With classes off for the festive period, I have decided to start a blog in an attempt to satiate my appetite for HEMA. I will likely post here a few times a month. Without further ado, below is my first post.
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Towards the end of 2015, a few of us Scottish fencers set some personal HEMA goals that we wanted to achieve in 2016. This seems like a reasonable time to reflect on whether they were achieved, and set some new ones for 2017.
My two 2016 goals are noted below.
1. Attend a HEMA event which is not run by the Academy of Historical Arts
I set this goal for myself because I had settled nicely into my comfort zone. I was fencing almost exclusively with friends, in environments familiar to me. I am not an outgoing person, so having this goal forced me (my stubbornness outweighs my introversion) to go somewhere unfamiliar, and fence with new opponents.
I jumped in at the deep end and attended Swordfish 2016, which was an incredible experience.
I competed in the Longsword Open, and was pleased that I managed to reach the top 32 (where Thomas Nyzell eliminated me - that man is absurdly good). I wasn't pleased with my fencing performance in my pool fights, but was much happier with my top 32 fight - the pressure I felt to win was lifted substantially when I realised who my opponent was, and that there would be no shame in losing!
On Sunday morning, I got in as much free fencing as I could, sparring ~10 different people before we had to pack up our kit and move on.
2. Rely less on natural speed and more on good, historical technique
When I was rewatching videos of my fights at the end of 2015, it was apparent that I often win less on earned technical merit, and more on the natural lottery of "being very quick". Many exchanges I would simply perform an umschlagen or a durchwelsen at an impressive speed, then back out in a defensive guard. I rarely seized the vor, most of the meisterhauen were used exclusively when drilling, and my guard positions were often lazy. I decided that this was, for want of a better word, bullshit.
It's harder to quantify whether I can tick this box. I feel I have made good progress towards achieving it, but I still have a long way to go. My main method for working on this has been a lot of reading and thinking to supplement my training - I've dug far deeper into sources this year than I had in previous years, primarily looking at earlier KDF treatises (Ringeck and Pseudo-Danzig) instead of sticking mostly to Meyer's gloss as I have in the past.
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My two 2016 goals are noted below.
1. Attend a HEMA event which is not run by the Academy of Historical Arts
I set this goal for myself because I had settled nicely into my comfort zone. I was fencing almost exclusively with friends, in environments familiar to me. I am not an outgoing person, so having this goal forced me (my stubbornness outweighs my introversion) to go somewhere unfamiliar, and fence with new opponents.
I jumped in at the deep end and attended Swordfish 2016, which was an incredible experience.
I competed in the Longsword Open, and was pleased that I managed to reach the top 32 (where Thomas Nyzell eliminated me - that man is absurdly good). I wasn't pleased with my fencing performance in my pool fights, but was much happier with my top 32 fight - the pressure I felt to win was lifted substantially when I realised who my opponent was, and that there would be no shame in losing!
On Sunday morning, I got in as much free fencing as I could, sparring ~10 different people before we had to pack up our kit and move on.
2. Rely less on natural speed and more on good, historical technique
When I was rewatching videos of my fights at the end of 2015, it was apparent that I often win less on earned technical merit, and more on the natural lottery of "being very quick". Many exchanges I would simply perform an umschlagen or a durchwelsen at an impressive speed, then back out in a defensive guard. I rarely seized the vor, most of the meisterhauen were used exclusively when drilling, and my guard positions were often lazy. I decided that this was, for want of a better word, bullshit.
It's harder to quantify whether I can tick this box. I feel I have made good progress towards achieving it, but I still have a long way to go. My main method for working on this has been a lot of reading and thinking to supplement my training - I've dug far deeper into sources this year than I had in previous years, primarily looking at earlier KDF treatises (Ringeck and Pseudo-Danzig) instead of sticking mostly to Meyer's gloss as I have in the past.
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My goals for 2017 will be very similar to 2016.
1. Attend more than one international event
Swordfish has given me a taste for international HEMA. Financially, this may be difficult, but I would like to attend at least two events, likely with one being Swordfish 2017.
2. Rely less on natural speed and more on good, historical technique
Sound familiar? I don't think I'm done with this goal just yet.
3. Write regular blog posts
A little meta, but I feel writing posts here will help me process my thoughts and improve my analytical skills.
1. Attend more than one international event
Swordfish has given me a taste for international HEMA. Financially, this may be difficult, but I would like to attend at least two events, likely with one being Swordfish 2017.
2. Rely less on natural speed and more on good, historical technique
Sound familiar? I don't think I'm done with this goal just yet.
3. Write regular blog posts
A little meta, but I feel writing posts here will help me process my thoughts and improve my analytical skills.
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Now my goals are set in digital stone, I can push myself to achieve them. Hopefully when I revisit this post in 2018, I will be able to tick all three boxes.
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