JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The art, attention to detail, everything about blade smithing pulled Nikita Blumenshine to the craft within the last year.
And now she’s set to become the first woman to compete in “Last Blade Standing.”
“I’m excited to represent women and show the world what women can do,” Blumenshine said. “I just wanted to push myself and challenge myself.”
This season there will be 64 competitors in Last Blade Standing, a contest -- inspired by the hit TV show “Forged In Fire” -- to see who can make the strongest and finest sword.
This will be the third year of Last Blade Standing, which returns next month.
Matthew Martin established the contest that’s gained traction online.
“People are excited and hungry to see people craft things with their hands,” Martin said.
Every competitor this year has to make a blade with a cutting edge between 19 and 22 inches and handle to tip no longer than 27 inches.
Each blade has to endure three grueling tests -- strength, sharpness and durability -- to see which is the last one standing.
“People are just really excited about it, and they are hungry for more,” Martin said. “That’s what we want to give them.”
The competition is broken down into three rounds.
The first and second rounds are Feb. 11 and 18, respectively, at Balis Park in San Marco.
The third round, which is the finale where a winner will be crowned, will be Feb. 25 in Salisbury, North Carolina.
During the competition, Blumenshine will debut her very first sword build. The forging, welding and grinding of making swords turned the former professional meat cutter into a blacksmith aficionado, and she’s ready to put her newfound mastery to the test.
“I have the perseverance and the grit to set my mind to something and get it done when I decide that it is something I want to do,” Blumenshine said.
The winner will take home bragging rights and a prize package worth up to $6,500. But the contest also helps a great cause.
All the blades that survive the tests will be auctioned off with the money raised going to the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation -- a $10,000 goal.
For Blumenshine, this moment goes beyond a win or a loss.
“(It’s) just about being able to say, ‘Hey, this is what I did. This is what women can do,’” she said.
For her, that is the true reward.