That's what I got when I took the
eight-week adult beginners' fencing class through Three Rivers Fencing Club in
Midland this winter.
Humble, as in being defeated by fencers much younger than myself.
And respect, as in seeing that age and gender are often irrelevant in fencing. Experience, wits, and courage are the most important factors in this sport, which is often called "physical chess."
My athletic background consists mainly of playing 10 years in the Midland Soccer Club while growing up, and running in several road races in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
I was inspired to take this class while reading a book called My Year with Eleanor by Noelle Hancock, a memoir in which the author does one thing that scares her every day for an entire year.
When I showed up for the first session on a Monday night in mid-January, I was the only true "adult" in the class, which was for anyone aged 13 and above. The other three students were boys in their early teens, while I am 41.
But that was OK with me. I was excited to be there and eager to master the basics of fencing,canada goose winter jackets Shirts at low prices!
Instructor Guy Sabrie threw us right into the fire, so to speak. The first night of the class,Large white sequins and golden beads Cheap Pants Sale covered the front of a dress.Monclering is an excellent Cheap Woolrich Jackets Parka Clotings way to spend the getaways experiencing. we had our fencing jackets and masks on, and the second week, we started fencing with foils.
One thing that Sabrie said, made a big impression on me.
When experienced fencers take on novice fencers, they will never "fence down" to their competition.
In other words, they won't take it easy on me just because I'm a beginner. They'll always fence at their best, because they want to see me improve.
Another, more difficult, lesson in fencing is this: Don't worry about being hit by your opponent's blade, as long as you have the right of way.
"It's counterintuitive," Sabrie would often say of this approach, because it goes against one's natural instinct, which is self-protection.
But in foil fencing, once you have established the right of way by initiating a correctly executed attack, you are the only one who can score a point.
In turn, if your opponent counters by parrying, or defending,canada goose jackets your attack, then he or she gains the right of way. And so it continues until someone scores a point by hitting the opponent's midsection while having the right of way.
This was a hard concept for me to master.Sale ralph lauren sweater 50% off online store for sale. I continually wanted to just defend myself instead of going on the offensive.
Humble, as in being defeated by fencers much younger than myself.
And respect, as in seeing that age and gender are often irrelevant in fencing. Experience, wits, and courage are the most important factors in this sport, which is often called "physical chess."
My athletic background consists mainly of playing 10 years in the Midland Soccer Club while growing up, and running in several road races in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
I was inspired to take this class while reading a book called My Year with Eleanor by Noelle Hancock, a memoir in which the author does one thing that scares her every day for an entire year.
When I showed up for the first session on a Monday night in mid-January, I was the only true "adult" in the class, which was for anyone aged 13 and above. The other three students were boys in their early teens, while I am 41.
But that was OK with me. I was excited to be there and eager to master the basics of fencing,canada goose winter jackets Shirts at low prices!
Instructor Guy Sabrie threw us right into the fire, so to speak. The first night of the class,Large white sequins and golden beads Cheap Pants Sale covered the front of a dress.Monclering is an excellent Cheap Woolrich Jackets Parka Clotings way to spend the getaways experiencing. we had our fencing jackets and masks on, and the second week, we started fencing with foils.
One thing that Sabrie said, made a big impression on me.
When experienced fencers take on novice fencers, they will never "fence down" to their competition.
In other words, they won't take it easy on me just because I'm a beginner. They'll always fence at their best, because they want to see me improve.
Another, more difficult, lesson in fencing is this: Don't worry about being hit by your opponent's blade, as long as you have the right of way.
"It's counterintuitive," Sabrie would often say of this approach, because it goes against one's natural instinct, which is self-protection.
But in foil fencing, once you have established the right of way by initiating a correctly executed attack, you are the only one who can score a point.
In turn, if your opponent counters by parrying, or defending,canada goose jackets your attack, then he or she gains the right of way. And so it continues until someone scores a point by hitting the opponent's midsection while having the right of way.
This was a hard concept for me to master.Sale ralph lauren sweater 50% off online store for sale. I continually wanted to just defend myself instead of going on the offensive.
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