I observe this reaction in people whenever I tell them I am a part time fencing coach. They think I am some weird guy who plays D&D all day in a basement & occasionally comes to the surface to teach other nerds my methods of mastery over nerdom.
This isn't entirely true. When I instruct someone how to fence, I instruct them how to fence. I could care less if they are nerdy, gangsta, corporate, redneck, none of that crap matters. We don't just stand there hitting eachother's weapons pretending to be swashbucklers in a bad movie, we move around much more than most people think.
I don't know where this stereotype of the awful fencing instructor comes from, but I have been trying to abolish it for the last two years. I pride myself on being in good physical condition and not wheezing after I teach/do footwork. I look to my students to be in good enough physical condition not to be wheezing after footwork. Conditioning is terribly important to this sport as it is a physical activity.
It is also important to drill basics even when you've been fencing for many years. It's called basic technique, and if you don't use it you lose it.
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