The top fencer in the club everyone wants to beat...

[Sciurus-Rex]

You've got this guy (or gal) at the club who always seems to win his bouts. Maybe by a single point, maybe by a handful, but he is almost never defeated on his home turf unless he's just totally off for the day.

Is he someone you actually like and don't mind losing to over and over again? Or would you prefer the jerk just stay in bed and die? He's a sweetheart, or he's abrasive? ... Positive or negative?

Generalities, of course. One feeling more so than the other. And obviously the poll has room for a response to only one top fencer even if your club has a few, so feel free to discuss your choice here.

((EDIT: Or at least it was supposed to have a poll option. Stupid machine gave me an error message instead...))

[tallntender]

In my club, I'm the one. I'm a sweetheart.

[whtouche]

Again with this concept of "winning" at the club. At my club everyone wins and loses bouts on any given day; there are certainly some fencers who are better than others but they get that way by realizing that when you're at the club it's time to practice.
It would seem insecure to dislike someone just because they win bouts tho..

[glowstix]

well, i don't know..everyone tends to root against me (or for everyone i fence.. ). generally i'm a nice quiet guy who tries to get along with everyone. i think when you're successful and quiet, people interpret it as arrogance and thinking you're above everyone else. apparently, all introverted people are evil..

[Sciurus-Rex]

In my club, I'm the one. I'm a sweetheart.

Riiiiiiight. Sure you are.

Again with this concept of "winning" at the club. At my club everyone wins and loses bouts on any given day; there are certainly some fencers who are better than others but they get that way by realizing that when you're at the club it's time to practice.
It would seem insecure to dislike someone just because they win bouts tho..

Well, gawd bless ya for having an open mind, then. I'm pretty much the same way.

But there are subtle undercurrents -- and sometimes not-so-subtle declarations -- that certain competitive folk want to take down the nominative Big Dawg. It's a blunt esteem issue for some, and an achievement feedback issue for others.

What I'm curious about is that guy's personality and how others interact with him. Do they want him to be taken down a notch, or is he just a nice guy and we don't mind losing bout after bout?

[Peach]

Sometimes I'm the big dawg, sometimes I'm the pup. Depends on who shows up that evening/month/year. We all help each other out.

[Inquartata]

In my club, I'm that guy, at least in sabre. I blush to say so.

Of course, my club has only about 10 other sabre fencers, many of whom are half my age, so that status may not be all that meaningful. And I don't win EVERY bout. On a normal night I'll lose a bout or three. Sometimes one of the other fencers will be on fire or just more consistent, or I'll get stupid or lazy...

Anyway, I wasn't ALWAYS that guy, so I can answer the question. And I felt an admixture of BOTH emotions, sometimes in the course of a single bout!

We've never had someone who evoked consistent enmity, though. Hopefully we still don't; but who can say?

[CheekyCanuck]

Yeah, that's me.
I know I've only been fencing for a short time, but I've been betting the coaches consistently now.
I find that the men at my club don't take to loosing to a woman too well. It's a good thing I'm not mean spirited.

There is one coach that only shows up once in a blue moon and he beats me (badly) every time. I wish he would show up more often so I can figure out what he's doing right and I'm doing wrong.

[RebelFencer]

In my school club I'm that person. It isn't unsual for me to end up running the room for an hour or so. In my serious club where I actually train, I'm number two.

[Inquartata]

There is one coach that only shows up once in a blue moon and he beats me (badly) every time. I wish he would show up more often so I can figure out what he's doing right and I'm doing wrong.

Obviously, what he's doing right is...showing up infrequently.

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

In my school club I'm that person. It isn't unsual for me to end up running the room for an hour or so. In my serious club where I actually train, I'm number two.

Joe, you're always a number two.

At the club, I'm almost always fencing to practice, so I'm working on specific actions, setups, tempo's, whatever, I almost never win then. On the rare occasion I actually turn it up to the max, I win. As far as competitive results go, I'm the best in my club.

If you're always fencing to win at the club, its going to make competition really tough.

[telkanuru]

Joe, you're always a number two.

At the club, I'm almost always fencing to practice, so I'm working on specific actions, setups, tempo's, whatever, I almost never win then. On the rare occasion I actually turn it up to the max, I win. As far as competitive results go, I'm the best in my club.

If you're always fencing to win at the club, its going to make competition really tough.

I'm gonna agree with this. The best guy at club almost never wins all the time at practice. He does place the best all the time at competitions.

[sreckiki]

I'm gonna agree with this. The best guy at club almost never wins all the time at practice. He does place the best all the time at competitions.

Maybe the best guy at club never wins all the time at practice but neither does any other guy in the club! In my opinion, it's very likely that the best guy in your club has the highest percentage of victories over the year at practice... and of course at competitions.

[RebelFencer]

Joe, you're always a number two.

haha, nice. Remember, I'm still up one on you DFP.

[Welted 24/7]

Yeah, I'm "that" guy at my school's club, but considering our piddly population, it's not really much of an accomplishment. Anyway, I fence to "win" here at my club at home, but not because I'm competing at the club. I want to see if I can effectively use the new stuff I've learned and actually WIN with it, instead of it just being a backup trick or something like that.

There are people who I know like that at tournaments, though. You know, the one you see walk in the door and you hope you get to fence them to see if you've gotten good enough to beat them yet. In some cases they're a nice person, in others, they're less than civil to everyone who isn't them.

[rcmatthews]

If there is a guy that you can never beat, practicing against him is a good idea. Steel sharpens steel. Practice bouts are still practice, and I think it is good to train yourself to win, not only to practice certain moves regardless of wether you win or lose.

[RebelFencer]

If there is a guy that you can never beat, practicing against him is a good idea. Steel sharpens steel. Practice bouts are still practice, and I think it is good to train yourself to win, not only to practice certain moves regardless of wether you win or lose.

I agree with that to an extent. There are some times in practice when you just need to pull out all the stops and fence to dominate your club-mate...but then again it's also good to try things on them and work moves so that you have a chance to learn how to make them work in a real situation.

[KD5MDK]

It depends on the weapon. Having a 3 weapon club breaks it down a bit.

[OleMissFencer]

I agree with that to an extent. There are some times in practice when you just need to pull out all the stops and fence to dominate your club-mate...but then again it's also good to try things on them and work moves so that you have a chance to learn how to make them work in a real situation.

Depends on whether or not you have an inferiority complex and need an ego boost.

[Sciurus-Rex]

Depends on whether or not you have an inferiority complex and need an ego boost.

One need not have a "complex" to seek an ego boost. It's a common feeling at some time or another for most everyone.