Before competition , What do i need ?

[Mond @ Tyng]

I take part in a epee competition , before the competition , what must i do ?
take more lesson ? have more fencing ? or relax and have a good rest in home ?

one more problem, i am a short fencer , so which part is my strength ? hand or body ?

[PeterGustafsson]

Hi!


You should find a post by Purplefencer on this forum. Look at his sig. line, it contains a link to an article that he wrote, which answers all your questions, and then some.


Have a nice time!

Peter Gustafsson

[Purple Fencer]

Hi!


You should find a post by Purplefencer on this forum. Look at his sig. line, it contains a link to an article that he wrote, which answers all your questions, and then some.


Have a nice time!

Peter Gustafsson

Awww....thanks Peter!!

Mond...as a short guy myself -- and a horrible epeeist -- I really can't give any competitive advice other than figure out what your strength is and make your opponent fight into it...play your game, not his.

Example...I was sparring with a guy at Swordplay who's 6'10"...I'm 5'4"...obviously, I'm a dead man, right?? Not so...

I know that if I try to get inside his guard, I'll never make it 'cause mt footwork was never really very good...so I fall back on a foil tactic.

My strong side is the outside -- 6 and 2, specifically. On the command to fence I basically drop my blade to the side, offering up my entire chest as target...he goes for it, and I pull of a BIG circular 6/riposte...5 times in a row.

Had he been more experienced or even simply, faster, I could not have pulled it off. But, I knew how he fenced and was able to take advantage of it. That's something you'll develop over time.

Luck to you!

[Inquartata]

Pre-competition routines are very individual things; we can't tell you what is best. You must work that out by experience.

For example, I see many fencers taking lessons before the pools at the competition. It must work for them. I on the other hand cannot take a lesson in the week before a tournament. Any new information or attempt to fine-tune existing technique that close to the tournament simply interferes with my "competition mode". But I do need to bout beforehand. ( And usually if I fence poorly or mediocre at the last practice before the competition I know that I will do well in the tournament. And vice versa. )

Meanwhile many exercise physiology experts seem to advise a layoff of at least a few days before a competition...at least of conditioning work like running or weightlifting. I have found no advantage in that, but no disadvantage, either.

[D+F+P=Hadouken!]

I think the competition lessons are more just like drills, to get your primed for the fencing. Like working to hit a certain action so that in pools, your distance and point control are better on it. No corrections or learning required.

[Phaeton]

You need to make sure you have enough food, water, (gatorade too if you like) to power you through the tournament, and that it's actually something you like the taste of to some degree. You need to make sure you have your repair kit ready (I'm glad I fence sabre, don't have to deal with all the epee points) along with any visual correction so you can actually see those dang point scews.

In addition before competition you should warm up. Warm up and other precompetition behavior is highly personal, and varies from person to person quite differently, but it is vital to stetch to lower the instance of injury. Nearly all fencing injuries arn't actually caused by the blase (quite obvious) and are caused by improper warm up ect.

Use whatever you need to use to make you ready on a physical, mental, and emotional level. I'd also reccomend showing up earlier that registration close so you do have time to warm up and test.

Apart from that, get a good night's sleep, eat a good breakfast and the majority of people fence better sober.....