Pugil stick
Encyclopedia
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
personnel for training in rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
and bayonet
Bayonet
A bayonet is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit in, on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear...
combat since the early 1940s. The pugil stick is similar to a quarterstaff
Quarterstaff
A quarterstaff , also short staff or simply staff is a traditional European pole weapon and a technique of stick fighting, especially as in use in England during the Early Modern period....
or Japanese bo
Bo (weapon)
A bō or kon , is a long staff weapon used in Okinawa and feudal Japan. Bō are typically around long and are now used in Japanese martial arts, in particular bōjutsu...
, and may be marked at one end to indicate which portion represents the bayonet proper and which the butt of the rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
. Dr. Armond Seidler of the University of New Mexico
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico at Albuquerque is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. It is the state's flagship research institution...
invented the Pugil Stick training method during World War II. The training was initially adopted by the Marine Corps
Marine corps
A marine is a member of a force that specializes in expeditionary operations such as amphibious assault and occupation. The marines traditionally have strong links with the country's navy...
, but was later included in Army combat training as well. Dr. Seidler was given an award by the Marine Corps for his invention.
Pugil bouts are usually conducted with hard contact while wearing protective gear such as groin protectors, American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
helmets, hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
gloves, and chest protectors or shin guards, such as worn by baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
catchers. Some pugil sticks may be built with integrated hand guards, because of the potential for injury. Military procedures for pugil bouts are often detailed, with United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
prohibiting pugil training by anyone who has recently suffered concussion of the brain
Concussion of the brain
Concussion, from the Latin concutere or the Latin concussus , is the most common type of traumatic brain injury...
, lest they suffer traumatic brain injury
Traumatic brain injury
Traumatic brain injury , also known as intracranial injury, occurs when an external force traumatically injures the brain. TBI can be classified based on severity, mechanism , or other features...
.
Some organizations, such as the Society for Creative Anachronism
Society for Creative Anachronism
The Society for Creative Anachronism is an international living history group with the aim of studying and recreating mainly Medieval European cultures and their histories before the 17th century...
, use similar weapons for sport purposes, but it is generally discouraged as too dangerous. Practitioners of modern Eskrima
Eskrima
Eskrima is the umbrella term for the traditional martial arts of the Philippines, which emphasize weapon-based fighting with sticks, knives and other bladed weapons, and various improvised weapons...
spar with full contact, using lighter but unpadded sticks and only gloves and a fencing mask. Unarmed techniques (punches, kicks etc.) are also a part of the technique, as is grappling. This sort of fighting is more realistic than pugil stick training, but is considered too dangerous and technically demanding for the average soldier or Marine. Pugil training gives a soldier the adrenaline rush of combat without the potential for serious injury, and benefits can be had even with the minimal amount of training they receive.
The sparring weapon was popularized in the United States by the American Gladiators
American Gladiators
American Gladiators is an American competition television program that aired in syndication from September 1989 to May 1996. The series matched a cast of amateur athletes against each other, as well as against the show's own gladiators, in contests of strength and agility.The concept was created by...
, a physical game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
which ran from 1989 to 1996, and again in the 2008 revival
American Gladiators (2008 TV series)
American Gladiators is an American competition TV show that aired on NBC and Citytv in Canada. Hosted by Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali, the show matches amateur athletes against each other and the show's own "gladiators" in contests of strength, agility, and endurance...
. In the popular "Joust" contest, competitors would try to knock each other off pedestals using pugil sticks.
The word "pugil stick" is a neologism from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
noun pugnus (fist), the source for other English words such as "pugilist" (boxer) and "pugnacious" (eager to fight).
External links
"Professor Tells the Marines". Popular SciencePopular Science
Popular Science is an American monthly magazine founded in 1872 carrying articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. Popular Science has won over 58 awards, including the ASME awards for its journalistic excellence in both 2003 and 2004...
- p.77, July 1954, Vol. 165, No. 1. Retrieved 31 January 2011