Melee Indeed....

One of my clubmates and I were talking about superstitions before competition. Not washing clothes, not eating meat... that kind of thing. I revealed that my superstitious behavior involved no beef or beef like meats a full week before competition, and no alcohol for a week before an event. That superstition took root when after I realized I got my best results following those two rules, especially in Statesboro.

So why did I agree to have a drink with one of my neighbors the Wednesday before the May Melee IV at Dunwoody? Sure he was getting married that weekend and I was skipping out on his last Happy Hour and Steak night as a single man, but fencing is more important than friendship right? Right?

The one pitcher didn't do too much damage to me on Saturday in the Div3 event. I won all of my pools except one bout with a lefty. The problem was I didn't back off after getting a 3-1 lead. It seems that one I get three quick touches in a row, I feel I can get 5 quick touches in a row. Losing 3-5 was not only humbling, it set me up to meet the eventual winner of the tournament in the elite eight instead of the quarterfinals. Given I lost to him 14-15 on a lazy attack, had I achieved a perfect pool record, given a couple other things I could have been a C07 today.

After the Div3, I visited one of my friends at the Dunwoody Beer Festival, then went on to watch some stupid puppet show (billed as x-rated by the AJC) with some friends (read: two cute girls I know and a random dude). The whole thing was a complete waste of time and only served to keep me out too late before the Open.

In the Open I was pretty well hammered. I was slow, that was my only real technical mistake.

In the Team Event, Team Coletrain - consisting of three C07's and me, was put up against a team of all lefties from Atlanta Fencers Club. And they consisted of two As and a C07. I think we had an honest chance. Its just that while 3-5 is an ok pool score in an individual event, three guys losing 3-5 means the team score is now 9-15. And that is very much not ok. We were just inexperienced as a team. Not only that, I was put in the unenviable position of trying to regain 15 touches in the second to last bout. After I got the first 5 touches in about 20 seconds, I thought I could easily get the next eight. Unfortunately, my body just completely ran out of gas. Even one of the parents smiled as he saw me "huffing and puffing." I am a relatively decent fencer, but I am no Bruce Vail when it comes to digging a team out of a double digit hole. Give me another three years and I will get there. We ended up losing 29-45, meaning we didn't come close to closing the gap in the end. Horrible.

Speaking of inexperience and Vail, one of his team members was completely changed into his street clothes when Vail's team was up against Charlotte in the last bout. They were only down about 6 points or so, nowhere near the double digits we allowed. Vail pulled it out for the win in the last bout, and the team went on to win the event. It turns out Bruce never noticed his teammate get undressed into street clothes, and then get back into fencing gear once someone pointed out that his team was actually going to win. Bruce probably could have handled it, but I know few others that could. Horrible.

Southeast Sectionals - Murder Was The Case...

Well, Senior Men's Epee is no joke. I ended up losing 5-4 in pools to the guy who pulled 2nd place, which made me feel ok. My other five bouts, including the one I won, were dreadful. It may have been the drinks the night before, or the hanging around with a friend of mine from 'Bama. Most likely I was just really rusty, and needed some more warm up time. Plus I wasn't breathing, or thinking in a competition mode. I didn't have much hope of winning, but placing in the top 3rd was not impossible. Let this be the last time I tank in an A4 event.

Oh, and the USFA hasn't received the GA Division results yet - so officially, I am still an E07. Great...

You Can Fence In Iraq, Country Still Sucks

Out of nearly pure curiousity, I began researching fencing opportunities in the Middle East. While Dubai sports a strong fencing program, the Iraqi Fencing Federation was bleed dry by sanctions well before the US invasion in 2003. More recently, the president and secretary-general of the Iraqi Olympic Committee has been kidnapped.

However, supported by US vendors and generous folks at home, the US Army has fledging fencing programs at Camp Victory in Iraq and also Bagram, Afghanistan. The Camp Victory program seems to be mostly dry sabre, but I am sure epee will soon follow.

Fencing: Evolution of Strategy

As I try to get better at this sport - I realized that there is an evolution in skill and thinking in fencing. I am sure this evolution is in all sports, but in fencing it seems to be much more apparent. Here are the levels.

