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Hello from La Mancha (Read 2574 times)
Pio
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¡A cantazos!

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Hello from La Mancha
Jun 23rd, 2007 at 2:05pm
 
Hello, everybody. My problem is not slinging, but writing in english, but I'll try to communicate myself.
Regards from Don Qixote's land.
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Desciñéronse las hondas y comenzaron a saludarle los oídos con piedras como el puño. (Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, I, cap. 18)
 
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Dale
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #1 - Jun 23rd, 2007 at 8:36pm
 
¡Hola! ¡Recepción a Slinging.org! Su inglés es mejor que mi español (solamente Babelfish ayuda a alguno).  Do not worry about your English, it will improve as you spend time here.

We have already at least three members from España; it is good to have another.  El ingenioso hidalgo don Quixote de la Mancha was a favorite book of my father's (though he read it in English).

I am looking forward to hearing what you know of the sling.
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No, I don't live in a glass house.&&&&"If builders built buildings the way programmers write programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization."&&&&Context matters!  "Nothing but net" is a BAD thing in tennis...
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¡A cantazos!

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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #2 - Jun 24th, 2007 at 5:06am
 
Thanks, Dale. It’s great to know that we, Spanish, are joining slinging.org. I’ve been reading articles and posts in the forum from several months, and only now I’ve registered myself, an I want to encourage the spanish slinging community to do the same, so: ánimo, chicos, que aunque sea en inglés vale la pena.
We have a very long tradition in our art. Not only the Balearic one, all over the country (mostly in the southern half) sheperds still use slings nowadays. Perhaps 20 years ago one of them taught me to shoot, using underhand style. My first shoot almost was the last on. The stone came to the clouds and fell down closely together of my head. I still use the underhand style and, thanks God, I’m still alive.
If I manage to learn to use well the possibilities of the forum, I will try to raise photos of my favorite slings.
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Desciñéronse las hondas y comenzaron a saludarle los oídos con piedras como el puño. (Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, I, cap. 18)
 
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funda_iucunda
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #3 - Jun 24th, 2007 at 6:46am
 
Hi Pio,

welcome to slinging.org! Don't worry about your English. Many of us are not native speakers (including me), and I had no problems reading your mail.
In February I bought a sling in Granada during a business trip. It was made of esparto gras. Unfortunately I do not speak any Spanish (except single words picked up from a dictionary). So I didn't manage to get more information about slingers in the region or to get in contact to them. So I'm very glad that you join slinging.org. Smiley
We have here a partly translated book about the "Art de la basstja". It mentions that the rules of the Balearic slingers are different to those of the continental Spanish slingers. How is slinging practised in your region?

funda iucunda
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #4 - Jun 24th, 2007 at 10:52am
 
yep - we know a fair bit about the balearic slingers - and almost nothing about slinging traditions in other parts of spain.
As dale says we or you can always use babelfish or other online translating services. But so far, your english is excellent, infinitely better than my spanish (lol) :-)

What sort of sling do you prefer ? one with a solid (leather or other material) pouch or a more traditional (actually that depends on which tradition you favour) split pouch model ?

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Do All things with Honour and Generosity: Regret Nothing, Envy None, Apologise Seldom and Bow your head to No One  - works for me Smiley
 
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #5 - Jun 24th, 2007 at 12:31pm
 
¡Caramba! I’m amazed: it seems that everybody is interested in the Spanish way of slinging. I’m sorry, I’m not a teacher in the art of shooting stones. Simply, I like it and I do it.
All I can say is that the type of sling that I have seen more frequently among shepherds of Andalucía and La Mancha is very similar to that of the Balearic Islands: braided, made of “esparto” or plastic fibers, reinforced with leather in the pouch, the ring for the finger and (sometimes) the release end.

The style that I was taught me, or better, the one that I practise, is approximately underhand. I do it so:
1. Two (or three) turns in vertical. With these first turns I begin aiming: the pouch has to be almost in the line between my eyes and the target: I think this is quite important for accuracy.
2. I do the last half turn (to shoot), with my right hand almost horizontal from far behind to all possible ahead, so that the whole arm and the hand point to the target. Why? Because I like to use quite long slings (close to 1 m) and if I shoot from below often the pouch hits against the ground: I have broken already so many bags that I prefer modifying a bit the moment of more effort.

