fencing styles

[wadadli]

ok, i'm new here but have been in the sport for about 6 months now. does anyone else have problems with particular styles of other fencers?? its like, when my style and another style comes together on the strip i seem to have trouble. is there a way to overcome something like this during a bout??

also, i seem to have trouble against fencers (foil and epee) with big actions;i.e. big powerful sweeping actions that are almost disarming for me. after i recieve a strong parry i can barely recover to attempt to parry their riposte. my disengages never seem to work. whats the best thing againts this type of fencer???

[EpeeConvert]

I also have a problem with 2 fencers in particular. One of which i have been fencing with since i started epee. we both have the same amount of epee experience but he makes HUGE actions and GIANT parries and i find myself unable to counter parry or disengage. His attacks are also large difficult to avoid. Should i use footwork more and fence more defensively?
The second fencer has much more experience but in our last 5 touch bouts i fell for the same priem 4 times. how do i counter or avoid this (he's a lefty).

[Balaestra]

I find that if your opponent does HUGE movements and GIANT parries (this is in foil, I don't know how different it would be in epee) is to use your footwork against them. Because I have a lefty at my club who disarmed me three times the first time I fenced him (I was using a french grip, he hasn't disarmed me since I got a pistol grip ), I found that if I could get away from him in time that I wouldn't get disarmed, but instead get the point!
I also found that he is also a very big fellow and not very swift on his feet, but he makes up for that by disarming people.

Disengages would probably also work, considering that their parries are so huge that their point goes off into space, but you also have to feint them into parrying. If the person that does the huge movements is also huge, another way is to go under their parries when you disengage, becasue if you extend up to their quatre for example, it would be easier for them to disarm you, because you're the one in the uncomfortable position (extending 7 feet in the air when you're only 5 foot 5! ).

Hope this helps!!

[Pun]

I dont fence Epee, but I can tell what I do when someone is doing something I dont like. If they have a set pattern that is a weakness, if they think they can pull the same move 4 times and make points thats a weakness. Find ways to use thier "strengths" against them. If they counter and parry very strong and large, feint, make them chase you, If you get them to parry and miss they will almost surely open a hole. you can do this during a bout too. If you notice a certain style you have trouble against, figure out what exactly give u trouble and use it to your advantage, or just adapt and work around it. Try to take them out of their comfort zones, while not falling out of any of yours, try not to make comfort zones but become a well rounded fencer rather than an attacker or counter attacker. Or at least make sure you have an excelent defence and an excelent offense, incase you ever need to use it. Dont get comfortable fighting just one way, but only be comfortable when Your adapting and staying one step ahead of your oppenent.

[MyraTrue]

I sympathize with the complaints about large motions and "powerful" fencing, as well as finding someone who you just can't fence for some reason- a poor combination of your fencing and there's.

I've been fencing 2 1/2 years, so I will say, with some caution, that time helps you learn to deal with some of this. I remember in the first year or so of my fencing (and I stitched to epee AND continued foil about 6 months in) that I often didn't know what *I* was doing, much less what someone else of my similar level was doing.

I have a couple of suggestions, though I don't know how well they will apply. Disagages are a good idea, but a good disengage is very, very small, and quick. A friend of mine used to do disangages around door handles for practice.

If the disengages don't work, maybe trying to determine if there are patterns to the other fencer's parries of attacks. Does he or she have a favorite parry? It may be very good at stopping your attacks, but BECAUSE they have large, sweeping parries, there are a couple of weaknesses. If you can feint and convince them to parry, the parries will be slow because they are so large. Its VERY hard to recover from such large parries (I should know ). Also, it is slow to reposte from large parries because your blade has made such a long arc.

I think what all that was leading up to (sorry, its Saturday) is that if you can keep your blade work smaller and cleaner than theirs is, you may be able to use it to your advantage. Also, if you can't win a power game, try to avoid their blade. A good strong beat isn't any good when your blade is not there, or a "manly" parry does nothing when you've disangaged their parry. Also, does your blade sit, unmoving, in front of you? Sometimes, its harder for someone to "muscle" your blade if it is moving. Not hyper, excessive motion, but enough that it is not always still and inviting an attack on the blade.

As to poor combinations of styles of fencing, I think most fencers discover this. If one "style" doesn't work, try to fence with a different style. Do you always attack? Counter attack? Defend? So something unexpected. Take the attack with a parry-riposte if you usually counter attack. Take the initiative if you are a defender. Try different "styles" out. Different fencers should be fenced differently- you learn what does and doesn't work against that type of fencer and use it.

And boy was THAT a long post.