Favorite Bout

[Chobes]

Anyone want to share their all-time favorite bouts?

my favorite bout was in my first ever competition, i was up for my 2nd D.E. and the previous one left my finger bloody and cut up, i could hardly hold my foil. i held on with my thumb and inded finger, just pinching it, and got to sudden death 12-12 after a long struggle. I had priority and one minute to evade my opponent or score, so i tried to stay away and keep my foil in my hand and ignore the pain. after 45 seconds my opponent got desperate and rushed forward with his arm straight out, hoping for a touch knowing i couldn't parry. i suckd it up and did a simple parry riposte, and scored. was so happy, i beat him 13-12 and had to drop out of the competition after that because i couldn't hold onto my foil anymore!

~Chobes~

[EricS]

A couple of years ago at the J.O.s I fenced a relatively inexperienced epee fencer for my first DE bout. He used a single tactic: beating my blade around. Up, down; left and right--over and over again. I used a disengage lunge which worked quite well against the repeated blade battering. So it continued with both of us using the same techniques until I only needed to make one more touch, with him behind by about 4 or 5 touches. Numbness flowed up and down my arm because of all the beats, so I was a little slow on my disengage. As I came forward in a fleche, my opponent beat the blade--downwards, right into his crotch.

I got the touch.

[Purple Fencer]

All time fave...Sergei Golubitski/Young Ho Kim...Men's Foil Gold Medal bout, 1997 Worlds...If you get a chance to watch it in it's entirety, do it...particularly the last period....friggin' amazing!

[rjccj]

Is one amazing bout. Beautiful, fun to watch, and even after you've seen it a hundred times, you're still cheering trying to figure out how it happened.

[Artisan]

All time fave...Sergei Golubitski/Young Ho Kim...Men's Foil Gold Medal bout, 1997 Worlds...If you get a chance to watch it in it's entirety, do it...particularly the last period....friggin' amazing!

...when SG says, "... and here my worst nightmare begins, this comeback..."

[damianip]

Italy vs. France men's team epee Sydney 2000.

Great fencing, contrasting styles (both team and individually) lots of passion and bad blood.

It could have easily gone either way. Exciting stuff.

Paolo

[Artisan]

My <personal> all time favorites are when I as the underdog defeat the expected favorite - especially if its in a DE, better if its by more than 2 touches. That said... I like a bout that's a real nail-biting challenge - even if I lose. Those are the ones that really help you explore new territory, both mentally and physically.

[bug]

Defintely my favorite too. It's probably the most exciting bout I've ever watched (at least the second half, the first is kind of boring).

[germanguy]

.....

[mrgenius]

My favorite was a bout of my own. It was at my fencing facility, and it was a tournament, but there were only a few fencers from our own club, and one from another. We were all losing to him. (This was when I had had, oh, maybe 5 months of experience.) He had been fencing for 4 years. Then I played him a second time (I lost to him 5-2 the first time) and it was 4-3, me. Then on the next touch, after he showed me I parried 4, only I pushed too far. I hit him across his mask, but it was like i was pushing sideways instead of forwards. I threw my mask off (well sort of pulled it off really fast), shook his hand (he was so surprised! he hadn't lost to anyone at my club) and I heard the cheers from my friends. One of my friends remarked that beating him deserved a trophy in itself. I got third because I underfenced in the first half (couldn't concentrateor something, but it was MY FAULT, i'm not blaming it on anyone else).

[K Degnon]

My favorite bout goes back around 12 years ago. I was fencing in my state's divisionals for third place against a fencer who was about 10x better than I was. This was back in the days of the best two out of three bouts. Midway through the third bout my last working foil died, and since I was the only lefty still around at that point, there weren't any left-handed weapons around to beg/borrow/steal . I managed to borrow a right handed french grip and continued on, somehow bringing the third bout to 5-5. My opponent came forward with an attack that had me complete faked out; I did a blind counter attack and got the one light to win. I think in addition to being my favorite bout this was my luckiest bout ever.

(sorry Craig)

[dreadfoily]

By Mango:

I was in the state of L__________ fencing under the direction of Mr. C_____ of "nicely done" when I happened to enter the TU_________open, drawing fencers from three states, included many classified fencers. I was nervous, but delighted. I suited up and fenced. Bang, then I fenced again, more pow, (who knew?). I went to my first direct elimination. A youth of 18 stood before me totally athletic, I thought I was dead meat on a saber - but since HE fenced saber and I fenced Epee, he was in for the fight of his life...I don't know how I did it, but I beat him 15-8. It was a demolition. His coach sat at the end of the piste grinning madly at me. The kid didn't have socks, I gave him socks. The coach was absolutely certain I would be completely eliminated but I trounced him and though I felt badly, I enjoyed myself immensely, as I watched his coach CRAWL to the other side of the strip and cringe for the remained of the bout. I went on to fence a highly skilled epeeist and lost, but again "NOT WITHOUT A FIGHT" [as in Lucy of Peanuts].

Moral of the story: Never Give Up.