Are you a camper or a sniper.....?

I have recently become part of the online gaming community of 'Call of Duty - Black Ops' (yes I know I'm 43 but a man's got to retain some vestige of his childhood...) and have realised I have a distinct tactical leaning toward sniping. I much prefer to find a good hiding spot and take a difficult long shot than run around like a headless chicken blatting everything that moves. Nor do I care to lurk in a corner and ambush people who run past (although this does seem a reasonably valid tactic at times - even though it is despised as 'camping' by the majority of gamers).
I've noticed that this penchant for the long game is reflected in my fencing as well. I much prefer to play the tactical game and get a few good hits in rather than hack away in an attempt to win. There are some advantages to this technique; First, if you get a good hit you can really enjoy it because you've been working for it. Second, you can take time to plan things and improve your game. Third, if you change up a gear it can surprise an opponent and finally, you know what you've been trying so you can learn from experience. However, there are disadvantages in that it can take time to get into a fight by which time the situation can be irretrievable, also, it is a more sedentary style so may not keep you at optimum performance levels and make it harder to change gear should you decide to do so. Most importantly (or is it?) is that I lose more fights than I win right now. So if you adopt this style you may be sacrificing short term success for long term gain so you need to decide whether this way is for you.
In a previous post  http://autumnlightning.blogspot.com/2008/05/nightingale-sings.html I discussed the three famous Japanese rulers of the 16th/17th century, Nobunaga, Hideyoshi and Ieyasu. Dave Lowry relates in his book 'Moving Toward Stillness' how most martial artists fall into one of the three character types of these great archetypal warlords.* I guess the same holds true for fencers but I'm not going to lay it out for you; if you're of the same interests as me you'll either already know or will be prepared to dig around to find out the answer.... which one are you? 

* It's a great story by the way......

Receiving*

There is an expression in martial arts known as "uke" which very roughly translates as receiving an attack. In karate the term is "ukete" or receiving hand and in kendo it is "ukedachi" or the receiving sword. Whenever you train with a partner using drills one of you always assumes the role of receiving sword i.e. the target for the attack. This will usually entail reacting in a pre-ordained way or showing a particular opening for your partner to exploit. In general it is not widely regarded as very glamorous and only being more of a target dummy than anything else. However as usual in fencing this is a significant misconception as the receiver is a vital component of the exercise; if they get it wrong it will all be wrong, their form must be just right for practice and improvement to occur.
On Saturday we were getting the class to practice a beat attack on the preparation, made when the training partner stepped into distance. One pupil was complaining that he was getting hit hard and on observation I was able to tell him why. As he stepped in he was doing so with straight legs ("penguin style" as I call it) thus all his momentum was going forward and down as he tipped over his front foot. If he had been observing proper form and had his feet shoulder width plus apart he would have been fully balanced and better placed to receive his partner's blow, being able to rock back slightly to absorb the impact. By being lax in receiving he was giving himself a tougher time.
Likewise, other pupils when practicing disengage attacks moved their blade across too rapidly thus their partner could not perform the disengage attack correctly, meaning no benefit was gained by either fencer. Another example of the art of the receiver being vital to the success of the whole thing! So the next time you are practicing with a partner and you're not performing the technique make sure you are on the right receiving wavelength.

* Thanks as always to the admirable Dave Lowry for some of the inspiration behind "uke"..... 

Working with Younglings.....

As a coach who works with children and adults I am often asked which group I prefer working with and to be honest both groups have equally challenging and enjoyable aspects. When working with adults you can expect more organisation, dialogue and self starting but there is also the fact that adults can be set in their ways and not so open to coaching. Youngsters on the other hand are slightly more malleable and if you catch them young enough they will absorb info like a sponge but they do need more organising. I find youngsters tend to divide into two camps when it comes to fencing; one group are there for the social/peer group side and the others are there because they like sport and want to do well. Neither of these is a wrong reason to attend a fencing club! But you will have to tailor your approach accordingly depending on who you're working with. I've been blessed with some great youngsters over the years and am very proud of them and their achievements so have no complaints really. Here are some of my tips for working with young people in a coaching capacity.....


Give praise: It's very easy to forget that praise is a great motivator, although most youngsters get very embarrassed by it!

Treat them like adults: although don't expect them to necessarily respond like adults

Be prepared to organise them: remember that choosing a random training partner can be traumatic for a teenager.....

Communications will vary: lads who have been loquacious will suddenly become mono-syllabic when they hit 13. Conversely, girls of 13 will sound like women of 33....

Never show fear: Youngsters can smell it....

If you ask "any questions?" be prepared for ANY questions

Know the rules: Because there will always be an eleven year old who will know them better than you do.....

Never, ever comment on young lad's hairstyles/choice of nail varnish: You are not their parents.......

Have some stock phrases to hand: such as "in general you're not learning anything when your lips are moving......"

Don't expect them to get things right first time: and don't let them get down on themselves if they don't either

They will not all carry on with their fencing: So try to make fencing something they will remember with pleasure in later years

Competition results are not everything, it's the person inside that counts: although you may find it hard to convince some parents of that....

