{"id":2142,"date":"2025-02-10T20:44:52","date_gmt":"2025-02-10T20:44:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.waylandmiddleschool.org\/orange_black\/?p=2142"},"modified":"2025-03-31T19:58:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-31T19:58:30","slug":"fencing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.waylandmiddleschool.org\/orange_black\/fencing\/","title":{"rendered":"FENCING"},"content":{"rendered":"
\r\n
\r\n \r\n <\/i>\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/span>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Maria Kuklina<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you ever heard of the sport \u201cFencing\u201d? Well, it is much more than just a rare sport. In this article, you will learn abundant facts about this amazing sport, and what it takes to be good at this sport. You will also learn about different athletes that play this sport. I hope you enjoy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is FENCING?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, you read the introduction and you think you are interested in this topic. You might even want to try it! But, in this section of this article you will learn about the rules and  different types of fencing. So, let’s get started!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fencing is a hard sport that requires a lot of balance, coordination, speed, quick thinking and fast reaction time. You need to be able to know what your opponent is doing and react to that, or else they will hit you. Fencing really takes stick sword fighting to the next level! This might seem really hard, but everyone starts with the same 4 moves. The en garde position, the lunge where you extend your arm at your opponent and launch forward, the retreat where you move backward, and the advance where you move forward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cEn garde\u201d position. (1st picture)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The lunge. \u00a0 (2nd picture)\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 The advance and retreat.\u00a0(3rd picture)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you have those four down, you can pretty much fence comfortably. There is also a bunch of bladework (sword techniques you need to learn) that you do, but you really just need to make something up when you\u2019re fencing. You don\u2019t have a lot of time to think, you have less than a second to decide whether you should attack or defend. But you\u2019ll get better at this once you fence more. As you try harder and progress, you might even win first place! You might even travel to faraway places, like Egypt where fencing originated. So, if you\u2019re still interested, this might be the sport for you! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE PROS AND CONS OF FENCING<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am writing this as a person with 2 years of experience fencing, but people that have more years of experience might say otherwise. Let’s start with the pros. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First off, fencing is great exercise. You can burn lots of calories and it makes your legs, arms, and core stronger. You can get faster reaction time and you will be able to think faster and more easily under pressure. Fencing is a sport usually played 1v1, but there are also teams. I chose fencing because you are just going solo, and you won\u2019t be humiliated by your teammates like in basketball or soccer if you lose. Of course, I\u2019ve never played basketball or soccer, so I might be wrong. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now let’s do the cons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cons of fencing aren\u2019t that bad in my opinion. You can get bruises and big cuts, only if people hit you in the legs or arms. The torso doesn\u2019t hurt that bad when your opponent hits you, because you have layers of protection. A chest protector, underarm protector, jacket, and lame. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll learn about those later. Another con of fencing is the cost, because you can\u2019t keep borrowing gear from your fencing club. You need to buy fencing pants, separate shoes for fencing, protection gear, and at LEAST three swords in case one breaks. Oh, and you also need a body chord and a mask chord. And that costs a LOT of money. A fencing sword costs around $100 (Look it up.) So, that\u2019s a pretty big con of fencing. A lot of families can\u2019t afford it. My family is the average family, and we can afford it. But there are different types of average for different families. If you think you can afford fencing, congrats! You might have found yourself a new sport! And if you can\u2019t afford it, no worries! You can borrow gear from your fencing club! (But not for long) You can buy things on sale, or take it slow, buying items one at a time. The most important thing is that you get to fence, and it doesn\u2019t matter what gear you\u2019re wearing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fencing Gear<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fencing gear can cost over 2500 dollars if you\u2019re not a competitive fencer. If you travel and are fencing competitively, then it can cost over 20000! That\u2019s a lot of money! This is because you constantly have to replace your gear if it breaks or mysteriously stops working. If you\u2019re interested in what gear you need, this is where to look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fencing gear has lots of things to buy, from shoes to blades. Here you will learn lots about gear you need. First off, fencing clubs hate outside shoes in their fencing area, and I\u2019m not sure why. You need your own shoes just for fencing. Next, you need some fencing pants. These pants are thick, so if you get hit in the leg it won\u2019t hurt as much as if you were hit in leggings. You can also wear baggy pants and keep your fencing pants strictly for competitions so they don\u2019t get dirty. Now, on to the protection gear. First, you need a chest protector in order to fence. If you don\u2019t have one, you would just have 3 layers of fabric protecting you from the blade. It is a very important item to wear when you\u2019re fencing so you don\u2019t get hurt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, the underarm protector. This piece of protective clothing basically goes around the arm you fence. It\u2019s like a half t-shirt. Then, you need a body cord. I\u2019ll try to describe how to do this in words, but it\u2019s much easier if you actually SEE how to put it on. You hold the small plug side in your fencing hand, and you put on your jacket, which is a long sleeved thick jacket, and then your lame which is like the jacket but it has no arm protection (If you fence foil. If you fence sabre, the lame goes over your arms. You\u2019ll learn about this later.) It is also made out of little gray electrical\u2026 things that register the touch if someone hits you. This only works with the bodycord. Also, you get little splinters from the electrical things sometimes. After you finish putting on your gear, you need to clip the metal clip to your lame. It doesn\u2019t matter where you clip it, as long as it doesn\u2019t fall off. Put on your glove, then you get your blade and plug in the small plug of the body cord. Lastly, put on your mask and clip the mask cord to your mask and the back of your lame. Your coach can help you with this. And that\u2019s it! Now you can fence without worrying about getting hurt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

