neveralarch (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
neveralarch) wrote2011-05-27 07:40 pm
neveralarch) wrote2011-05-27 07:40 pm
Entry tags:
Fencinnnng :D
I have been thinking about fencing a LOT lately, for three reasons. 1) I have practice twice a week, and I love it and I love fencing and I love the people I fence with. That's kind of my default state of being, though, so whatever. 2) Enabled by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
aralias, I started writing a Doctor/Master fencing AU. Not much enabling was actually needed before I suddenly had 2,600 words. 3) (The big one) I was gone this weekend on an overnight fencing trip, and my team won third place! And we were two touches away from second place! Super super excited over here, because I was captain and my team were all foil fencers that I and another guy have been teaching sabre to for the last couple months. This is only the second time I've won anything in a competition, and it's so cool that I could help three other people along and watch them get to win too.
So, I figured I'd talk about fencing! Because I'm obsessed with it, and you guys already listen to me talk about my obsessions with history and Doctor Who. I guess this a primer since I figure most people don't know much about competitive fencing, but I can go on about this forever so I'll try to stop myself.
There are three weapons in fencing: epee, foil, and sabre. I've been fencing sabre for three years, and it's the weapon I started with, more or less. I also fence a little foil, which is the weapon most people start with (especially in Europe, I'm finding). The weapons are all really different from each other - you pretty much have to train with each weapon, rather than being able to cross over from one weapon to the next. Epees look like this:
You can only attack with the point, and the target is the whole body. It's a relatively slow weapon, with a lot of finesse. Epee fencers tend to be tall and wiry (though not always), because a longer arm reach helps so much.
Foils look like this:
Point attacks again, but the target is just the torso. It's a bit faster, with a lot of back and forth as attack miss and get parried. Foil fencers tend to be all around the place, build wise, but there's definitely a trend toward shorter and skinny people in the US (at least in my experience).
Sabres look like this:
The best weapon! You can stab or slash, and the whole upper body is a target, including the head. It started out as a cavalry weapon, so it's really fast as people rush at each other and try to hit the other person first. Sabre fencers tend to be more muscular/solidly built - height is still an advantage, but not as big a one.
There's also wheelchair fencing and non-Olympic fencing, which are all awesome but I don't really know a ton about. Sorry. There are also a bunch of rule differences and so on between the three main weapons, but I feel like they would be boring and mostly incomprehensible unless you've already fenced some. But basically, two people square off against each other and then fence until one hits the other. Then a point is assigned, or the action is called null, or something. And then they do it again until they get to a certain set number. Teams in the US usually fence to five, with nine bouts total between each of the three people on the two teams. Teams in Germany usually do relays, with nine bouts and so on, but with a cumulative score going to forty-five. I like both ways of fencing, though I admit that relays can be a lot of work/stress for the captain of the team. I spent a lot of time last weekend trying to pick up touches and catch up when the other team was ahead.
Too much information? Not enough? For visualization's sake, here's my last bout from last weekend. I think it was pretty good for both of us fencing, if you ignore that I'm the slowest and least gracious sabre fencer in the world. (I'm the one with the green socks on the right, who gets increasingly frustrated about losing. But the video stops right before I throw my mask and weapon off the strip, so that's good. Agh, 45-43, aggggh. TWO MORE TOUCHES.)
[[Video lost to the ravages of time :(( ]]
I though about locking this, but you can't really see the other person's face through the shakiness. Please be cool, internet people, and don't link this video around without asking me. ANYWAY, hope this was interesting to someone?
Also, I should make a new fencing icon, this one is old and a bit weird. But I love the Canadapants too much to change it.
aralias, I started writing a Doctor/Master fencing AU. Not much enabling was actually needed before I suddenly had 2,600 words. 3) (The big one) I was gone this weekend on an overnight fencing trip, and my team won third place! And we were two touches away from second place! Super super excited over here, because I was captain and my team were all foil fencers that I and another guy have been teaching sabre to for the last couple months. This is only the second time I've won anything in a competition, and it's so cool that I could help three other people along and watch them get to win too.So, I figured I'd talk about fencing! Because I'm obsessed with it, and you guys already listen to me talk about my obsessions with history and Doctor Who. I guess this a primer since I figure most people don't know much about competitive fencing, but I can go on about this forever so I'll try to stop myself.
There are three weapons in fencing: epee, foil, and sabre. I've been fencing sabre for three years, and it's the weapon I started with, more or less. I also fence a little foil, which is the weapon most people start with (especially in Europe, I'm finding). The weapons are all really different from each other - you pretty much have to train with each weapon, rather than being able to cross over from one weapon to the next. Epees look like this:
You can only attack with the point, and the target is the whole body. It's a relatively slow weapon, with a lot of finesse. Epee fencers tend to be tall and wiry (though not always), because a longer arm reach helps so much.
