This will be the last of my blog posts. I know that some people might keep up their blogs even after they leave the creative writing class, but I have things I want to do.
I couldn't think of anything big to mention as a final farewell, so I decided to do the opposite of what I was doing before. I am going to talk about why I don't like fencing.
While fencing is a sport that goes against many of the norms in sports, it gains several other downsides the higher you get in level. In division 1 (the highest national tournaments), the mood around fencing changes completely. It was already an individualistic sport, but the higher levels take it to the extreme by excluding nearly everyone who you do not know. There are still some nice guys, but there is still a hint of tension with everyone you meet. I liked fencing for how nice the people I faced against in my early tournaments. But now, everyone seems like they want to rip out each other's throats.
This goes beyond just a competitive attitude. There is a rule that when fencing, you are not allowed to headbutt the other player. This rule was probably in place to prevent angry fencers from damaging equipment and hurting other people. I was in a bout against a kid in a division 2 tournament (not even div 1) and I tried a fleche. A fleche, for those who don't know, is when you stick your sword at your opponent and run as hard as you can (there is usually some form of technique associated to a move to make it effective, but this isn't the case. you literally just run at the guy). As someone who doesn't need to fleche much, I missed a bit and accidentally knocked the guy's head with mine. The guy then staggered backwards, fell flat on his butt and started to cradle his head in his hands (despite having a mask on that prevented his head from getting hit). He was trying to get me disqualified from the match using the headbutt rule. It was so obvious what he was trying to do that the ref just looked at him disappointingly and told him to get up. What really got me angry was that the guy's coach off in the sidelines also looked disappointed that nothing had happened. That implies one big thing: that his coach told him to fake injuries so that he could instantly win a bout. That made me really angry. I learned afterward that that technique is used commonly in most sports (which is why I don't play most sports).
The next thing I think is of personal preference. I don't know about the attitude in other sports, but when I go on the strip to fence, I love the fact that I can decide what I want to do and how I do it. I love the freedom that it gives. However, in advanced fencing, the attitude is that the fencer is a robot that has to execute the coach's strategy. I don't know if it is like that in other sports, but I hate how it happens in fencing. The game is designed to be free-form. Giving the fencer a distinct guideline ruins that aspect. I think this complaint comes primarily from that I wanted to be nicer to the coaches and listen more (I think I am going to start ignoring them if things like this keep up).
Overall, there are a lot of things to like about the sport, but a lot of things to hate about it too. This explanation doesn't even get into how an extrovert may look at the sport. Someone who isn't comfortable being alone may not like the isolation that comes in a fencing match. However, I can't give that explanation.
All in all, stay sticky my friends.
I couldn't think of anything big to mention as a final farewell, so I decided to do the opposite of what I was doing before. I am going to talk about why I don't like fencing.
While fencing is a sport that goes against many of the norms in sports, it gains several other downsides the higher you get in level. In division 1 (the highest national tournaments), the mood around fencing changes completely. It was already an individualistic sport, but the higher levels take it to the extreme by excluding nearly everyone who you do not know. There are still some nice guys, but there is still a hint of tension with everyone you meet. I liked fencing for how nice the people I faced against in my early tournaments. But now, everyone seems like they want to rip out each other's throats.
This goes beyond just a competitive attitude. There is a rule that when fencing, you are not allowed to headbutt the other player. This rule was probably in place to prevent angry fencers from damaging equipment and hurting other people. I was in a bout against a kid in a division 2 tournament (not even div 1) and I tried a fleche. A fleche, for those who don't know, is when you stick your sword at your opponent and run as hard as you can (there is usually some form of technique associated to a move to make it effective, but this isn't the case. you literally just run at the guy). As someone who doesn't need to fleche much, I missed a bit and accidentally knocked the guy's head with mine. The guy then staggered backwards, fell flat on his butt and started to cradle his head in his hands (despite having a mask on that prevented his head from getting hit). He was trying to get me disqualified from the match using the headbutt rule. It was so obvious what he was trying to do that the ref just looked at him disappointingly and told him to get up. What really got me angry was that the guy's coach off in the sidelines also looked disappointed that nothing had happened. That implies one big thing: that his coach told him to fake injuries so that he could instantly win a bout. That made me really angry. I learned afterward that that technique is used commonly in most sports (which is why I don't play most sports).
The next thing I think is of personal preference. I don't know about the attitude in other sports, but when I go on the strip to fence, I love the fact that I can decide what I want to do and how I do it. I love the freedom that it gives. However, in advanced fencing, the attitude is that the fencer is a robot that has to execute the coach's strategy. I don't know if it is like that in other sports, but I hate how it happens in fencing. The game is designed to be free-form. Giving the fencer a distinct guideline ruins that aspect. I think this complaint comes primarily from that I wanted to be nicer to the coaches and listen more (I think I am going to start ignoring them if things like this keep up).
Overall, there are a lot of things to like about the sport, but a lot of things to hate about it too. This explanation doesn't even get into how an extrovert may look at the sport. Someone who isn't comfortable being alone may not like the isolation that comes in a fencing match. However, I can't give that explanation.
All in all, stay sticky my friends.
I like how you mentioned that there are things in fencing that you don't like even though you enjoy the sport.
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