What was your finest moment in fencing?

[D'Artagnan1673]

The board seems sleepy today, so I'll wake everyone up by letting them talk about themselves.

What is your finest moment in fencng? Was it the time you beat the odds to when a tournament? Was it that perfect touch?

I know we've had threads like this before, but a lot of new people have come up so its their turn to tell.

[MikeHarm]

So far the moment I liked best was when I was in a tourney, seeded towards the bottom, and eliminated in DE's the top seeded fencer at the event after he had gone around bragging about how badly he was going to kick my *** and how easy a match it was gonna be and asking his friends to come watch. It was a younger fencer of course which explains a little the lack of maturity in what followed. It was a close match, and once we got to labelle in the third time period I set him up with an invitation to a spot he liked to flick to, picked it up and nailed him with a one light touch. After the win he threw his mask down tears ran down his face and he ran out of the tourney crying after with his mom chasing after him.

[swordsen]

That must have been fun Mike. It is good to take egos down a notch or two.

[AndrewH]

In jersey we have the annual freshman-sophomore tournament, which is most HS fencer's first experience with the pool/elimination format. It's also a long and grueling day- my first year there (fencing epee) I spent 9 hours waiting. Anyway, after those 9 hours, I did well in my pool and ended up 5th seed out of 60-something, giving me a bye into the round of 32. So by the time that DE rolls around (more waiting) everyone else on my team has been eliminated, so all of them and my coach are watching me. DE's there are always best 2/3 5 touch bouts. I take the first bout 5-0. Second bout, he figures out my tactics and beats me 5-3. So I figure, ok no problem, I'm still the higher seed. That was just luck. Third bout, he takes a 3-0 lead. I score one, he scores one, and he's up 4-1. Then, in true epee fashion, I come back one by one, up to 4-4, then finally get my 4th point in a row to win 5-4 and go onto the next round. But let me tell you, that was probably the most tense bout of my life so far, even worse with all my friends & coach watching. I still remember that one when I'm down several points in an important bout.

[D'Artagnan1673]

I loved yours Mike!!!! Simply hilarious.

I've mentioned mine before in some manner or another before. It was a real tough bout against the guy whose punctured mask has been the topic of discussion over the past weeks. He was really tough and I was forced to use every ounce of determination, speed and skill that I had to pull it off. I ended the bout with a textbook shot under the bell to the wrist.

I haven't had too many other bouts that were of the intensity, except for a few friendly club bouts.

[shyHeidi]

Best moment, eh? Mmm... haven't had one yet.
<img border="0" title="" alt="[Frown]" src="frown.gif" />

[Bebop and Rocksteady]

Mine would probably have to be the time when I won every competition in the Olympics.

It was nothing, really

[D'Artagnan1673]

haha

[HilandDoug]

Mike, was that at RFC a while back? I think I saw that bout, and the crier after.

I have so many, it's tough to narrow it down. But early in my fencing career, we hosted a tournament at Schoolcraft when I was a student. I was fencing sabre against a senior in high school, and I was a college freshman. It was the first bout for either of us, right at the beginning of the tournament. The President (that's what we called refs back then, as President of the jury, since it was still dry) called "FENCE!" and I started advancing as fast as I could, and the other guy started retreating as fast as he could. He must have been really nervous, becasue not only did I back him off the end of the strip, but he continued another 20 feet backward, tripped over the first row of unfolded gymnasium bleachers, and landed sprawled on his back, covering the first 4 rows of the bleachers! My first reaction was to laugh at him, but then I took off my mask and asked him if he was OK. I remember his comment was something like, "My back hurts more than my pride!" I helped him up and we walked back to the piste, where I finished him quickly, 0-5. Back then, we counted touched AGAINST, so you won 0-5, not 5-0.

[arcon]

One of my finest moments was when I beat this particuliar coach in a bout.
Havent fenced him since then. He left the club.

the Arcon

[MikeHarm]

Yep, that was the tourney. It was my favorite sort of bout using a tactical/distance game vs someone attacking very fast and aggressively.

