Worst Fencing Injury

**swordsen** · 07-01-2002 04:34 PM

Just to add a happier note to this thread. Thus far there have been NO deaths in the USA from fencing accidents. This doesn't include the gentleman who had a heart attack and died on strip in Alabama a few years ago.
Lest you doubt this, the agent for the insurance company working with the school I work at actaully went and looked inteh actuarial records when he heard we were offering fencing.

**Catlady** · 07-01-2002 09:08 PM

I'll second what Swordsen just said. I can't remember the precentages, but I read an article a while ago on sports safety and fencing, despite its violent appearance, wound up being one of the safer sports. Definitely safer than football, soccer, basketball and a few others as I remember and that's including injuries in general.

As for accidents waiting to happen, fortunately they didn't, in a case of what can only be called testosterone poisoning, my a fencer at my club and one of his former coaches (the apparently (in)famous Pepper--I say apparently because everyone seems to know who this is except me) decided to fence epee in shorts and t-shirts. They got many bruises and were, I believe, rather sorry they thought of it, but, as I said, fortunately no one was seriously hurt.

I guess fencers in general are stubborn because no matter how many times they're warned or how many gruesome stories they hear, half the club still comes in to fence in shorts during the summer.

**Inquartata** · 07-01-2002 10:05 PM

I know a coach ( and former Olympic epeeist ) who claims that his coach would make people take epee lessons barechested if he was dissatisfied with their attitudes and concentration...

And this was in the days of the point d'arret...

[ 07-02-2002, 09:58 PM: Message edited by: Inquartata ]

**schlager7** · 07-03-2002 05:07 AM

Gee,you mean YOUR club's epeeistes DON'T use points d'arret anymore?

(just kidding)

**servdragoon** · 07-03-2002 08:12 AM

In a dry practice sabre bout i got an eye full of sparks from a really hard head cut. Couldnt see for a couple minutes and i had a busted capillary in my eye from it.

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-03-2002 08:15 AM

eeek!!!

The first time I fenced saber, I hit so hard that the opponent's blade was ripped out of the guard of the weapon. The remains of the blade flew out our open door and into the parking area. Never seen anything like it before or since.

**swordsen** · 07-03-2002 12:32 PM

Repeat the words "finger cuts" D'art. Over and over.
Strokes like that are why people like me look at sabre the way we do.......

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-03-2002 12:53 PM

Oh, don't worry, hehe. I learned then and there that just because its a cutting weapon, saber isn't broadsword. Whenever, I do fence saber now, I am much gentler.

**Inquartata** · 07-03-2002 07:54 PM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by schlager7:
Gee,you mean YOUR club's epeeistes DON'T use points d'arret anymore?

(just kidding)<hr /></blockquote>No, we never adopted those newfangled contraptions in the first place!

**Hecuba** · 07-18-2002 06:11 PM

So, how come almost all these injuries are puncture wounds?

My first injury, a broken and massively sprained ankle, came from forgetting to sweep the floor even though I had seen an entire burrow of dust bunnies on the strip. When I lunged, my heel hit the biggest and meanest bunny of them all and never stopped sliding. Don't ask me why the injury was to my ankle and not my groin muscle - I've never figured that out.

The next year, at a competition, I was being oh so tricky with my footwork. I retreated, luring my opponent in, then with an explosive lunge . . I blew out the anterior cruciate ligament in mt back leg, along with a good bit of cartiledge. There is something surreal about the feeling of starting a lunge and then having your supporting leg go all limp and unstrung underneath you. My poor opponent was staring helplessly as i was carried/helped off the strip and saying, yo anyone who would listen "But I wasn't anywhere near her."

So, then I switched to epee to protect my legs (hunh?) During practice one evening my opponent fleched, we did some in-fighting and passed each other. He kept running but I rolled on down to the floor having just blown the ACL in my other knee. Turns out it was only partially busted (which means it kept hurting) and the surgeon just sent me to PT. The therapist had no idea what fencing was all about and ok-ed me to do footwork - so long as I kept on my brace. Perhaps trying to fleche from a lunge was a little too ambitious after only a few weeks back. Needless to say, I never left the ground but simply did a screaming roll onto my back as the rest of the ligament tore through.

Then ther was the injury I got in a fencing dream. One night after a practice which involved alot of low-line touches -but no foot or ankle hits - I dreamed that someone hit me really hard on the ankle and broke it. I woke up feeling that broken ankle. All day I couldn't walk on it, but it wasn't very swollen, only tender to touch. I called the doctor and ended up with an appointment with his vacation substitute. When showing this very old doctor my ankle I was careful not to lift my trouser leg too high because of all the bruises on my legs (I didn't want to have to explain fencing as a contact sport, low-line attacks etc.) My ankle was not broken but there was a now huge bruise. In a very meaningful way, the doctor mentioned that bruises were often a symptom of "something else" and then asked how my family life was. I spluttered out my explanations about the brutal/bruising nature of fencing but he was clearly unconvinced. If the bruise was from a sport, he clearly did not approve of a woman participating; if it was from my husband, he clearly expected a better lie.

