postmark date of September 11, 2026 Payable to Barony of Bright Hills, SCA-MD, Inc. with note for Trial by Fire with number of attendees
Mailing information - Michelle England, 219 Grindall Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
Family cap of $50 for family with minor children and the member discount (2 adults and 2 children)
EVENT CANCELATION/REFUND:
If someone else trolls you in and you don't attend (show up), there will be no refund.
No refunds shall be issued until the event books have been closed.
All site fee refunds shall be paid by check from the group checking account.
Refunds must be requested in writing to the Baronial Exchequer (Reservationist) within 5 business days after the event closes.
General Activities
Martial Activities:
FIGHTING! ARCHERY! FENCING! THROWING WEAPONS!
Master Fergus of Hanna will be doing Throwing Weapons Range
Lady Darby will be holding a small archer challenge
A&S:
Trial by Fire Cooking Competition:
The Challenge: To create a period dish under the conditions found at the PENNSIC WAR.
The Categories:
1) Best Main Dish (Includes fish and shellfish)
2) Best Vegetable
3) Best Grain (Includes Bread)
4) Best Dessert
5) Grand Champion – This prize is to be awarded at the Judges’ discretion.
The Rules:
1) The recipe must either be:
a) Published between 650 and 1650 AD. (For the empirically inclined Apicius will be accepted.)
b) Have all ingredients and cooking methods documented in period. *
2) Recipes must be brought to the competition. Please bring at least three copies.
Do not label these with your name as judging is blind.
3) Competitors must bring all ingredients to site and prepare the dish in situ. An ingredient requiring
more than four hours preparation is acceptable ONLY if it is an ingredient and not the entire
dish. **
4) Dishes must be prepared under conditions as found at PENNSIC. No electric appliances.
Acceptable examples: Grill, Smoker, Dutch oven, battery-operated tools, or Spit over an open fire
(assuming site permits ground fires). If you have questions, please ask.
5) You must bring all cookers, pots, pans, utensils, dishes, etc. necessary to prepare your dish.
(NOTE: Please mark all your utensils, dishes, etc., so that the orphans left behind can be
reunited with their loved ones.)
6) Dish must be sufficient to serve 8 to 10 healthy adults. (No penalty for making more.)
7) Each competitor may enter only one dish per category but may enter as many categories as
desired.
8) All competitors must register by 3:00 pm on the day of the competition with the Registrar.
9) The site will open at 9:00 a.m. for set up and registration.
10) Preparation and cooking will begin at 12:00 noon.
11) Dishes must be completed and ready to serve at 4:00 p.m.
The Judging:
Judges will be chosen from impartial Notables present. Judging will be blind and will use these criteria.
1) Presence of and completeness of Documentation. ***
(Again, do not place your name on your documentation)
2) Taste
3) Texture
4) Presentation
5) Bonus points based on the judges’ experience in the field of period cooking. For example: if a
dish has been religiously copied from a period source despite complexity or cost or if a dish
displays notable creativity within a recipe, etc.
Prizes will be awarded after the completion of the judging.
Please contact the Bright Hill's Cooks Guild if you have questions or need an ingredient verified. Please
put “TRIAL by FIRE” in the subject heading.
Mistress Jeanne Tenneur de Bec- beckyritterhouse@yahoo.com
* “Food" by Waverly Root will be used as the final arbiter for periodicity. There will be a copy
on site.
** No advance preparation is permitted, UNLESS the recipe clearly states that the step requires
more than four hours. Documentation is required.
*** Minimal documentation should include***
(1) The original recipe
(2) Your redaction
(3) Tell us why you chose this recipe, a bit about the ingredients, what did you change and why
and is there anything you would do differently?
Please do not label either the documentation or the recipes with your name to
allow for blind judging.
Trial By Fire A&S:
- Static Competition, “Found in Flames"
- Shaped by heat and marked by flame, some Arts are inexorably tied to the fire. In this competition we challenge you to display something that requires fire or heat to make and explain to us the process in which the high temperatures were applied. This competition will be judged using the standard Atlantian judging form.
- Active Competition, "Forged in Fire”
- Do you yearn to test your mettle in a rapid fire competition meant to test your ingenuity alongside your skill? Forged in Fire is 3 two hour rounds of crafting on-site, each with their own secret ingredient that you must incorporate! The first round is Divers Arts, allowing the entry of any art you are capable of. The second round is Fiber Arts, requiring your entry to at least mostly count as a fiber art. The third and final round is Bardic Arts, which will give you two hours to come up with an original piece to submit for judging. Judging? How does that work!?! It's Baronial judging with the only documentation required being the ability to answer questions that the Baronage asks you about your project. Each round is scored and the best total score wins!
Feast:
none
Merchants:
Free merchant space with paid admission. Please contact Event Steward for merchant space reservation.
Other:
Tbd