Sport Psych: Go big or....

[Mr Epee]

Go big or go home!!!

How can you apply this traditional x-sport mentality approach to your fencing?

Should it be? Is it appropriate?

[Peach]

Reminds me of the T-shirt my health club used to hand out--"Train Hard or Go Home!" I cast a jaundiced eye on that, as my motto is "Show Up But Don't Get Hurt."

This might sound contradictory to those who know me, since at 55 I train pretty darn hard and have considerable ambition, but my goals are reachable. Immoderate and unrealistic ambition seems just as idiotic as self-defeating sloth to me. Besides, I need this body for the rest of my life and don't particularly want to damage the hardware.

[Bryn Ralph]

Or, perhaps, 'tis the application of the new Amercian paradigm:

Get over it.com -- or -- Get therapy -- or -- Get out.

[seven6ty]

I don't think it applies very well. That's usually talking about the size of a gap or some such thing. In fencing, it just means be ballsy, which isn't quite the same.

[oiuyt]

I don't think it applies very well. That's usually talking about the size of a gap or some such thing. In fencing, it just means be ballsy, which isn't quite the same.

Commit to your actions.

If you're making an action, make it all out -- no half measures.

Guts 'n Glory and all that jazz.

Same in X-sports as in fencing, whether we're talking about that sick air that you pull on your half-weasel, 1080, with off-side grip slide and wacky toe flip* or the commitment on your false-parry/real-parry combo with collapse of distance that you pull off at 14-14.

-B
*yes, I DID just invent this and have no clue what it means -- pretty much just like the X-Games announcers do, as far as I can tell.

[KD5MDK]

The real problem is now that you've said it someone will have to try it.

[Allen Evans]

X-Games mottos tend to embrace not just performances, but lifestyles. I'm not sure that fencing is in that same class.

Still, I understand the approach on the strip: a willingness to take a chance at a critical moment, and to perform in the face of pressure. Was it John Moreau who won a National Championship on a toe touch? He's always struck me as someone who would embrace that approach.

Allen

[AAAI]

.....

[oiuyt]

One of the responses from the survey the USFA Marketing group sent out at the beginning of the year led to the tagline in one of their sample posters of "Fencing: The original eXtreme sport" or something along those lines.

-B

[JMcC]

Go big or go home!!!

I've heard it as "GOBOSH!" - go big, or stay home. Which would certainly help cut back on our need to import foreign oil.

[Phaeton]

Ah, another platitude, how lovely those are.

I find the statement absolutely useless from a fencing standpoint. Much better is to set a solid goal of an action you will do technicayl, and fence solid points and say to yourself.

Fence smart and technical, improve X action or don't fence at all.

[telkanuru]

I dunno about that. It gets you in the right mental spot. An anticdote:

I was fencing a tough opponent and I just couldn't get anything to work. At the break (DE) my coach comes over to offer advice and the like. I rejected each of his suggestions along the lines of "He has better distance control" or "I can't get around his parries". Finally he said "counter-attack with opposition", and I said "he's stronger than me". He just looked at me and said "then go home". Point taken. Didn't win, but did much better after that.

[Grasshopper]

I would say that the "enjoyment" factor - how much you love and are fascinated by the sport apply in both X-games and fencing. A coach once told me that if you don't want to see yourself get bored and quit fencing, you better fence the way you want to fence and not the way somebody tells you too. If that means "Go Big" to you, why not fence "Big".

[KD5MDK]

Because then your parries look like a beginner's?

Then again, I think Allen Evans and telk have good points about giving the right mindset.

As to the slogan oiuyt mentioned, I think that it would need careful positioning to avoid alienating existing fencers and not drawing people to the sport with a misconception of what it is. Just wait for the next fencer to join based on that hook and immediately ask "So, how much grappling are we allowed to do?"

[rcmatthews]

I think it best applies to the last touch of a 14-14 bout. Either you do what you know you can and win, or you let the gremlin get inside your head and lose.

[Mr Epee]

I think it best applies to the last touch of a 14-14 bout.

Yeah... because the concept of commitment has nothing to do with fencing unless you already ****ed up and made it to 14-14...

[sabreur]

I think it is completely opposed to anything relating to good fencing.

Given two fencers of equal physical capability, the one who will win consistently is the one who goes small--whose footwork and handwork are more refined, who is balanced in mind and body, and who can divide time and distance into smaller increments.

"Go big" to me has nothing to do with commitment or focus. It is simply a disco buzz phrase that encourages being out of control, galumphing down the strip, whacking or poking people far too hard, and generally being a jerk.

I believe I may be showing my age.

MR

[campb1pr]

I think Allen made a point that has been overlooked - this slogan often points to lifestyles in the X sports, as well as performance.

What are the three biggest things that the XGames have going for them (besides being the brainchild of ESPN)?
1 - danger - makes people want to watch the chance someone might get their head caved in.

2 - accesibility of many of the sports/events - lots of kids have skateboards, bikes, etc. and can try the crazy a$$ things they see on TV

3 - Characters - many of the competitors have public personas that are just a feather boa (no offense FG) away from Hulk Hogan status. This draws attention, ratings, sponsors, etc.

So I think that since many of you have (correctly IMO) debunked GO BIG as a way to consistently fence well on the strip, the next logical question set is, can it apply to the overall appearance/lifestyle of fencing?
Does that change anything in the fencing world if some fencers adopt it?
Can it help our image?
Could it be fun?


Just a thought.

[keith]

Go big or go home!!!

How can you apply this traditional x-sport mentality approach to your fencing?

Should it be? Is it appropriate?

someone has been drinking the marketing gatoraid.

Watch the competitions for the x-games and they are no different than other 'standard' events - plenty of not going all out to hold the lead*. Like all sports it's mainly about winning.

The go-big showboating is for displays and advertising. Which is the really impressive aspect of the x-games bandwagon.

(with a possible exception of a certain snow boarder).

[oiuyt]

Just wait for the next fencer to join based on that hook and immediately ask "So, how much grappling are we allowed to do?"

I've had a student pose that question.

-B