1. Complete confusion. At this point, you really don't know what is going on. You try to apply lessons you just learned only minutes ago, and you fail miserably. In foil and saber, you are doomed to being murdered and embarassed by attacks and parry-ripostes that never seem to work. Worse, you will never have a call go your way. In epee, you are actually kinda dangerous. If a fencer doesn't perceive your lack of experience, he will offer cues you will miss - and he might actually open himself up to your wild flailing about and actually get hit.
2. Nervousness. Here the lessons are starting to take hold. Lots of defense, not much attack. Attacks will often fail, although sudden direct attacks might work. At this stage you may take the lead in a bout, and then lose suddenly because you are not experienced enough to notice adjustments in an opponents tactics.
3. Anticipation. After a lot of experience, and many lost bouts, you will start to notice patterns and trends. With fencers at or below a certain level, you can anticipate how they will attack, or how they will defend against your attack, and you can use that information against them. For example, if Fencer A consistently uses a parry four then riposte, you can feint to four, then attack in sixte, with a parry four after to make sure there is no double touch (esp. in epee).
4. Manipulation. After a ton of experience, and many lost and won bouts, you will start to notice a lot more patterns, trends, and styles. Once you recognize a fencer with a certain style, you can manipulate him into a set of patterns and tactics so that you aren't chasing him any more with your tip or edge - you need only direct him to where your tip or edge is going to be. For example, if you see a fencer who enjoys going for the toe, you can fence in a lowline guard for much of the bout. At the right time, raise your guard and step an extra half advance out of distance. This will direct your opponent to the opportunity he has been waiting for, and as he goes for your toe - you can nail him in the face.

I will let you know if I make it past #4.

It's About GD Time

Right now I don't feel a sense of accomplishment. I only feel relief. For a week, no drinking, light meals, working out and fencing every night (even at home when class was unavailable), because God forbid I tell all the girls in Miami I am coming to visit this summer and I don't even qualify. Right now I am reminded of the words of Captain John Paul Jones.

When an Enemy think a design against them improbable they can always be Surprised and Attacked with Advantage. - it is true I must run great risque - but no Gallant action was ever performed without danger - therefore, tho' I cannot insure Success I will endeavour to deserve it. (italics mine)

Well, praise God I did deserve it today. Even though the GA Division 2 Men's Epee Qualifier event was stacked with C's - I managed to hold on and didn't lose a bout until I reached the final four. Which means I qualify to go to Summer Nationals. And I finally got my D07 classification. Also, my club team, Dunwoody FC (The Coletrain)*, won Men's Epee today and we also qualify. Man, I really do have a ball down here in Statesboro.

Tommorow is Division 3 Men's Epee. Next stop, C07.

*Seriously... That's the name of the team. Not even my idea. Not sure how many folks in the club even read the website!

Vanderbilt - Horrible

This is me... Cue in Godfather theme.

Well, it could have gone worse, but I doubt it. Well, given that I tied for last place, it really couldn't have gone worse. It was the worst performance for me in two years.

I made it to the round of 8 in Div3 Mens epee at the Vandy tournament, lost in the round of 64(!!) in the Open. Not a single win in the open. It was just a crappy day all around. I was slow, and according to everyone who saw me, my arm was too low.

This event doesn't get a grumpy tag because I really got beat. I don't feel frustrated; I simply feel that I need to work harder on some things to improve. I need to focus more on mentally preparing to win - rather than enjoying Happy Hour (2 for 1s!) and trying to find my favorite Nashville bar.

I don't think I could have advanced beyond the 16 in the open, but if I did I would have gotten my D. I could have won the Div3, it would have been tough, but it was mine to lose. I am disappointed in myself, but then again - I need to sharpen my technique. I am getting a private lesson this evening that should help.

For Fun or Glory?

After a murderous pool performance, I finally battled back to reach the round of eight at the Fencing Fools tournament in Warner Robbins, GA. My record was 1/4 and I didn't even want to think about my indicator - until I win my first DE against a C2007. Then I learn that four of the five people in my pool (including myself) made the round of eight. So there is no one who can say I didn't have the toughest pool in the room. Unfortunately, I got knocked out by the top seed, an A2007, so a C was out of reach. But because of my crappy pool record, a D was out of reach as well - going to a guy who had a much easier pool and the voice of a 4 year old girl.

I was upset for at least a few days - even flirting with hot blondes and drinking tequila after the event did little to calm me down. It makes me wonder - what am I doing all this for? I love to fence, but winning makes me feel good, and glory makes me feel better. I am the kind of guy who is more inspired by praise than cash. I'm a guy who finds it hard to leave the group to hit on the lonely hottie at the bar when the older horny blonde woman is massaging my bald head.

Somedays I do this for exercise, some days I do it for fun... but on competition days, I do this to win - and when I don't, I feel like crap. There has got to be a better way to deal with these emotions while my subconscious waits for my body to start winning all the time.

