I'm already seen as a weirdo/crazy man because I fence, and now I'm starting with straights.:nj
Does anyone else here fence? My main blade is the foil, though when I compete, I do both foil and epee. I'm a mediocre saberist, and only do it for fun.
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I'm already seen as a weirdo/crazy man because I fence, and now I'm starting with straights.:nj
Does anyone else here fence? My main blade is the foil, though when I compete, I do both foil and epee. I'm a mediocre saberist, and only do it for fun.
I did kendo for 2 years when I was 10 or something like that.
I had another go at it 2 or 3 years ago, but I quit when it was time to put on armor.
For those who don't know kendo is the Japanese art of sword fighting, and is practised with bamboo swords and armor. wooden swords are used for prcatising kata (forms).
Kendo involves lots of hitting on the head with a bamboo sword, and concussions are not unheard of.
I already had a severe concussion once in my life, and don't want to risk that again. That is my main reason for stopping with martial arts altogether. That and the fact that I want to focus all my effort on systems programming.
I also sit behind a computer screen for an average of 12 hours / day, and a concussion would be a very serious problem.
I use to study iaido and have a fondness for any type of art involving a sword. I've never had the opportunity to try fencing though.
Did it for two years in HS, and a couple more semesters in college. Foil mostly. Still have my foil and epee hanging up in the closet.
Used to do kendo, and light free style sword play (ala SCA). Also took one fencing class (foil) liked it, but haven't found the time to return to it.
I was thinking of getting my son involved. He is 13 I don't know if this is too young.
13 is prime time to get him started. That way if he competes, he'll have plenty of time to get good before college and possibly nab a scholarship:)
Wow, two kendo guys. My salle also had a kendo class, and they were very hardcore. Even with the armor, there's no way I could get beat with that shinai, plus all the yelling:roflmao The kendo instructor we had was a very large man (super nice), and he could seriously beat the tar out of an opponent. I saw him compete once and was just in awe.
These guys are serious - and it is a blast. I have always wanted to fence, but I leaned toward heavier blades and the historical aspect of real sword fighting - not the stylized Conan stuff. These boys use Italian and German manuscripts from Medieval and Renaissance schools to train using Eastern style swords and methods from a long time ago. Very scholarly, very cool.
I highly recommend those guys who would like to learn an Eastern martial art, without the costumes and turkey legs, to check this out.
http://www.thearma.org/
K
13 is an excellent age. I played from my 11th till my 16th and it's a great sport. I competed in the Dutch Championships twice with decent reults (once 7th on Epee and once on Foil) and various other competitions like the Dutch Open championships (we even had russians coming over for that one). I ended up 4th on that one.Quote:
Originally Posted by RichZ
Maybe you've ever heard of Siebren Tiggelaar or Bas Verwijlen? They were in my....uhm..club? I used to train with Siebren.
I don't play now. Things got too intense for something that I wanted to be a hobby. But it's really fun to do and I've been thinking about starting again.
That's pretty cool! Funny thing, I've tried to actually sword fight, but my body immediately goes into sport fencing mode. I start bouncing around, trying to fleche and jump:D
I did Kendo for four years back in college. Never did get around to testing for my first DAN but according to the sensi I was ready, there just weren't any tournaments in my neck of the woods at the right time. I have thought of getting back into it but there is only one club in my area and they meet in a campus building that I would have to pay a small fortune to have a pass for, that as well as the time commitment has kept me out of the ring. I miss the hell out of it though.
I tried to fence SCA style but after so long with real sword training, those fakers didn't stand a chance. They actually complained about how often they would get hit in the head by me HA HA HA :cen :cen
Quote:
Originally Posted by Quick Orange
I have the opposite problem. The style that worked for me was a mix of Aikido sword (or at least the sword that my sensei taught us in class) and classic Chinese saber. No jumping, lots of side stepping.
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Originally Posted by Wildtim
The one's here are the same. Bunch of cry babies, the lot of them. The light fighters are not so bad, but they broke all ties with the SCA. Crossed shinais with one of the heavy fighters once and he said "that wouldn't work against someone in armor". Good thing he wasn't wearing any...:w
What did he think the Samuri wore tissue paper? Some people think the shinai is actually a weapon they don't realize it is two steps removed from an actual weapon. I say two steps because the first, the boken, still killed to many students.
SCA armoured and schlager fencing in the round, been a long time, if i went back at it, i'd get poked in the spare tire. :eek: