Motivation

As I observe fencers in their natural environment I have something to report:
Fencers fence for a variety of reasons. All of them are valid and interesting, not to mention widely varied.

If you visit fencing.net you will find that the vast majority of fencers, parents, coaches, & directors swear by fencers who compete without emotion. That a cold state of mind, one who fences like a dutchman plays footy, is preferable to a fencer who competes with emotions written on the sleeve. I know that this is not the only way to fence because I've watched emotionally unstable teammates win Div II and Div I at nationals. Not only do these emotional fencers excel at fencing, they are rather terrifying at it and draw additional speed from their baser instincts. From personal experiences, I can say without a doubt that emotion can be a strong ally if properly harnessed & trained.

The same can be said for anything as it relates to training and control. Sometimes summoning anger and frustration can be a beneficial, as it is almost impossible to discount these feelings and at times downright unhealthy. If someone goes 4 points up on you in DEs or Pools, you get riled up. Especially if you are inexperienced. Instead of discounting your frustration, control and use the extra power and hate going through your body. Please forgive me if I sound like the emperor from Star Wars, but if its there you might as well use it. Resisting baser human urges in a bout might hurt you more than helping you. But before you try any of these methods on the strip, try them in practice first.

As to the ideal ice cold fencer, I can agree that it is best to fence cold. No hate, no happiness, no neutrality, nothing. I prefer my mind to be empty and to view my opponent as a math equation that only needs an answer before they go away and I can progress to the next question. After all, X has to equal 15 before I advance, how hard of a math problem is that?

Unfortunately, the above paragraph only applies on our best days as fencers. Actually, the above paragraph only applies on our best days as humans. That is why you have to know how to deal with emotion on the strip. As most fencers will agree, anything you don't use as leverage against an opponent will be used as leverage against you.

It is hard to convince young kids that their superiors are willing to be this ruthless. The world is full of happiness and David beating Goliath, right? Wrong. The truth of the matter is that Goliath beats the crap out of David on a daily basis. But sometimes David realizes that the deck is stacked against him and decides that he is going to throw a rock into Goliath's face. As a former David, I have found numerous rocks to throw in the face on oncoming Goliaths. Find yours.