Right now I am focusing on Divisionals. I want to qualify for Div2 and Div3 - but Div2 could be interesting. Having a D will help my initial seeding, which is why I am fencing in Vandy on Saturday. Wish me luck!

I Think I'm Getting Better

This is a vast improvement from my fencing just a year ago. From DFC's March Wind outdoor fencing event.

Kendo vs. Fencing

Just for fun... Personally I think that an epee fencer is not going to be so ambitious if he was facing a sharp katana vs. a wooden shinai. Shinai's rarely hurt when they hit you - unless you make no attempt to parry and your drunken neighbor hits you in the back. Sorry D.

This next one is a fencing commercial that played during the NCAA March Madness tournament. The fencing was very nicely choreographed and shot.

Searching For the Perfect Epee

I have never had great luck with weapons. Especially epees. When I started to pick up epee, I was mainly a foil competitor, but epee was a small deal for adults at Minnesota Sword. This meant that if I picked up epee, I was guaranteed virtually private lessons for free, since there were only two or three adults learning epee with me. The first weapons I bought for epee competition actually came from eBay - an Uhlmann FIE from some lady who bought the best of the line for class, then realized she hated the sport; and an STM FIE from some guy who just got tired of playing. I bought these weapons at a huge discount three years ago, and they are the only ones that are still in my gig bag.

As for the others...

• Leon Paul epees are nice, but the tips always fail shims for the first tournament. I learned this after buying two and hearing from others. The gutter blades protect the wire, but they vibrate like a tuning fork, and I had one snap in my hands.
• BF Blade snapped in my hands at Birmingham. Totally inflexible.
• Non Leon Paul tips are worthless... the screws pop out all the time, and there is nothing that pisses me off more as a director than some guy who brings a weapon to the strip without screws in.

I would buy only Uhlmann FIEs, but a) they are expensive as hell and b) the wires at the tip tend to corrode, causing the weapon to pass tests but be completely worthless in the bout. I never will forget fencing a VERY good B rated fencer in a pool bout. I had a chance to at least lose respectably 4-5 - but my weapon refused to go off, even after nailing the guy square in the chest. It passed a test by the director, so I had to resign myself to run away as much as possible.

I realize that expecting a piece of steel and electronics to work consistently under obvious duress is a little nuts - but if Panasonic can make a Toughbook laptop, I want a durable epee too.

Meet Me At Zaban Park - We Cross Swords At Dawn

Fencing outdoors in Georgia never really sounds like a good idea. There is the heat, the pollen, the bugs, the humidity - all this before you calculate the health of the equipment, logistics for keeping the fencers healthy, and trying to adjust to moving around outside - on a rubberized concrete basketball court no less.

But the DFC's March Wind competition went about as well as it could. And the cool March winds were actually quite welcome. The original venue dropped out at the last second, and my club had no choice but to fence outside or cancel. A lot of folks didn't show up at all - but thankfully the Open was still an A1 event with 15 no shows. The DivIII Epee event dropped to a D1, which took the wind out of everyone who was hoping to power to the four and at least be guaranteed a D in the promised C2. But as I have said before on this blog - local C2s are pipe dreams without a huge number of D fencers. If there aren't more than six D's in a C2 - expect no ratings changes to occur, or for less than 4 D's to advance to the round of 8. I suppose it's just as well - it's better to play to win it all than to play just to make it to the final four.

My performance in both events doesn't bare mentioning - not good, not bad, just adjust and move on. The one bonus was that I had a chance to test out my new Triplette weapon and my rewired Uhlmann FIE epee - both received at the Georgia High School Fencing League championships. Directing from 9am to 7pm was worth it to get my Uhlmann fixed for free.

Next up, fencing at Vanderbilt Easter Weekend.

15-14 In the Final - So Close, Yet So Far

"Sometimes nothing you do makes any difference"

Holy crap. Not again. After I got railed in the AFC Peach State Open in Open Epee, I figured I had a shot at my D in the E and Under. Of course, it was a D1 - which meant I had to win. And I got close, too close. I handly won my pool, in fact there was only one match I didn't dominate - the final. At 14-13 in my favor, I went for one final fleche to end it all, and came up short. At 14-14, I tried to set up an opening for a wrist flick/touch that never came.

The sense of failure was overwhelming. I was so upset, I drove home in a huff and nearly put my fist through my car window. Thank God I bought a boxing dummy... I put on Limp Biskit's "Break Stuff" (only one of three LB songs worth listening to) and screamed and roared and beat on the thing until I was too tired to be angry.