Put their interests first: do not let your ego live through them and their achievements. Never push a youngster into something they don't want to do, particularly regarding competition

Above all, remember you are in a position of trust and behave professionally and accordingly

Goal setting

By request here are some thoughts on goal setting. Anyone who has been trained as a coach either in sport or business will know about the popular SMART acronym for goals. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time boxed. It might be a cliche but it's a cliche because it's a good method! Any goal a coach sets you or you set yourself should meet these criteria.
Specific: "I want to be a great fencer" is not specific. "I want to finish in the top 16 of the local competition" is. For advanced goals S can also equal Stretching in that it should challenge you to improve.
Measurable: "I want to improve my lunge" is not measurable unless your coach gives you a yardstick to go on. "I want to score 10 parry ripostes tonight" is measurable
Achievable: "I want to win every match I fight in" is probably not going to be achievable unless you are an elite athlete. "I want to win 50% or 75% of my fights at this competition" may be a better intermediate goal
Realistic (or Relevant/Results focussed): Make your goals relevant to you. If you don't feel they will lead to results or improvement then you will tend to let them slip 
Time boxed: Give yourself a reasonable timescale to attain these goals, otherwise you are going to struggle. But bear in mind they should still be stretching....!
Some coaches will be happy to set you goals; others will want you to think them out for yourself. If a coach sets you a goal you should expect an explanation and be given the chance to ask questions about it if you need to. For me, the student has got to believe in them, otherwise they are useless. I also believe that goals should promote positive thoughts and behaviours; if a goal is making for an unpleasant fencer then it might be time to reconsider the goal. I may be old fashioned, but if a goal is not going to make you a better person then give it a miss. Winnig is not everything; but goals that promote improved performance or being a better human being are great.  
Also, don't mistake an instruction for a goal. "Do fifty lunges" is normally an instruction from a coach for short term gain and action and probably isn't open for discussion!
Hope this has been useful, I will set myself a goal of replying to requests within a few days.... hopefully I'll achieve it!   

Well I never.....

I've just been looking at the stats section of this blog and I'm amazed to see many people from all over the world have been reading this blog. I'd just like to thank you all for dropping in, if there's anything you'd like me to ramble on about please let me know by posting a comment, you can do it anonymously without having a blogger account .... it's good to have you on board even if you're only surfing by! 

Thanks

Dave     

It's all in the hands... (and fingers)

I was teaching a lesson at the club recently concerning the bind and was able to examine yet another fencing paradox. The bind of itself is a very strong move, controlliong and deflecting the opponent's blade. However, whilst it is powerful, it depends on the exponent having 'soft hands'. By this I mean the strength of the move is not executed by excessively powerful hand movements, more by the power of the wrist and arm. If too much power is put into the hand or fist when making the bind then the point will be out of line with target area and every second it is out of line is a useless second. By using soft hands i.e. not excessively tightening the grip through the fingers, the point can be angulated to still be in line with the opponent's target area even if the line is octave or quarte. If the grip is too tight then the blade will swipe the air as the bind is made and will be more likely to land flat. So when executing a strong attack it must be done softly!
In terms of epee there are some differences in that epee attacks tend to be delivered with the arm in a much straighter on guard position due to the conventions of the weapon. This tends to make the grip stiffer as  a straight arm tends to cause the muscles of the hand to tighten as a matter of course thus binds in epee also tend to have to overcome a stronger grip from the adversary as well. However, it still holds true that if the hand is too stiff the point will once more be removed from the target area which can be costly, particularly as the target in epee can often be a smaller area such as the hand. Keeping the grip relaxed through the fingers really does make all the difference in these types of attack.
So there you go, not a particularly philosophical post this time but hopefully a useful one!               

You've got to have attitude.....

A fellow fencer was telling me the other night after a fight that she was working on changing her attitude during matches by being more energetic and assertive. This matched my observations during the match, there was a lot less preparing going on and a lot more doing. I commend her for her attempts as is not easy to change your attitude to anything but fencing is one of those sports where attitude counts for a lot and it can be sensed by your opponent to your advantage. This will only work on people who have fenced for a while though, someone who is aware what is going on during a bout so that they will pick up on these nuances. It's not exactly Jedi mind tricks (and it works just as much on you as your opponent) but it is worth trying. Changing from relaxed to energetic, passive to active etc can take an opponent by surprise, particularly if they have caught your mood, which is likely as it is a subconscious human activity to mirror someone as it comes from our primitive tribal beginnings and the need to belong. Brushing up or changing your attitude can do a lot of good......         

The Place Where The Swords Cross

Most fencers spend as little time as possible in range of their opponent's sword, preferring to dart in with a step lunge and make an attack, before speedily withdrawing. This is traditionally thought of as the right thing to do, particularly if the opponent's sword had a real sharp point. Whilst fighting with epee recently I discovered that sometimes the reverse is true and it can pay to move in even closer and persist with your attack. Why? Well in many cases the opponent will back off so you can follow them. If they don't and you miss with your attack you run the risk of being hit as you recover. Finally, most opponent's are expecting you to recover (it's what we are all taught) so doing the opposite can be advantageous.
Moving into your opponent's reach is counter-intuitive and calls for a bit more nerve but then this is true of many things in life that are new, challenging or even frightening. Sometimes it takes courage to deal with unusual or intimidating circumstances but this is something we all need to do in the course of our life experiences. Sometimes rich experience comes in the place where the swords cross.......