Conductive bib design for foil?

[Faire]

Seriously, what weapon would you switch to? In epee you have a blade that is twice as stiff and thick as a foil and it is going to get fleched into your neck. Saber is arguably worse for the "oh, my fragile neck is in danger" crowd.

Fleching isn't limited to epee, regardless of the stiffness of the blade. Saber is not a point weapon like foil; getting hit with the side of a blade spreads out an impact. Flicking a flexible foil onto the bib or the side of the neck though may be a new experience.

Saber and epee fencers don't have a very limited target area nor any need to drill hitting a bib. Given this new target for foil, my question is what precautions have been made for safety.

[bunbury]

Fleching isn't limited to epee, regardless of the stiffness of the blade. Saber is not a point weapon like foil; getting hit with the side of a blade spreads out an impact. Flicking a flexible foil onto the bib or the side of the neck though may be a new experience.

Saber and epee fencers don't have a very limited target area nor any need to drill hitting a bib. Given this new target for foil, my question is what precautions have been made for safety.

Did bibs magically never get hit before? The thing is already safe; quit crying. The only difference is it'll be a touch this time around.

[CvilleFencer]

Fleching isn't limited to epee, regardless of the stiffness of the blade. Saber is not a point weapon like foil; getting hit with the side of a blade spreads out an impact. Flicking a flexible foil onto the bib or the side of the neck though may be a new experience.

I had heard somewhere that they occasionally fleche in foil as well as epee. Why, I have even heard that once or twice a year, an epee fencer somewhere will manage to actually flick his weapon, sometimes even to the body! That was not my point. My point was that something like 60-80% of epee shots at a decent level are to the body and most good epee fencers train on explosiveness and controlling the high line. Ergo, shots to the neck happen and pretty frequently.

Thats with weapons that are stiffer, have much less overall flex and weigh more. No serious injuries that I know of, no crushed trachea or the like. The coaches at a Div 1 NACs are not standing by with Exacto knifes and drinking straws to save their students from the carnage that having the neck as target causes.

Groin is a soft area. It is a sensitive area that is easily injured. It is also target. I would rather get poked in the neck than the nads any day of the week. I don't hear a vast outcry about this apparent safety threat. Why? Cause it ain't new. There are some good reasons to dislike the new rule, but to me the safety argument is a red herring.

Saber and epee fencers don't have a very limited target area nor any need to drill hitting a bib.

No need to drill hitting the bib? What about when your opponent gives you a low shot or you want to let them know he is hitting a bit hard? After all, you have to announce your presence and opinions with Authority (Thanks Allen, I am going to remember that one) and let them know you can play not nice too. Why any coach who sends out a high level fencer without having gone over and drilled the officially unofficial chart of where (throat, nads, collar bone, thumb joint, knee, shoulder joint, etc) and how hard to pop someone for various offenses has done his student a huge disservice!

Given this new target for foil, my question is what precautions have been made for safety.

I seem to recall something about 1200k material, padding and layers of protection in the M section somewhere. That and 50+ years of testing with Epee, where the weapons are 50% heavier and stiffer... If it helps, think of it this way. The lower throat and upper chest have always been target. Now foil fencers don't get to skate with covering it.

I really am not trying to pick on you Faire. I am just sort of venting with the whole knee jerk "foilist will be dropping like flies now that bib is target" mentality that seems to be developing. So please don't take the past two threads two personally, I am mainly seizing on things you said to make a point, or at least try to. No offense at all intended.

At the end of the day I think injuries are more likely to occur (and they do) from fencing on raised finals pistes. However, thats the game and thats where it is fenced. Those at the level that they need to worry about it don't. They just fence. Theres a moral in there somewhere I think...