The worst was that no one seemed to think I fenced poorly, it simply just wasn't my day. I made some mistakes - like trying to run up the score when I was already two touches ahead, or not playing to my strengths and just beating her around - but nothing incredibly fatal.

I am sure I will be fine in time for the Dundwoody FC March Wind - but the sense of frustration and need for self-destruction is hard to contain. I'd get drunk, but I have work tomorrow.

The Road To Miami Goes Through Statesboro

It looks like Georgia Southern University in Statesboro is hosting the GA Divisional Qualifiers, again. GSU has a great facility, I know some good people there - but man, the drive down there S-U-X sucks. Plus, since I will be going for Div II, Div III, and hopefully Senior Team - I will need to stay two nights there. More money, more problems.

As I've mentioned before, I usually do really well in Statesboro. And there is no reason that won't be true this time. I am twice the fencer I was a year ago - faster, stronger, smarter, and most importantly... lighter. The problem is that a) I have friends in Miami, so I am more invested in trying to qualify so I can visit them, and b) not being able to crawl out of bed with a hangover and drive 20 minutes to the venue makes the whole thing seem a bit more serious. The last 3rd place medal I picked up started with a hangover and me getting railed by a guy I fence all the time in my first bout of the day. That kind of obnoxiousness can't happen in Statesboro.

"I Don't Care About You... I Care About Fencing"

Fencing is my favorite pastime. More than football, more than girls, more than just about anything.

The last person I had to explain this to was an 8 year old who wanted to take my club's beginner's class. Unfortunately for him, there was an Regional Youth Circuit (RYC) tournament going on... so he was the only one in the class. The kid never fenced before, and learned the joys of teaching your body to hold an en garde position. Anyone who has ever fenced before remembers that the first time hurts... a lot.

Of course, this kid didn't suck it up like most future successful fencers do, he decided to moan and cry. And he even got upset that his pain didn't bother me. Or that I freely admitted that I really could care less. Which was true... if he wanted to make an effort, I was more than willing to help him along. But I don't baby anyone, not even the little ones in my family. It's just not dignified.

On a similar note, I had a conversation with a cute girl from Houston the night before Men's Division III Epee qualifiers. She wanted me to assemble a crew and come and hang out with her and her friends. I demurred, because I had to be on the road to Statesboro in less than five hours. Then she said I could come alone, and I knew what that meant. And I still said no. That was the day fencing officially became my favorite thing to do.

So Close, Yet So Far...

I did everything I was supposed to do. I had a rough start in the pools at the AFC Grand Prix (D and Under Epee), but I made the most of it. My record was 2-3, but my two wins were decisive (5-0, 5-1) which helped my indicator. I came in at 18th of 27 before the DEs, and I fought tooth and nail all the way to the semifinal. One strong high schooler kept me from the final round, but I should have been happy because I would have earned my D07.

But it doesn't always happen that way. Because most of the Ds got knocked out of the tournament before the round of 8, the whole event was downgraded from a C2 to a D1. So for me to win my D, I would have had to win it all. Not to say I didn't try to win it all anyway, but it would have been nice to have a new rating to reward me for the slogging I was doing all day. I will just have to settle for a third place medal.

New Year - More Fencing

With my first competition of the new year coming up in Statesboro, I am pretty excited.

The last time I was in Statesboro I renewed my "E" and qualified for DivIII Nationals, so there is some good karma there. I have also been watching what I eat and trying to get on the treadmill more. Will Smith said in Reader's Digest that you meet your worst enemy on the treadmill - your lazy self. This is the guy that says that you have run enough, you are running too hard, and that three miles is just as good as five. Smith also said he uses the treadmill to learn about other people - and that he has nothing to fear from the kind of guy that commits himself to running five miles, but stops at three. I am not a Will Smith fan, but I want him to fear me - so I do everything I can to go the whole boat every time.

Another reason I am trying to slim down is a speed issue. I think my bladework is relatively solid - but while parry-ripostes aren't that common at the local level in epee, they still work extremely well if the speed is there. And I fear holiday meals, late nights at the bar, and brewskies watching football have slowed me down considerably. My ultimate goal weight is right around 215-220lbs - which is crazy to imagine that I would actually be almost svelte at that number. I guess I am a big guy.

