Prior military service vs. reenacting style

[tompritchett]

Over the years I think that I may have noticed a general trend in reenacting styles versus prior military background. However, being a scientist, I won't jump to conclusions without actually acquiring more definitive data to test my hypothesis against. Thus the below poll (besides I wanted to test the polling system).

Basically I wish to poll the readers about their primary reenacting style (mainstream versus campaigning) versus their prior military background. If you do both styles please pick the one that you do most often. Also, if you were a reenactor first who then later joined the military, please consider yourself a non-veteran unless your military service as caused you to change your primary style of reenacting. I am not discounting your service to the country but rather am focussing exclusively on how your service to your country has affected your choice of reenacting styles.

The options will be:

Combat Veteran - Primarily mainstream
Non-Combat Veteran - Primarily mainstream
No military service - Primarily mainstream
Combat Veteran - Primarily campaigner
Non-Combat Veteran - Primarily campaigner
No military service - Primarily campaigner

At the end of the polling, I will summarize the results and let you know whether or not my initial hypothesis was correct or not.

P.S. I know that posting only here may bias my results as this primarlly a Mainstream board so could a couple of the campaigners post a link to this poll over on the AC forum. Thanks.

[Henry_Rifle]

Tom,

Asking if someone is mainstream or campaigner is like asking them whether they drive to work or take their lunch.

[tompritchett]

Over on the Camp Chase forum there is an interesting discussion just about what these labels do indeed mean especially in terms of events. However, it would be safe to summarize that in terms of events the labels are very subjective and relate to each individual's perceptions of the meaning. Therefore, for the poll I really do not care how others may perceive one's reenacting style but rather how the individual, himself or herself, personally perceives hsi or her primary style to be.

[FWL]

Tom I have always found it very interesting how many veterans I meet in the hobby. I'm not a veteran, never served. But the stories I have heard around the camps fires (at non-FP events) are chilling especially from the Vietnam Vets.

I asked a couple of Vietnam combat vets why they liked CW reenacting so much. The comment was automatic it provides "some" of the camaraderie they had in their "real units" without the danger.

[indguard]

Personally, I don't think there is much connection to anything or anything to reveal by how many actual veterans (combat or no) are in the hobby.

However, I think I have noticed that fewer real veterans go "hardkewel" than go Mainstream. But, that too might just be an illusion that only I have experienced.

[reb64]

sounds about right. I remember the ealry service days were, just couldn't wait to try on all the new issued gear and wear the uniforms around everywhere, gung ho. After twenty years, you chill out a bit. Reenacting is the same then, the vets are more relaxed, focused on the main tasks, non vets are more harcore not having their bones worn down a bit, focused on the details.

[tompritchett]

However, I think I have noticed that fewer real veterans go "hardkewel" than go Mainstream. But, that too might just be an illusion that only I have experienced.

That was an apparent trend that I had noticed among the various reenactors I have met and have interacted through emails and forums and currently is seeming to emerge from the preliminary poll results. It will be interesting in seeing how the final numbers play out.

[FWL]

That was an apparent trend that I had noticed among the various reenactors I have met and have interacted through emails and forums and currently is seeming to emerge from the preliminary poll results. It will be interesting in seeing how the final numbers play out.

Tom in all fairness to test your thesis, you need to post this same poll on AC forum. Lets face it both forums have different "sample populations". This forum tends towards more mainstream reenactors than the AC forum. If you did it in both places and adjusted the results by the total number of respondents I think that would give a clearer picture.

Since I have generally stopped going to mainstream events I can't say much about them. However at the campaigner/cross over events I have gone to I have noticed allot of vets in the units. In fact this was a topic of discussion at Shenandoah 62 around company B's camp fire. I would say out of the 6 or so of us only 2 had not served.

[AZReenactor]

I wonder if more mainstream reenactors could also mean more mainstream veterans. Of course the other side would also be true. More mainstream reenactors also means more mainstream non-veterans. (Especially if one counts all the wimens and childrens in the military camps.)

In the end all the interpretations will be based on the views of the interpreter, not really on the statistics themselves, right? Why not just put the conjecture out in the open with out the facade of a survey?

[tompritchett]

Tom in all fairness to test your thesis, you need to post this same poll on AC forum. Lets face it both forums have different "sample populations". This forum tends towards more mainstream reenactors than the AC forum. If you did it in both places and adjusted the results by the total number of respondents I think that would give a clearer picture.

Done. For those who do monitor both forums, I ask that you only vote in one poll and not the other. Thanks.