I use many types of slings: made of braided vegetal fibers, curtain cords joined by medical tape (very useful to give one to asking people) and, my favorite, a little one (aprox. 60 cm) with leather pouch -the type that is in use for binding (I think it is the best)-, with cords also made of leather (boot laces).

You see, almost all I’ve said was already written in this site, ... and I cannot continue writting in english any more, sorry. Perhaps another day I’ll be a little more inspired.
Thanks.
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Desciñéronse las hondas y comenzaron a saludarle los oídos con piedras como el puño. (Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, I, cap. 18)
 
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Dale
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #6 - Jun 24th, 2007 at 1:33pm
 
¡Hola, Pio!

Many of us have similar experience when we begin.  You release, and you look around trying to see where the rock went, and then it lands at your feet!

Your English is quite good.  But I know that writing in a different language is a lot of work -- you spend almost all your time looking up the words, and you keep losing track of your thought!

None of us are teachers either.  Only a few of us learned how to sling from someone else; most of us learned by ourselves, by reading and trying.  We enjoy sharing our experiences.

Again, welcome, and I hope you enjoy talking with us!
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No, I don't live in a glass house.&&&&"If builders built buildings the way programmers write programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization."&&&&Context matters!  "Nothing but net" is a BAD thing in tennis...
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¡A cantazos!

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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #7 - Jul 2nd, 2007 at 3:56am
 
I’ve challenged Dale to translate the phrase in the footers of my post. It was not easy, but he did. Here it is:

"The shepherds and drovers accompanying the flock shouted to him to desist; seeing it was no use, they ungirt their slings and began to salute his ears with stones as big as one's fist."  (The words quoted at the end of my post, are just the ones in bold face).

I expect to be able to send soon to this forum an article or communication on the type of sling that is in use in my land. I will keep you informed.

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Desciñéronse las hondas y comenzaron a saludarle los oídos con piedras como el puño. (Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, I, cap. 18)
 
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #8 - Jul 2nd, 2007 at 8:05am
 
I love that phrase: 'salute his ears with stones'.

Don quixote eh ?
So any pointers on which is the best/most accurate translation for me to get hold of ?
There have to be several - at least - around.
:-)
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Do All things with Honour and Generosity: Regret Nothing, Envy None, Apologise Seldom and Bow your head to No One  - works for me Smiley
 
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Pio
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¡A cantazos!

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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #9 - Jul 2nd, 2007 at 3:14pm
 
I'm sorry, but I read it in spanish. Dale can answer you, sure; he PM me using John Ormsby's translation: it seems good but, really, I don't know.
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Desciñéronse las hondas y comenzaron a saludarle los oídos con piedras como el puño. (Miguel de Cervantes, El ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha, I, cap. 18)
 
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Dale
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Re: Hello from La Mancha
Reply #10 - Jul 2nd, 2007 at 8:12pm
 
Pío is giving me credit that is not due.  I did not translate the Spanish phrase to English myself.  I found a copy of Ormsby's translation of Don Quixote, and copied out Ormsby's translation of that bit of the book.  I did compare the Spanish to the English, and (with what little I know of the language) it seemed similar.

Concerning different translations of The Ingenious Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha, all I know is what I read in Wikipedia (shut up, Curious_Aardvark, I already know there is a lot of junk there!) and at Project Gutenberg.  Ormsby's seems to be regarded as the translation that is most faithful to the Spanish language.  Other translations try to translate Spanish idioms to maybe-similar English idioms, or leave out parts that the translator thought objectionable, or even (in one case) are not based on Cervantes' work at all, but rather on somebody else's notes about the book; rather like translating Pearl Buck's The Good Earth into Spanish, working only from the Cliff Notes.
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No, I don't live in a glass house.&&&&"If builders built buildings the way programmers write programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would destroy civilization."&&&&Context matters!  "Nothing but net" is a BAD thing in tennis...
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