Some Things Just Don't Mix

I double book a lot. Especially around the holidays. I think it is mostly because I rarely have just one thing going on - when it comes to planning a weekend, it is feast or famine. Same thing for last weekend - I had a company Xmas party that I felt compelled to go to, and my club had its December tournament that next morning. I just joined a new company, and skipping the party just seemed like a bad move. I had an excuse (my date dropped out, and finding another one was difficult at best), but honestly I need every advantage at work. I didn't want to miss the Southern Star either - after all, fencing is my favorite thing to do.

So, I did both. And just like my bright idea of visiting my fraternity brothers in Saint Louis AND partying with a flaky girl I knew - I had fun, but the experience would have been much richer if I chose one event and stuck with it.

Saturday morning I woke up at 8am - still feeling it from the night before. I sleep again until 11am, throw on some clothes, grab my gig bag and head to Dunwoody. My pool bouts were a disaster. I hate to think what I looked like out there - it was as though my opponents were thinking, "He's good, but he isn't taking me down. If I lunge, I will beat him." And I got killed.

I woke up for my first DE - and manage to get up 6-2 with a lot of straight lunges. I was tired, and I didn't have any more in me. Instead of hanging back and letting him come to me, I still brought the battle to him - I was just less scary, and therefore easier to hit. After the third double touch with the score now 14-13, I knew I was in trouble - because he only has to hit me twice to catch up, and I haven't made a single in a few touches now. So I lost that one 15-14, and my opponent's daughter was actually sad I lost.

If this was really all in fun - it wouldn't have mattered. But I did honestly want to do well. I really need to get much more serious about this stuff. The ironic thing is most of my friends think I am fanatical about it already.

Fencing, Coletrain, and RSS

I don't post here as much as I like - but I try to keep everything interesting and fencing related.

For those of you who are too busy to check my site every week - my newsfeed address is - http://feeds.feedburner.com/LordVaderFencesAllWeapons .

Click the link to add to your newsreader or My Yahoo news page. It will be fun!

In other news, I got beat down at the AFC Open last weekend. Back to the drawing board.

Results from Memphis NAC

I just got back from the NAC A in Memphis, and it was a pretty good time.  I finished 39th in Div 3 Men's Epee, and not so well in Div 2. Apparently, I need early mornings and no food to fence well.  Memphis is a nice town, if difficult to get around - and Beale street was almost as loud as Bourbon Street.  Too bad I was exhausted Saturday night and headed to bed after only one drink and a movie.  I will have to return with reinforcements.

 

The NAC was run really well, although there were some issues.  I was a bit spoiled by the 80% advance rule from Nationals - it forces people to actually try in the pools.  It also would mean that my 14th seed after pools would mean something.  I lost my first DE, even though I had a bye - so I was a bit bitter. 

 

The other significant issue was a nice life lesson for me.  Curvy and hot directors are not necessarily good directors.  Although the fact that this particular director didn't call corps-a-corps - thereby turning a gentleman's game into something akin to the WWE Hardcore Championship match - didn't bother me, it was that I didn't find out until I got touched after I stopped where a halt should have been called.  The "let them slug it out" school of fencing works in my favor, but I prefer not to clock people with a right cross after attacking in prime.  It wouldn't have been so bad except an older gentlemen directed a few bouts in my pool, and the difference in quality was dramatic.

 

Lots of fun, and I learned a lot about my own style and how I need to improve.  Next time, top 8.

 

 

Fencing On A Plateau

First off - it has been a while since I last wrote, which makes sense because of the break in the season after Nationals.  I didn't do too bad in Div III Men's Epee, 125 out of 211 is reasonably respectable for my first time.  My pool bouts were more difficult than I had anticipated, but the 80% advance rule most likely contributed to that.  The upside is that my pools weren't deceptively easy like they can be at locals and the NACs.  I won a couple DEs, and lost to a left hander who had a good day. 

 

However, ever since then I have been on a bit of a plateau while I see my clubmates continue to improve.  This plateau means losing in the round of 16 in highly rated tournaments, and in the round of 8 in Div3s.  My technique and strategy seems to work - I just miss a lot more.  Now, I am not disparging my opponents - I can tell when they have successfully fooled me.  But when I do an action, and you give me a response I anticipate, and then I respone with my real attack and I glaze your uniform - then I tend to beat myself up a little bit.  Especially when those glazes are costing me DEs and more importantly, my next rating. 

 

Being totally clueless feels comfortable.  Expecting only to win one pool bout makes for good cheer.  Expecting to win it all, and the field supports that expectation, only to fail - is miserable.

 

I am not sure how to get out of the rut... so far I am just trying to practice and work out a lot more.  It's just as well, I need to lose weight anyway.