Foils look like this:
Point attacks again, but the target is just the torso. It's a bit faster, with a lot of back and forth as attack miss and get parried. Foil fencers tend to be all around the place, build wise, but there's definitely a trend toward shorter and skinny people in the US (at least in my experience).
Sabres look like this:
The best weapon! You can stab or slash, and the whole upper body is a target, including the head. It started out as a cavalry weapon, so it's really fast as people rush at each other and try to hit the other person first. Sabre fencers tend to be more muscular/solidly built - height is still an advantage, but not as big a one.
There's also wheelchair fencing and non-Olympic fencing, which are all awesome but I don't really know a ton about. Sorry. There are also a bunch of rule differences and so on between the three main weapons, but I feel like they would be boring and mostly incomprehensible unless you've already fenced some. But basically, two people square off against each other and then fence until one hits the other. Then a point is assigned, or the action is called null, or something. And then they do it again until they get to a certain set number. Teams in the US usually fence to five, with nine bouts total between each of the three people on the two teams. Teams in Germany usually do relays, with nine bouts and so on, but with a cumulative score going to forty-five. I like both ways of fencing, though I admit that relays can be a lot of work/stress for the captain of the team. I spent a lot of time last weekend trying to pick up touches and catch up when the other team was ahead.
Too much information? Not enough? For visualization's sake, here's my last bout from last weekend. I think it was pretty good for both of us fencing, if you ignore that I'm the slowest and least gracious sabre fencer in the world. (I'm the one with the green socks on the right, who gets increasingly frustrated about losing. But the video stops right before I throw my mask and weapon off the strip, so that's good. Agh, 45-43, aggggh. TWO MORE TOUCHES.)
[[Video lost to the ravages of time :(( ]]
I though about locking this, but you can't really see the other person's face through the shakiness. Please be cool, internet people, and don't link this video around without asking me. ANYWAY, hope this was interesting to someone?
Also, I should make a new fencing icon, this one is old and a bit weird. But I love the Canadapants too much to change it.
no subject
Sabre is amazingness, even though I am an epeeist through and through (my first club was bizarre and started us off with epees - ten-year-old me could barely lift the dang thing). I did do a few sabre workshops, though, and it is so much fun! I am just not made for thinking that fast, I think. ;)
And that is an awesome video! I'm so used to the endless epee matches that I'd completely forgotten how fast sabre can be. ♥ Oh, and congrats on the tournament! That is so awesome.
no subject
Man, staring with epee. I bet that was hard? Almost everyone I know who fences epee started with foil, which at least gives you the point control and everything (which I totally do not have). Everyone here is really confused that I started with sabre, but I think it's a different enough weapon from the other two that starting with foil really wouldn't have helped. Also, I am totally not made for thinking at all. Sabre is mostly instinct for me, there's just no time for making actual decisions during the bout.
I should totally try epee sometime - maybe I'll convince one of the guys here to try a bout even though I will probably hit too hard and get drunk on the power to make cross-steps.
no subject
Fenced foil in college, loved it hard, trained with some seriously fierce and lovely people. All other sports are dead to me.
One day I'll live within an hour's drive of a salle. Guh.
no subject
The not-secret purpose of the post was to track any other fencers down. College fencing is really great, and I know a lot of people drop fencing after they graduate. But you should totally pick it up again (I mean, after you're completely through with your leg healing process, obviously). College need not be the end - fencing is one of those awesome sports where you can keep competing until you are a million years old, which I totally plan to do. Also, I recall that you are in the middle of nowhere right now, so that sucks. But surely you will find somewhere to fence someday. And, for reference, an hour's drive is not that much! I drive two hours each way when I fence at my club during breaks! It is probably because I am unreasonably obsessed!
I'm- I'm sorry. I can't talk about fencing without capslock and exclamation points.
no subject
Yes. Surely I will fence again someday. You're all inspiring me and stuff.
Also you're not the only one with the capslock disease. *salutes insouciantly*
no subject
no subject
Seriously, now I have to find people to fence with so I can compete again. It's all your fault.
Do you think they have Segway fencing anywhere? Because obviously.
no subject
There's segway jousting, for sure. You could definitely adapt it to fencing. OR WHEELCHAIR FENCING, wheelchair fencing is incredibly badass. It looks like so much fun.
no subject
*googles*
*dies*
WHEELCHAIR FENCING, PFFFT, I'M SHORT ENOUGH ALREADY.
No, really, it *is* badass. Hello, point control. I think I'm not quiiiiiite gimpy enough for competition:
"Anyone with an injury or disability comparible to a below the knee amputation is elligible to participate in wheelchair fencing."
http://www.wheelchairfencer.org/rules-docs.html
no subject