PICTURES AND PRICES<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You also will need tape for the tip of your blade. This helps your blade register the touch more easily and efficiently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

TYPES OF FENCING<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are three types of fencing: Sabre, Foil, and Epee. I do foil, and it is considered the safest type of fencing. In foil you can only hit in the chest, where your chest protector is.  Sabre, for me, is extremely reckless. Whenever I\u2019m watching fencing, all I see is two people slashing their blades around in different directions. So, getting hit must really hurt. Also, in Sabre, you can only hit in the chest and arms. And trust me, it really hurts when you get hit in the arms, because there is no protection of the arms. It\u2019s literally just two pieces of fabric. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epee is also reckless, but my dad used to do it. He said that the epee weighs more than the sabre and foil, which proves that it is the slowest form of fencing. Foil weighs a maximum of about 500 grams, and sabre weighs also about 500 grams, and the epee weighs 750 grams. It might not seem like much of a difference, and it might not seem like they\u2019re really heavy, but trust me, when you’re a beginner your arm isn\u2019t used to holding a sword, so it gets tired. Also, in epee you can literally hit anywhere. Yup, anywhere. In the mask, the shoes, the legs, the arms, anywhere! So you must get a LOT of bruises from this type of fencing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I\u2019ll leave the decision up to you. Fencing is really a beautiful sport, and each weapon type has its own pros and cons. But no matter what weapon you do, you still do the en garde position, advance, retreat, and lunge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

MY EXPERIENCE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My experience fencing has been a really fun experience. I\u2019ve been fencing since I was nine years old. (I\u2019m 12) I have won two gold medals, but no silver and no bronze! And I have gotten a lot of bruises and injuries from this sport. But I love it, no matter what injuries I get. I remember one of my friends quit fencing as a beginner because someone hit her on the knee. Me, on the other hand, I didn\u2019t quit when I got a huge scar on my elbow and a giant bruise on my thigh. Also, I have been to Ohio, New Jersey twice, and New York twice for Nationals and Regionals. I love traveling with fencing, because I get to feel famous and stay in hotels. Sometimes I feel really tired fencing at nationals, but I always try my best, no matter what. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is my fencing club:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.starfencingacademy.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are other clubs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.vivofencingclub.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.marxfencingacademy.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.bostonfencingclub.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
Home<\/a><\/blockquote>