Fencing.Net - Your Guide to Fencing & Fencing Equipment

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 01:05 PM

If you're having problems making touches because of your technique, post your problems here.

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 01:11 PM

I'm having problems lunging at the moment. My coach tells me to make a long lunge when the distance is right and to make the hit at the last possible moment. The problem is that the other guy steps forward and counters to my arm or head, or makes a parry and then I can't recover quickly enough to make a counter-reposte. What am I supposed to do?

Inquartata · 03-01-2005, 08:02 PM

Who is General Technique? Any relation to Lt. Kije?

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 08:38 PM

Wasn't exactly the reply I was looking for. But then again, you're probably foil.

No, sabre. I'm beginning to consider switching weapons.

Namir · 03-01-2005, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Requiem

I'm having problems lunging at the moment. My coach tells me to make a long lunge when the distance is right and to make the hit at the last possible moment. The problem is that the other guy steps forward and counters to my arm or head, or makes a parry and then I can't recover quickly enough to make a counter-reposte. What am I supposed to do?

Heres a drill for ya...
First make a "Small" lunge at the wall. (with a foil) mark there your back heal started.
Second find your "normal" lungeing distance, mark it like you did before with tape,
Now Try a "big" lunge, mark it
Adv. lunge, mark where your back heal started (before adv.)
Then dbl. adv Lunge, mark it
And a balestra lunge.

so the floor should look like this...

[-[---[---[--[--[-------{wall}

with each " [ " being a pice of tape

after you've done this and practiced them, try and have a friend be a "moveing wall" keep distance with them and lunge at them to hit them they can move like any opponet whould so you have to change the sizes of your lunges or add an additional adv. or 2.

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 08:44 PM

Can this be applied to sabre? I'd rather not touch a foil. Might get a wierd disease or somethin'.

Namir · 03-01-2005, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Requiem

Can this be applied to sabre? I'd rather not touch a foil. Might get a wierd disease or somethin'.

Sure it can, I only said foil becouse most people start with it, and having a weapon in hand will give you more of a realistic idea of the distance, I suggest you use whatever weapon you fence with.

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 08:51 PM

Thanks man.

Requiem · 03-01-2005, 08:54 PM

Does anyone know how I modify my personal profile?

Inquartata · 03-01-2005, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Requiem

Wasn't exactly the reply I was looking for. But then again, you're probably foil.

No, sabre. I'm beginning to consider switching weapons.

Note to self: No humor permitted on Requiem's threads. Deadly serious posts only. Resistance is futile; comply.

mrbiggs · 03-01-2005, 09:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inquartata

Note to self: No humor permitted on Requiem's threads. Deadly serious posts only. Resistance is futile; comply.

Humor? He called you a foilist! That's like the funniest post ever!

Requiem, I can't quite give you advice because I don't know enough about sabre, but one idea to try is extending more in your lunge. It sounds like you're being caught off guard in the middle, which will be harder for opponents to do if your blade is extended.

ReverseLunge · 03-01-2005, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Requiem

I'm having problems lunging at the moment. My coach tells me to make a long lunge when the distance is right and to make the hit at the last possible moment. The problem is that the other guy steps forward and counters to my arm or head, or makes a parry and then I can't recover quickly enough to make a counter-reposte. What am I supposed to do?

In Epee, a long lunge doesn't have any advantage at all. In Epee all things are equal, there no need to lunge , retreat or even parry if you don't want to. And you cannot lose a bout by not making any touches. You only lose when touches are made against you. When I first started doing Epee I thought that it would be so easy to beat the old slow veteran fencers since they didn't have much of a lunge or fleche. Boy was I wrong. I would lunge at them from half way across the strip and boop! I had just lunged right into their point. All they did was stand there very straight but relaxed. just dropped their point as my hand came into distance.

I would suggest you stop doing long lunges and replace them will a small advance and a short lunge. That will make for faster recovery and you can decide not to lunge after the advance if you see that you have lost the opening.

achilleus · 03-01-2005, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReverseLunge

In Epee, a long lunge doesn't have any advantage at all.

You're joking right? I mean first off, the guy's a sabre fencer and second off, a long lunge is a great advantage in epee.

Below is just one photo of an Olympic champion busting out the long lunge. If you'd like more, I can post links or the photos themselves...

ReverseLunge · 03-01-2005, 10:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by achilleus

You're joking right? I mean first off, the guy's a sabre fencer and second off, a long lunge is a great advantage in epee.

Below is just one photo of an Olympic champion busting out the long lunge. If you'd like more, I can post links or the photos themselves...

Well that's a really good picture. But I can't tell what lead up to it and also that lunge isn't really that long.

As I said a long lunge isn't that big of a deal in Epee. An accurate stand still counter will beat a long lunge any day.

And yes, I made a mistake. For some reason I thought he was talking about Epee.

Requiem · 03-02-2005, 09:48 PM

You call that a long lunge? That's a medium in my book.

Requiem · 03-02-2005, 10:32 PM

Now, I'm also wondering something else. It's good to make small steps when approaching an opponent. When you close the distance and accelerate, should your steps consiquently get larger?

LUDICROUS · 03-02-2005, 11:34 PM

IMHO, no, its not a good idea to take larger steps the closer you get. For instance (say its foil), you could be advancing quickly making big steps. Opponent beats your foil, meaning hes about to attack. Its much harder to change direction if you're in the middle of a big step...

sabreur · 03-03-2005, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Requiem

I'm having problems lunging at the moment. My coach tells me to make a long lunge when the distance is right and to make the hit at the last possible moment. The problem is that the other guy steps forward and counters to my arm or head, or makes a parry and then I can't recover quickly enough to make a counter-reposte. What am I supposed to do?

In general in sabre, if you are ending short or being hit in prep, it is because you are preparing too quickly and with steps that are too large. Your coach should have told you to shorten your steps, slow down your prep, and work the preparation until the distance is correct for a relatively short lunge.

A short upright lunge allows you to recover and to execute feint-cuts in response to parries. A correct preparation with shorter steps sets you up to parry an attack in prep, or to finish your attack correctly so you have priority against someone stepping in with a counter.

That's the theory, anyway.

MR

Teme · 03-03-2005, 04:24 AM

<nodding in agreement with sabreur>
In sabre the disadvantages of the 'long' lunge are very pronounced; it's generally slower to execute, more off-balance, unrelaxed, and as you have noticed, almost impossible to recover from (for any practical purpose).

The short, upright, sliding lunge is the only way to go. And train yourself so as to be able to change it to balestra-lunge right up to the moment your back leg springs you forward.

Requiem · 03-03-2005, 09:30 AM

Christ! Wish I would have know about the good advice on this site last year!