Books on Coaching

[Dave]

I am just begining the long journey of becoming a coach. Can any one recommend me any books on the subject? I currently own

Fencing with the foil - Crosnier (good but very dated)
Handbook of foil fencing - Skipp (over simplistic)
Epee fencing -Vass (bizzare terminology)
Epee combat manual - Kingston


Yes, I know the search function exists but if you put in "coaching + books" there are 500 replies, mostly in the water cooler. Also if this section is supposed to become an FAQ on coaching this could be a good thread to consolidate the various views/reviews.

For completeness there are also:
The Canadian federation manuals http://www.fencing.ca/coaching_manuals/manuals.htm

Allen Evans website http://home.earthlink.net/~allenevans59/

[chefencer]

Understanding Fencing (Zbigniew Czajkowski)

Fencing and the Master

[RITFencing]

I just picked up these two a few weeks back and recommend them highly:

Understanding Fencing by Zbigniew Czajkowski
Fencing and the Master by Laszlo Szabo

Hope they help.

[jfarmer]

Originally Posted by Dave

I am just begining the long journey of becoming a coach. Can any one recommend me any books on the subject? I currently own

Fencing with the foil - Crosnier (good but very dated)
Handbook of foil fencing - Skipp (over simplistic)
Epee fencing -Vass (bizzare terminology)
Epee combat manual - Kingston


For completeness there are also:
The Canadian federation manuals http://www.fencing.ca/coaching_manuals/manuals.htm

Allen Evans website http://home.earthlink.net/~allenevans59/

Start with visiting the USFCA website www.usfca.org. Go to the acreditation page and grab the reading list(s) for the Moniteur & Prevot exams. That will keep you busy for a good while.

The Canadian manuals are good, Croisner did them in the early/mid '80s. I understand that they are being revised and updated. I think that the materials used and handed out at USFA coaches college are loosely based on them.

Are you planning to go for any certifications? The USFA coaching levels require you to attend coaches college. USFCA has a written exam and one or more practicals for Moniteur & Prevot, Master level requires more work, lots more, a written thesis, and you must have held the level of Prevot for at least 18 months.

Vass' terminology is based on the Hungarian school. If you read Szabo's Fencing and the Master and Lukovich's Fencing- The Modern International Style there is quite a bit of information that explains it and also compares it to the classic French & Italian schools.

John Farmer
Coach, Oak Ridge Fencers Club

[Allen Evans]

For foil, I really got a lot out of:

Foil, Theory, Method and Exercises by Z. Wojciechowski.

While I appreciate the plug for my web site, I have often visited and re-visited Dave Littel's site at:

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeegyz6/index.html

Which has a lot of interesting articles and ideas.

Good luck!

Allen Evans

[Dave]

Originally Posted by jfarmer

Are you planning to go for any certifications? The USFA coaching levels require you to attend coaches college. USFCA has a written exam and one or more practicals for Moniteur & Prevot, Master level requires more work, lots more, a written thesis, and you must have held the level of Prevot for at least 18 months.

I have just started a 5 day (spread over several months) course which should qualify me as a low level epee coach. The course is run using the BFA (British Fencing Association) system which have certifies coaches as levels 1-4 (1 being the lowest,4 the highest, roughly equivilant to the Academie d'armes grades) in a single weapon dependent on their ability/experience. If all goes well, and coaching appeals to me, then I will take it further, if not then at least I gave it a go.

[Bryn Ralph]

I recommend Ziemowit Wojciechowski's Theory, Methods & Exercises in Fencing;Imre Vass' Epee Fencing; The Science of Fencing by Dr. Wm Gaugler; and, of course, Aldo Nadi's On Fencing and Fencing by Joseph Vince.

[Chafunkta]

Originally Posted by Dave

Yes, I know the search function exists but if you put in "coaching + books" there are 500 replies, mostly in the water cooler. Also if this section is supposed to become an FAQ on coaching this could be a good thread to consolidate the various views/reviews.

This really doesn't help your original post, but for future reference use the Advanced Search option. You can select which forums you can search in. More importantly, you can de-select the Water Cooler.

Although, even with that advice the search function still stinks.

[jfarmer]

Originally Posted by Allen Evans

For foil, I really got a lot out of:

Foil, Theory, Method and Exercises by Z. Wojciechowski.

While I appreciate the plug for my web site, I have often visited and re-visited Dave Littel's site at:

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeegyz6/index.html

Which has a lot of interesting articles and ideas.

Good luck!

Allen Evans

Both a sites are gold mines of information. I re-visit them and re-read and steal^H^H^H^H^Hbecome inspired by ideas from them.

Wojciechowski' books is one of the ones that I'm slowly going through. Quite good. Quite dense...

John Farmer
Coach, Oak Ridge Fencers Club

[jfarmer]

Originally Posted by Dave

I have just started a 5 day (spread over several months) course which should qualify me as a low level epee coach. The course is run using the BFA (British Fencing Association) system which have certifies coaches as levels 1-4 (1 being the lowest,4 the highest, roughly equivilant to the Academie d'armes grades) in a single weapon dependent on their ability/experience. If all goes well, and coaching appeals to me, then I will take it further, if not then at least I gave it a go.

Sounds similar to the Canadian system. Another book that I've found useful is Fencing to Win by Simmonds & Morton. While some parts might on first reading appear to be out of dated (the book dates back to just before the outlawing of the fleche in sabre), I have found it to be a veritable treasure, providing me with new points (and old ones!) to think about and then use in lessons.

John Farmer
Coach, Oak Ridge Fencers Club

[chefencer]

Originally Posted by Chafunkta

This really doesn't help your original post, but for future reference use the Advanced Search option. You can select which forums you can search in. More importantly, you can de-select the Water Cooler.

Although, even with that advice the search function still stinks.

I also use google site search

[ABC123]

Have a look at "The Methodology of Sabre Fencing" which you can get here http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...4175&rd=1&rd=1

[Bryn Ralph]

I recommend the following: Rudy Volkman's Introduction to Foil Fencing (Instructor's Manual); Foil Technique & Terminology by Jean Jacques Gillet (USFCA Publication); The Science of Fencing by Dr. Wm, Gaugler (Laureate Press); Aldo Nadi's On Fencing; Joseph Vince's Fencing 2nd Ed.(Ronald Press).