I left the office very angry. But I was still puzzled: the thing was, no one had hit me on the ankle or foot the night before. Then I remembered. In the dark, finding my way to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I had cracked my ankle on the carved foot of an old Victorian chair. I almost went back and changed my story to the doctor but he would have liked it too much - so much along the lines of bumping my eye on a doorknob.

**FoilFencer2001** · 07-18-2002 08:15 PM

After fencing about a year and a half:

I got whacked in the knuckles hard enough to fill that finger of my glove with blood once.

I've gotten many black and blues in the ribs and occassional red bruises and welts on my weapon arm.

That's about it.

I fence epee about 90% of the time and always wear a three-weapon mask, jacket and knickers. I plan to get a new glove soon.

**servdragoon** · 07-18-2002 09:03 PM

Peter Westbrook was stabbed in the throat by a broken sabre during a lesson once. My former coach Max Catala, was stabbed in the arm by a broken sabre too.

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-19-2002 06:34 AM

Geeze, how did I ever forget this one.

About a year and a half ago, a friend of mine who for a few months took up SCA were fencing epee at the club. We had decided to fence dry and more or less SCA style. He took out my right arm so I switched to my un-gloved left hand. Before I knew it, the blade came whipping over the guard and SMASHED my finger so bad that I hurt for two days and it took the rest of the semester (it happened in January) for the nail to slowly decay and fall off.

Sorry, I know that was sick but never fence without a glove, even for a minute!!!

**epeemike81** · 07-19-2002 06:53 AM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by D'Artagnan1673:
Geeze, how did I ever forget this one.

About a year and a half ago, a friend of mine who for a few months took up SCA were fencing epee at the club. We had decided to fence dry and more or less SCA style. He took out my right arm so I switched to my un-gloved left hand. Before I knew it, the blade came whipping over the guard and SMASHED my finger so bad that I hurt for two days and it took the rest of the semester (it happened in January) for the nail to slowly decay and fall off.

Sorry, I know that was sick but never fence without a glove, even for a minute!!!<hr /></blockquote>For that matter, never fence SCA, even for a minute.

remember: Friends don't let friends do SCA.

-m

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-19-2002 06:56 AM

LOL!!!!!

I've fenced it about 3-4 times and I'll stick with Epee.

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-19-2002 06:58 AM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by FoilFencer2001:

I fence epee about 90% of the time and always wear a three-weapon mask, jacket and knickers. I plan to get a new glove soon.<hr /></blockquote>When I made the transition from foil to epee, I bought all new equipment, FIE. I haven't had a single welt, bruise or anything.

**135711** · 07-20-2002 06:44 PM

is it made of tefflon? i have trouble with this fie stuff...hey, the other posts, where they ask about WHat does fencing need? i'll tell you what is needs.....less fie. i simply REFUSED to buy fie, becasue of it's inherent bull****, there is no difference in a nylon fie jacket and a nylon ulhman jacket, there is no difference in fie pants and ulmann pants, even with the so=called sufficient thickness sentence, buried on page whatever of page 168 of the rules and regulations booklet, it is nearly moot. unless there is credible, producalbe evidence to the contrary, i think ulhmann has just as good stuff, without the wonderful fie stamp.

**D'Artagnan1673** · 07-20-2002 07:21 PM

The FIE is made out of kevlar, I think. Hey, I think its saved me a lot of pain from hard shots.

**epeemike81** · 07-20-2002 07:25 PM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by 135711:
is it made of tefflon? i have trouble with this fie stuff...hey, the other posts, where they ask about WHat does fencing need? i'll tell you what is needs.....less fie. i simply REFUSED to buy fie, becasue of it's inherent bull****, there is no difference in a nylon fie jacket and a nylon ulhman jacket, there is no difference in fie pants and ulmann pants, even with the so=called sufficient thickness sentence, buried on page whatever of page 168 of the rules and regulations booklet, it is nearly moot. unless there is credible, producalbe evidence to the contrary, i think ulhmann has just as good stuff, without the wonderful fie stamp.<hr /></blockquote>First of all, Uhlmann DOES make FIE gear. secondly, I own both Uhlmann non-FIE and Uhlmann FIE, and there is DEFINITELY a difference. FIE gear is much better padded, and can thus absorb more force.

-m

**servdragoon** · 07-21-2002 11:23 AM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by edew:
 <blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by Purple Fencer:


The first time I sparred with Freewind in sabre, he went for a flank cut and went a touch low...the stripe on my butt took a week to fade! OUCH!!<hr /></blockquote>That Freewind just loves to put permanent markings on people!<hr /></blockquote>Does he have any new tatoos or hair styles?

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