I just finished my first weekend of fencing tournaments. Right now, honestly, I'm a little exhausted. It wasn't the physical activity so much. I do more than that pretty much every day in workouts. But it was tiring... probably mentally as well as physically.
The first event was an "E and under" event in Michigan. In fencing, you are classified starting as a U (unrated) and then can earn ratings of E through A. An A level fencer would be a world-class fencer, collegiate varsity fencer, basically somebody with the highest classification.
I am a U, obviously. So, I figured the E and under tournament would be a good way to fence against people my own level.
The event I fence in is called epee. There are 3 different fencing events, and in epee, the entire body is a target and you can attempt to score at any time. The other two events: saber and foil, involve a concept called "right of way" where you can only score at certain times. They also have limited scoring areas and require special jackets or vests called a "lame" where you have to be touched for it to be a valid score. A score in fencing is called a "touch" or "touche" the French word, in international competition.
At least so far, a sizeable chunk of people who have seen me fence think I'm actually a saberist who is picking up epee as a second weapon. The reason for this is that saber is by far the most aggressive of the events, with competitors moving at each other very quickly and points scored very, very quickly.
Half a dozen folks, starting the very first few lessons I took, saw how I wanted to fight and said something along the lines of, "You really, really need to try saber."
Epee involves patience. Those who are familiar with my level of patience may immediately wonder about the wisdom of me choosing this event.
So, the funniest comment on day one was from a woman who actually was a saberist. She tore up our pool, and ended up with the #2 seed going into the brackets (called "direct elimination" or DE in tournaments).
Of the pool bouts I lost, I did best against her, losing 5-4. She was the only person I have ever fenced who was more aggressive than I was. After the bout, as we shook hands, she asked, "Is this your first weapon?"
"You think I'm a saberist, don't you?" I asked in reply.
Her response was classic, "You ARE a saberist."
I had begun taking baby steps towards learning saber before the weekend. Trying to find a lame and buying a saber. (Sabers are the least expensive weapons as far as the weapon, itself. The lame and mask are the most expensive of all the events, though.) Now, though, I'm interested to see how it goes.
I watched her fight through the tournament and it was an absolute pleasure. Basically, she just kept aggressively attacking the entire time. She didn't end up winning, but went deep and it was just fun to watch her go.
Overall, the tournament went well on Saturday. I beat the two people I should have in the pools and got dispatched quickly in the Direct Elimination portion. What was surprising was that almost everybody had no trouble at all dealing with my aggressiveness on the strip. At least at the clubs prior to this, I could sometimes get a lot of points, or sometimes a win against a better fencer because of my unconventional style. In the E and under tournament, most of the people I faced were completely unfazed and would just beat me using standard epee tactics.
Sunday's tournament had the same result, but felt much better. Again, I beat the two people I should have beaten. Again, I lost in the brackets in my first bout.
The difference, though, was that I was getting touches on everybody in the pools. I just wasn't getting enough of them. And the kid I lost to in direct elimination was a D rated fencer. I actually had him tied at 6-6 (after getting a red card for a non-functioning body cord and thus starting the bout 0-1). I just felt that although I lost to people I should have lost to, the gap wasn't insurmountable. I scored a lot of touches.
Plus, I think in some regards, I went in with the attitude that I would have fun and learn from the experience. And I think I really did. But I didn't expect to beat the guys who beat me. Next time, I think I'll probably go in with a more aggressive attitude.
I will probably only do maybe half a dozen tournaments or so all year. This weekend was an anomaly because I had two of them. Next weekend, I have a third.
I'm glad to have them all back to back, though. That way I minimize that time where I'm sitting around thinking, "I learned a lot, there... I can't wait to try the next one."
So, exhausted and need some fencing downtime. I'll probably open fence at SWORD on Thursday and then off to an E and under tournament in Wadsworth, OH next week. Though, honestly, I thought the E and under tournament this past weekend was harder than the open tournament.
I should also add, if you're a high school aged young man, this is a sport to go into. In my pool alone, in the E and under tournament, there were 4 gorgeous young women (all of whom thrashed me rather soundly, I might add). Lots of cute girls get into this sport.
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