My second favorite match is the DE I had with Ron S where he beat me 5/0 in the seeding and I eliminated him in the DE's by using more of a footwork approach than bladework which he was totally crushing me on.

[lochinvar]

Well, I don't know about you all, but I've reached an age where I think it's neat that I can still do this.

Just picking up a weapon and coming en garde is the finest moment for me... and it repeats over and over.

[latenight]

My first gold was the best moment. That was the tournament at which I learned where I had to be in my head to do well.

<small>[ 07-18-2002, 06:53 PM: Message edited by: latenight ]</small>

[135711]

none yet, i'm not sure there was a finest moment yet. i, like arcon, did nearly the same thing. i went 14-15 against a very experienced fencer, when i was out of practice for nearly 20 years. but it wasn't a finest moment, because my form wasn't fluid, it was sort of stilted.

[Cheryl]

My finest moment would be when I beat my husband (one of my teachers) in a tourneyment in sabre.
This was a dry tourney and I had been fencing lousy. Greg was my second to last bout and I was pretty depressed. I went on to the strip and sighed thinking, oh, well, chalk this one up to the "good experience" side. So we started and I made a couple of good parries, but still ended up being down 3-1. I decided that this was a good a time as any to try some new attack combinations. I came back and we tied 4-4. By this time I was really pumped and Greg was rather annoyed. (I should tell you Greg is 6'3" and rather skinny, while I am 5'2" and a tad rotund). As we were lining up for the last touch I decided to do a fleche, making a quite nifty shot to the neck.
I was elated. Greg was a really good sport about the whole thing and I have made a point to not go on about it (that is really hard!!)
I have NEVER fenced him anywhere near that well since, but I'll never forget it either.

[Inquartata]

It will probably sound fatuous, but just about EVERY moment I get to spend fencing against a challenging opponent if pretty darned fine. Maybe that's my "drug"; I'd do it all day every day if I could and if my body would consent.

But over and above that, it's hard for me to rank-order them. The first time I won a tournament; the first time I placed in the top 8 at a real tournament ( ie not one of the tiny ones in my Division ); the first time that I, a lowly D, beat a C; then the first time I beat a B; the time I got to fence someone who went on to be on the Olympic team....

[Purple Fencer]

Summer Nats 2001. Went with no real expectations, but the hope that I'd have a reason to miss the flight back to L.A. Div III men's foil...took 29th out of 154 (?), placed the highest of all the SoCal Division fencers, AND higher than my clubmates...who all had coaching whereas I did not. They can all wipe the floor with me now, but back then...

[servdragoon]

My first competetion in college. I had never fenced before a day in my life and i had gone to 2 weeks of practice. Eventhough, coach put me in and i won 5 outta 6 bouts, lost the very last bout to a lefty(darn those lefties).

[three_hundred_fifty_five]

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Helvetica, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Helvetica, Arial">Originally posted by MikeHarm:
<strong>...It was a younger fencer of course which explains a little the lack of maturity in what followed. It was a close match, and once we got to labelle in the third time period I set him up with an invitation to a spot he liked to flick to, picked it up and nailed him with a one light touch. After the win he threw his mask down tears ran down his face and he ran out of the tourney crying after with his mom chasing after him...</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Helvetica, Arial">Fencing is such a gentlemen's sport.

[Zilverzmurfen]

My finest moment up until now was just a few weeks ago.

I was picked for the national military fencing team and went to the Military World Championship in Switzerland. My weapon is epée but I was asked if I wanted to join the womens sabre event, due to lack of competing nations.

Me and one of my teammates decided to try it out, since neither of us had ever tried fencing sabre. It was great fun and we ended up with a bronze medal!

Receiving a medal and watching the swedish flag being hoist was quite a moment to remember! It's not likely to happen to me very often so it was really a memorable moment...

//Zz

<small>[ 07-19-2002, 08:10 AM: Message edited by: Zilverzmurfen ]</small>