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Journal cyranoVR's Journal: Results 8

Journal by cyranoVR

AP: Smart, Mattern win fencing titles

AP: Erinn Smart defeats three-time Olympic champ

USA TODAY: Siblings give USA a double edge

AP: Columbia, New York City draw fencers
At a school where the most well-known sports feat was a record football losing streak, Columbia's fencing team has consistently been among the nation's best.

It's all about the PRIDE, baby.

* * *

I went 1-5 in my first round pool and was eliminated in the first round. It's the worst result I've had in a National competition since high school.

ARGH.

I didn't even have that hard of a pool. I had one guy from the olympic team who beat me 5-0 and a teammate who beat me 5-3. But the 3 other bouts I could have won on an average day. But this was not an average day. It was one of the shittiest days of my fencing career.

I won my second to last bout 5-0, and if I had won my last bout I would have gone up. But I lost - and to a relatively weak fencer.

ARGH

* * *

Things I did wrong

- Not having good, balanced weapons.
- Ate too much breakfast: raisins, half a danish, half a bowl of rasin bran, coffee, orange juice. WTF was I thinking???
- Didn't use any preparation in the bouts I lost. Just bounced around and spastically counter-attacked or took big parries. Argh.
- On the same vein - didn't develop a conscious plan for any of my bouts
- Forgot to listen to music before my first round bout. Instead, sat around dwelling on my bout. Bad.

actually, maybe developing a plan is overrated. You should develop the plan in the bout but beforehand just focus on getting psyched up and ready.

Needless to say, my lack of good preparation was a BIG PROBLEM. When I free fence from now on, that should be the ONLY thing I work on is my preparation.

Also, my right contact-lens was bothering me. Bad. I scratched my eye somehow and it really hurt. Time to invest in some sports-glasses?

* * *

Things I did right:
- Got a lot of rest the two days prior to the competition and the night before. 7-8 hours each night.
- Warmed up well.
- At least got fired up for that one bout.

After I won that bout, i was very happy and smiling. Then my coach told me to get serious and stuff. I reacted by getting really focused on the next bout. This was a mistake.

I am a very emotional person and I use my emotions to get my mood elevated. I don't fence well when I'm sitting around dwelling on my next bout. I'm better when I am laughing, having fun and enjoying myself. My mind is a lot more active and alert that way.

* * *

I spoke with Keeth Smart after my first round elimination a bit. He had some helpful words about how fencing is a continuous process of learning and so on. Of course, it's a bit easier to have that perspective when you are on your way to a second straight Olympic Team.

Still, he also had a worse season. Last year he won a grand prix World Cup; this year, I don't think he even made a final.

How could I feel like I've improved so much as a fencer and then I fuck up. I put pressure on myself? Fuck that. Everyone puts pressure on themselves. The difference between the winners and the Losers is that the Winners respond by getting fired up and pounding their opponent, whereas the Losers (that is to say ME this past season) respond by freezing up and/or rushing.

I need to start going to more tournaments or something. But MrsVR wants me to not spend so much time fencing. But thene she's talking about putting off kids so we can fence some more years. I wish she'd make up her mind.

* * *

The other thing to consider is that the level of Men's epee fencing has raised considerably in just the last 2 years. Kelsey, Thompson and Mattern are all ranked in the top 50 in the world, and they've got a crowd of guys clawing up from beneath them. A lot of these guys are training full time; and by that I mean they don't have jobs. They just fence and work out 7 days a week. How the fuck do you compete with that? You can't.

Fortunately, I have a 24 hour gym 15 feet from my apartment door...so maybe if I work for the next 6 months and drink my milk and shit, I can get closer to the level of athleticism that is now required to fence at the national level. Fuck, having the physique of a 14 year-old isn't going to cut it anymore.

Fencing for Gold When you've won national championships, as Seth Kelsey has, it takes something pretty special to be considered a breakthrough event.

* * *

Well, the silver lining is that MrsVR gets to take home a National Championship medal for team and I got to have fun watching some awesome fencing in the Men's Saber event. Keeth was losing in both bouts, but when the score got to be 7-8 against him, he completely turned it around. He was attacking with such confidence and ferocity, swooping down on his opponent like some graceful and merciless bird of pray. And the look of joy on his face after scoring on such an attack - THAT's what's all about. Not the victory, but the feeling of scoring an incredible touch.

Dammit.

Sports Illustrated: With the Olympics approaching, here are the top U.S. storylines to follow
The Fencers ... seriously.

For those who didn't expect to see fencing on the A-list of Olympic stories, take note: This will be the best U.S. team assembled at an Olympics, with some of the most compelling stories. Sisters Sada and Emily Jacobson lead a strong squad in the debut event of women's team saber. But the best tale of all may be Keeth Smart, a product of the Peter Westbrook Foundation that introduces inner-city youth to the sport. Last year, Smart, also a saber fencer, became the first U.S. fencer in history to be ranked No. 1 in the world when he held that ranking for several weeks. Sada Jacobsen became the second later in the year. Should either of them medal in Athens, they would be the first U.S. fencers to do so since Westbrook won a bronze in 1984.

This team is going to have more pressure on them than any previous team, because everyone is hoping that they do well. I just hope that they can respond by really turning it up and getting pumped. I.e. do as I say, not as I do. Argh.

This discussion was created by cyranoVR (518628) for Friends and Friends of Friends only, but now has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

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  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • That "spinach is good for you" myth dates back to the turn of the 20th century. Someone misplaced the decimal point in a chart of the nutritional value of various foods and a legend was born. Hence Popeye eating spinach, and generations of parents repeating the mantra to their kids when, in fact, spinach is of average benefit at best.

      Yes, I do know a lot of useless stuff.
    • It sounds like you're getting there, at least from what you write in your journals. You're learning where your head is at, at least, and learning what it takes for you to do better.

      I've been working on this for 15+ years...you'd think I'd fucking get it by now.

      Of course, Keeth's point was that it's a never-ending process (plus, what works for you 15 years ago doesn't work now because you are different person).

      It's just fucking frustrating. Fuck.
  • I went 1-5 in my first round pool and was eliminated in the first round. It's the worst result I've had in a National competition since high school.
    With all that work you put in, maybe things will work out better in the long run.
  • You dont' just get 'done' like a cake. You grow like a plant, creeping one leaf at a time. Small actions, endlessly repeated, add up to major training. My point is... don't worry about it. Set out on the road that takes you where you want to be, and keep walking no matter what.

    Congrats to Mrs.VR, too- i didn't know she fenced, but it makes sense. Yay, you guys!

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