the importance of a good sparing partners

[Katman]

I've heard that around here they call it "buckeyed"? Someone correct me? But if you're smeared 0-5 or 0-15 then you've been buckeyed. Or maybe it was just on the T-shirts that John Monahan used to pass out.

I just used the term "kicked their/my ***."

I will agree with Mr. Epee from way earlier that in most cases I'd rank quality of bouting over coaching. Then again, I'm not at a point where I can afford coaching.

As a beginner I'd do my best to get the better guys to fence me, but I was mostly ignored or they would fence me to five, whoop my *** and tell me to watch my distance. There was a lot I had to figure out on my own.

I figured that eventually, if I became good enough they'd fence me more. So drill, train, show up to every practice and go to plenty of tournaments if you can afford all of that time and money. If you can't the them's the breaks and life goes on.

Now, at another club I'm one of the better fencers. There are maybe two people that I look forward to fencing that seriously challenge me and I will spend most of my time bouting them, but like counterattack above me I'll bout the less-experinced and try to tell them more than "watch your distance."

I don't have a problem with competative fencers changing clubs simply because they need more of a challenge. If they want to get better then that's fine. They don't have to be charitable to anyone but themselves if they feel like it.

Edit: Smallish club and want to have the lesser fencers fence the big boys more? Have a night where you play "King of the Hill" every other week or so.

[The Poopsmith]

Originally Posted by rory

And to beat someone 5-0 (or 15-0) is to "granny" them. Thus to lose 5-0 is to get "grannied". Calls from the crowd at 4-0 of "the granny's on!" are sometimes heard.

We call it getting "bageled" or blanked. Never heard of getting "grannied". That sounds like a term from some kind of fetish porn.

[smurfette]

Originally Posted by The Poopsmith

Never heard of getting "grannied". That sounds like a term from some kind of fetish porn.

Maybe EDEW has posted a review of this somewhere...?

[Zasha]

Originally Posted by The Poopsmith

We call it getting "bageled" or blanked. Never heard of getting "grannied". That sounds like a term from some kind of fetish porn.

never heard any of that. at club people are very polite when choosing words to talk about other fencers, "yeah, that was a beginner." the tone says everything.

[Dr. Pfleschbach]

If you are a high level internationally rated fencer and your goal is to improve your game then it doesn't make much sense to waste your time fencing inexperienced fencers because they won't advance you towards your goal. However, if you are like the vast majority of us and you are a mid-level fencer then I believe you can benefit from sparring with just about anyone.

Sparring with better fencers has obvious advantages, but working with less experienced fencers can also be beneficial. At a minimum they can serve as moving practice targets that allow you to work on your weakest attacks.

I find that it is sometimes the untrained, yet still athletic fencers that are problematic for me at tournaments because they do not respond logically to invitations and setups, at times leading to humiliating defeats. I figure that since I've got to deal with them I might as well practice how to beat them by getting back to basics.

As a corollary, when I mentor a beginner, the process of explaining fencing to them in simple terms helps to remind myself about the basic precepts that are so simple, elegant and effective, yet easily forgotten in my quest to develop ever more sophisticated technique.

[Inquartata]

And how do these "high level internationally rated fencers" get to be high level internationally rated fencers? By fencing people better than themselves. People who forewent the entirely selfish attitude of "bothering with inferiors can't help ME, so I won't do it" in favor of helping peers improve. As they themselves were once helped by their betters. Who in turn, etc.

"High level internationally rated fencers" ought to continue the cycle and contribute in the same fashion, IMO. This even if in fact they get absolutely nothing from the practice themselves ( which I do not believe is really the case ).

[Poulet]

High level internationally rated fencers do contribute. They fence low level internationally rated fencers! They, in turn, fencing high level nationally rated fencers... Who fence mid level nationally rated fencers, who fence low level nationally rated fencers, who fence strong regional fencers who fence ANYBODY.

It all comes down to Reaganomics... Er, trickle-down fencing theory.

[KD5MDK]

Now there's a convincing argument...

[Inquartata]

Heh.

Now, if such a spread actually existed everywhere, such that the next highest discrete level was available to everyone, it might actually work.

Alas for reality.