At Bighorn Historical Combat, we train sword-based martial seriously, but without taking ourselves too seriously. Our coaches bring over 30 combined years of training and competing at the international level, and they genuinely care about helping every person get better; whether you showed up for the first time last week or have been at it for years. We are a small but fast-growing club based in Airdrie, Alberta, and we are proud to be one of the most competitive clubs in Canada.

We teach using the Constraints Led Approach, a modern coaching methodology that has been developed and refined by sport scientists over the past 25 years. The core idea is that skill develops through the interaction between the individual and the task. Rather than breaking technique down into isolated drills with a compliant partner, we design practice scenarios that put you under realistic pressure so your brain and body have to solve actual problems. The decisions are yours, the feedback is immediate, and the skills you develop transfer directly to performance because you learned them in conditions that resemble the real thing. People improve faster, retain more, and actually enjoy the process.

We take the historical side seriously too. Our classes are grounded in primary sources, the actual manuals written by the masters whose systems we practice. Whether it is Longsword, Sabre, Smallsword, Rapier, or Sword and Buckler, the techniques we teach trace back to the books. Competition is also a core part of how we train. Fencing against unfamiliar opponents at external events is one of the best tests of whether something actually works, and our coaches compete regularly at the national and international level.

Beyond the training, we are committed to building a space where everyone feels genuinely welcome. We have a strong and active code of conduct, and we work hard to make sure the club is a place where people from all backgrounds and identities can show up, focus on training, and feel like part of the community from day one. That is not an afterthought for us, it is something we actively work at.