Straightening your weapon

Ok. I'm sure there is a perfectly logical answer to this, but why on earth are you not allowed to strighten your weapon on the surface of the piste? Presumably you are not allowed to leave the piste and do it elsewhere either, right?

"ear9pg" <ear9pg@leeds.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:cv8c2h$iad$1@iss-nntp.leeds.ac.uk
> Ok. I'm sure there is a perfectly logical answer to this, but why on
> earth are you not allowed to strighten your weapon on the surface of
> the piste? Presumably you are not allowed to leave the piste and do
> it elsewhere either, right?

I've always assumed that it's because if it's a grounded strip made of
copper mesh (which was the standard until very recently), doing that
will tend to cut up the copper wires. That sort of thing makes the
armorers very irate. You can straighten your weapon just as well on the
floor just off the side of the strip.

It may be that, as copper mesh strips become obsolete, that rule will be
dropped. However, we also appreciate that rule at our salle, where the
strips aren't grounded, but straightening weapons on the piste tends to
scratch up the pretty paint that marks the strip.

--

Dirk Goldgar

(to reply via e-mail, remove NOSPAM from address)

Thanks for your reply, Dirk.

>will tend to cut up the copper wires. That sort of thing makes the
>armorers very irate. You can straighten your weapon just as well on the
>floor just off the side of the strip.
>

I can appreciate this. In that case, the question becomes what exactly do they
mean by "leaving the piste"? Are you literally not allowed to step off it
between "Halt" and "Fence"? If that is the case, are you just supposed to
make do with what you've got? Or is it one of those rules, like not taking
your mask off througout the duration of a bout, that's hardly ever enforced?

"ear9pg" <ear9pg@leeds.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:cv8o50$l7m$1@iss-nntp.leeds.ac.uk
> Thanks for your reply, Dirk.
>
>> will tend to cut up the copper wires. That sort of thing makes the
>> armorers very irate. You can straighten your weapon just as well on
>> the floor just off the side of the strip.
>
> I can appreciate this. In that case, the question becomes what
> exactly do they mean by "leaving the piste"? Are you literally not
> allowed to step off it between "Halt" and "Fence"?

No, you can step off the side or end of the piste briefly during a halt.
You mustn't delay the bout unnecessarily, but certainly if you show the
referee an overbent blade and ask if you may straighten it, you'll be
granted a moment to do so.

> If that is the
> case, are you just supposed to make do with what you've got? Or is it
> one of those rules, like not taking your mask off througout the
> duration of a bout, that's hardly ever enforced?

I'm not sure what you mean. Current rules permit you to remove your
mask at any time during a halt.

--

Dirk Goldgar

(to reply via e-mail, remove NOSPAM from address)

In article <iePRd.1462$Ba3.277@newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.n et>, Dirk
Goldgar <dgoldgar@NOalumni.SPAMprinceton.edu> writes
>"ear9pg" <ear9pg@leeds.ac.uk> wrote in message
>news:cv8c2h$iad$1@iss-nntp.leeds.ac.uk
>> Ok. I'm sure there is a perfectly logical answer to this, but why on
>> earth are you not allowed to strighten your weapon on the surface of
>> the piste? Presumably you are not allowed to leave the piste and do
>> it elsewhere either, right?
>
>I've always assumed that it's because if it's a grounded strip made of
>copper mesh (which was the standard until very recently), doing that
>will tend to cut up the copper wires. That sort of thing makes the
>armorers very irate. You can straighten your weapon just as well on the
>floor just off the side of the strip.
>
>It may be that, as copper mesh strips become obsolete, that rule will be
>dropped.

They had some strips at the Slough Open that looked to be made out of
the same fabric as a lame jacket. They were good to fence on, with much
less noise than the solid aluminium variety, and I would guess they'd be
very easy to set out and to carry, unlike a copper mesh. People on the
Leon Paul stand said they were expected to last well (and in fact were
over a year old already, with no damage yet). But you certainly
wouldn't want to straighten your weapon on them!

Tim S.

>However, we also appreciate that rule at our salle, where the
>strips aren't grounded, but straightening weapons on the piste tends to
>scratch up the pretty paint that marks the strip.
>

--
Tim S.