Need DE advice

[esskreemr]

The easiest way is to focus on your seeding pool and seed higher so that you can avoid the dude until you're ready.

You may also try to keep your foil (I'm just naturally assuming it's a foil) in a slightly extended en guarde position. You must be inviting him to attack (unintentionally), watch out for opening holes up against a more experienced fencer. You may be dropping your blade or keeping it in a wide 6 or 4, try something in between that doesn't open up so much real estate on one side so that he has to think about where he wants to hit.

Another important thing is your footwork. Mix it up! Don't stick with the one rhythm, one length advance you learned as a newbie! That's suicide. Try half stepping and a fake advance every once in a while to see if he bites (move your front foot forward but not your rear, then return to en guarde). Distance is definitely important. He's probably waiting for you to start an advance and then launching into it so you have nowhere to run; classic tactic. See coach for more advanced instruction...

To rehash: mix up your rhythm, mix up your length, and mix up your timing. When you have this perfected, you will mix your opponent up so bad scoring on him/her will be "Juss like buttah!"

Hope this gives you some ideas. The idea is break the mold that you've established, he obviously has your ticket. Make him buy a new one!

--ess

[cowpaste]

I did really, really badly in the pools. I lost to fencers that were very obviously less skilled than me. It was just horrible. It was one of those days. I would launch these nice long attacks of mine that ended in glorious whiffage because I sucked that day. I just plain didn't hit anything. I normally don't have this much point control problem, but it was really bad today. My opponents would just counter and get the point. One light. Some didn't even really know how to parry.

I'm suprised I wasn't eliminated after pools. I had one measly V. Anyway, I was ranked 54 after the pools. In the first round of DEs (round 64), I had to faced a guy ranked 11. Luckily, I won this one 15-14. I knew I was much, much better than the 54 I earned, and thankfully I started fencing like it too. The next round should have still been pretty easy. However, this guy that beat me 15-0 did purposefully badly in the pools. Why? He lost his first pool bout probably because he wasn't warmed up and careful enough. Then he let his friend beat him to ensure that his friend would continue on after pools. The result was that his ranking after pools was much lower than it should have been, and I was lucky enough to have to face him.

Now that I've been thinking about it for a few days, I'm quite sure my biggest problem in my 0-15 DE was mental. After getting hit by a couple straight attacks, I told myself, "Dood! You are fast enough to parry those things. Just walk a little closer to him and wait for him to attack. Then parry riposte!" It was a stupid idea.

[cowpaste]

So...there was this other tournament yesterday, and once again, I lost 0-15 in the round of 32. Yay! Humiliation!

[edew]

The 3 seconds rule applies when you are in your "kill zone". You have 3 seconds to do something, otherwise you're just a sitting duck.

For all intents and purposes, the 3-second rule should really be 0.3-second rule. In three seconds, your opponent can hit you, talk to his coach, grab a drink, and return to on guard.

[mrbiggs]

So...there was this other tournament yesterday, and once again, I lost 0-15 in the round of 32. Yay! Humiliation!

Well, if you keep losing bouts 15-0, the people you're fencing are out of your range. Fence people who are more at your level, both in practice and in tournaments. And if you go into a difficult tournament, well, sometimes you lose 15-0. It's more important that you learned something from it than that you win the tournament, or even do well.

[Robert (2)]

Well, if you keep losing bouts 15-0, the people you're fencing are out of your range.

I disagree. I have fenced several of the UK's top 5 at comps and not had a single one who beat me 15-0 (15-3, 15-2 plenty). These are people who compete on an international level and I can take at least a point or two, where-as I am a mediocre-poor club fencer. I have only ever been beaten 15-0 once and that was my first big comp, I had no real experience of flick hits, and I was tired and intimidated.

If you are beaten 15-0 you have a psychological problem, because if you had simply stayed in the fight and kept trying new things, sooner or later they would have relaxed and stumbled onto your blade.

Robert

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

throw the game out the window. When he retreats, you retreat, when he lunges, stop him by hitting his bellguard head on, this can stop an attack before it begins, and it will certainly suprise him, as well as send a shock up his arm, which gives you a small window of opprotunity to nail him, which will throw him off. Beat the blade extremely hard, like your trying to knock it out of his hand, and then retreat very fast like your scared. This creates some very funny brain signals in the opponents head, and he will be thinking about what the heck you are doing, instead of keeping his mind on the match. Try some marching attacks. Poise like your going to flick, and then extend lunge into his chest, that willm throw him off. Another good one, is to thrust him in the solar plexus hard, and try to push him backwards with your blade. G'luck.

[edew]

Creating funny brain signals is one thing. It's another that none of the abovementioned actions would score on the opponent. Retreat when the opponent retreats might make for some cognitive dissonance, but since it doesn't punish the opponent with a score, he can correct himself and advance against your retreat.

Hitting him on the bell guard, especially in foil, causes very little physical impact and won't score unless the opponent misses.

Beating the blade hard might scare the opponent, but if it's not followed by something definitely threatening, your opponent will just ignore it.

Threats must be followed through or your opponent won't get it (nor should he need to "get it").

[mrbiggs]

I disagree. I have fenced several of the UK's top 5 at comps and not had a single one who beat me 15-0 (15-3, 15-2 plenty).

If you are beaten 15-0 you have a psychological problem, because if you had simply stayed in the fight and kept trying new things, sooner or later they would have relaxed and stumbled onto your blade.

Robert

Yes, but if you ARE beaten 15-0, and you ARE varying your tactics, and taking out every trick in your bag, and you STILL don't get a point, then odds are that the other fencer is just really good.

And I do agree that not every fencer who is much better than you will beat you 15-0.

[glowstix]

Hitting him on the bell guard, especially in foil, causes very little physical impact and won't score unless the opponent misses.

don't you parry yourself in foil when you hit your opponent's guard??

[Joe biebel]

This guy was shorter than me. We would kinda stare at each other for a few seconds in lunge distance...then POW! I'm hit. I guess you could argue that my distance was really bad. I never backed up for my parries. Then again, it's not like I could do it in time. :/

Does your opponent make a subtle hand gesture and say things like "relax, no need to block the coming attack" in a soft, firm voice? The Attack of the Jedi. If not, I would agree with many of the other posts that the main culprit here is distance and inactivity. Sounds like once your opponent has you in his stare, you cease movement. I think it is safe to say that this opponent is a bit "stronger" than you. For you to have any chance of doing well against him or some day beating him, you would have to become much more active.

More tempos mean more opportunities, both offensive and defensive. He may move on to a different tactic and that's okay. It shows recognition and adjustment on your part.

Joe Biebel

[edew]

Hitting him on the bell guard, especially in foil, causes very little physical impact and won't score unless the opponent misses.

don't you parry yourself in foil when you hit your opponent's guard??

That's what I mean...even if both hit, your touch won't count, so why would your opponent be stunned by that action.