Some random thoughts.........

[dusty27]

Now that the After the Battle: Fredericksburg event has concluded and I’ve had a couple of days to think about things, I wanted to write down some thoughts on the process and then the event itself.

To paraphrase Senator Lloyd Bentsen, to describe the event, I would say “I know Payne’s Farm and this event was not Payne’s Farm”. But it was never intended to be Payne’s Farm. Using the list of “What participants will get from this event” from the website, I think we met most, if not all, of the goals.
The site is an oasis in a desert of industrial and commercial development. We fully disclosed this on the webpage so it should have not surprised anyone that there were train tracks on one side, a warehouse/factory on one side, an airport on one side and a major county road on the other.
One suggestion was that the CS troops should have camped in a different location for the weekend. Given the boundaries of the property and our attempt at historical accuracy, I’m not sure where else we could have camped. During the real battle, the CS troops were concentrated in the woods on the other side of the train tracks, now NPS land and not accessible to us for the event. Another point made has been that the distances between the CS pickets and main camp were too short. I would agree, but felt that these distances should be the ones to suffer so that we could maintain a more accurate distance between the two picket lines.
The weather was the major factor in making this event sub par. The CS troops did an admirable job of staying dry on Friday night despite a minimum of cover from the elements. Luckily, temperatures didn’t fall too low, and while we got wet, we didn’t freeze. On Saturday, given that the CS side was already wet, with no real chance to get dry, more rain was forecasted (with a tornado warning in place at the time) and the temperatures were to dip down into the 30’s, it was decided that we would end the event early. The only planned activities that didn’t happen were continued picket lines and a Federal withdrawal later that night.
Several folks stayed on site on Saturday night, but most, if not all, stayed at least under a roof and out of any wind that might come up. In hindsight, I probably wouldn’t have called an end to the event, but given the facts and forecast at the time, I feel I made the right decision for the welfare of the participants and the welfare of the property.
Some behavior that I saw at the event that surprised me given the high quality of reenactor that attended:
1) Despite my directions to the contrary, several folks drove their vehicles into camp against posted instructions. The traffic needed to be kept to logistical vehicles per the land usage agreement, but some seemed to think the rule didn’t apply to them.
2) I had to reprimand one soldier after he defecated in the woods behind the campsites. His excuse was that he didn’t know where the toilets were, when asking anyone else would have gotten him directions. One, the woods were not CWPT property and we were not to be in there and two, it is an original battlefield, for goodness sake.
Rules are in place to protect people and property at reenactments and should be followed regardless of personal feelings about the rules.
I hope that each participant took some kind of positive away from the event and I do appreciate the folks that did attend doing their part to make this a successful event on many levels.

[mattifatti]

Re: Some random thoughts.........

Dusty,
I hope I am not overstepping my bounds since I am not a well seasoned hardcore (yet), but I was completely happy with the event. I knew what to expect due to all the posts and emails I received. I thank you and everybody else who set this event up, and for looking out for the best interest of all of us!! I almost find it embarassing that you needed to justify yourself and your decisions.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks again for a great event,